A Breath of Snow and Ashes

Starred review from September 15, 2005
Anyone who has gotten this far in Gabaldon's popular "Outlander" saga knows to expect loads of steamy sex, kidnappings, medical miracles, and gritty period details. "Breath"'s 900-plus pages don't disappoint. With the threat of the American Revolution looming, 20th-century time traveler Claire Fraser and her 18th-century Scottish husband, Jamie, must finally choose sides and prepare for war. On the domestic front, Claire's and Jamie's daughter, Brianna, experiments with piping running water to their cabin while her husband, Roger, contemplates ordainment as a minister. But what about that newspaper clipping that says Claire and Jamie die in a house fire? Knowledge of the future clearly goes only so far. Enemies both old and new add to the continuing drama of the Fraser family's survival in the hinterlands of North Carolina. Gabaldon's enjoyable formula works, even if it's taken five previous novels and a few thousand pages to get to the year 1776. Essential for every fiction collection. [See Prepub Alert, "LJ" 6/1/05.] -Laurel Bliss, Princeton Univ. Lib., NJ

Copyright 2005 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

September 1, 2005
After waiting nearly four years since " The Fiery Cross" (2001), readers will find every expectation fulfilled in the sixth book of the popular Outlander series. Gabaldon shines as she unfolds the continuing story of the Frasers, heartbreakingly heroic highlander Jamie and his time-traveling wife Clare. Set during the three years leading up to the American Revolution, this compulsively readable mix of authentically set historical fiction and completely satisfying romance maps both violent loss and strong family ties. On the eve of war much is changing on Fraser's Ridge and Jamie and Claire encounter much harm. This vivid and haunting novel, therefore, brings an aching sadness, but it is balanced with sheer joy, revelation, and solace. The large scope of the novel allows Gabaldon to do what she does best, paint in exquisite detail the lives of her characters. Gabaldon's ability to invoke the heroic and the harrowing writ large, while also creating moments where you dare not take a breath for fear of missing something tiny and fine, is her hallmark. For it is in describing the sound of rain on the roof, Jamie's injured hand, or the understanding between father and daughter that the world of the novel comes alive and offers readers an enthralling experience. (Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2005, American Library Association.)