User Reviews
Rating: really liked it
*SPOILERS* 
Sadly, I think I've reached the end of my patience with this series. It started out wonderfully, and I will always consider the first, Outlander, to be one of my favorite books of all time. Unfortunately, Gabaldon just couldn't seem to keep her mojo working. At least, not for me. I endured the second book, with all its tedious details and snore-inducing battle descriptions and melodrama. I even accepted the third...even after being completely incensed and on the verge of tears when I realized Claire and Jamie were separated for twenty years.
Seriously.
Twenty. Years.I'm not sure I can ever forgive Gabaldon for that. But I trudged on, hoping somewhere along the way I'd be able to tuck away my disappointment and lose myself in the story again.
But no. This, the fourth book in the series, has completely deadened me to any enjoyment I once took from this fictional world. I don't really know what Gabaldon's intentions were. I find myself wondering if she even had solid plans for where this story would go when she began writing about Claire and Jamie. It doesn't seem like she did because when you read it through, the Claire and Jamie in book four seem like completely different people from the other three books. I know perhaps some people chalk it up to character development, and I understand that characters change. The thing is, characters are supposed to evolve. They're not supposed to behave in an entirely different manner than the reader is used to. Gone are the intelligent, canny, funny, bold characters from the first three books. Jamie Fraser was always a man to contend with. Always one step ahead of everyone else. He always knew what was going on and why and had a plan in place to make things go his way. In this book, however, he appears to just be stumbling along like an imbecile. Claire is timid and outraged in turns, but her reactions never appear to fit in any coherent sense. She's timid when she should be bold, and outraged when she should maybe let something go. It's almost incomprehensible how much I suddenly disliked her.
And their daughter? Brianna?
Gods save me from ever having to read about her again. What an idiot.
My biggest issue with this book is not the fact that the characters were altogether different, it was the fact that they were altogether
stupid. And this is one of those stories that hinges entirely on the Big Misunderstanding. No one is communicating with anyone else, and this of course leads to trouble, which leads to more trouble and more trouble and more trouble since apparently
no one can be bothered to tell anyone else what the hell is going on.
If Brianna needed Roger to stay behind so she could get back, she should have
told him.
Roger should have planned his departure a bit better.
Why did Brianna scream in terror when she saw Roger in the pub? First she was dreamy, then she was screeching. Didn't make much sense.
Why did Roger leave her alone? After his internal fury over how naive she was being about her safety, he leaves her alone again! And what does the simpleton do? The little brain trust waltzes into the cabin of an 18th century pirate and gets raped.
When they're waiting for Roger to show up on the mountain, they keep referring to him as Roger Wakefield, despite the fact that Brianna knows he's going by Mackenzie....
So he gets his ass handed to him by Jamie and sold to the Iroquois as a slave because Jamie can't be bothered to ask him his first fucking name.
I just can't with this book. I'm deeply disappointed and saddened at how badly things were handled, and I just can't bring myself to read any more of it. Especially considering the next book is nearly 500 pages longer than this one.
This was me while I was reading the book:
This was me when I was finished:
Rating: really liked it
One conversation could have easily solved this plot's problem. ONE.
Rating: really liked it
As far as
Outlander novels go, Drums of Autumn is the most bodice-ripperish out of the 4 I've read so far. Mainly, because the entire book is plotted around a MISUNDERSTANDING that could have been resolved with one adult conversation. Oh, how I hate those in romance novels!
Here is how it goes. In this installment Claire and Jamie are in America establishing a Scottish colony in North Carolina, of course not without a fair share of difficulties and misfortunes. Two hundred years into future Brianna discovers information that forces her to risk her life and travel back in time in secret to visit her parents and possibly change their destiny. Roger, Brianna's fiancee, follows her and the couple immediately consummate their relationship. A mix-up concerning Roger's identity (specifically, his last name) is what drives the main conflict of this novel. This tiny misunderstanding leads to a series of pretty dramatic events.
It's not a secret that while Diana Gabaldon is a great storyteller, she is a weak plotter. She admits so herself, saying that she assembles her book as a puzzle, first writing separate scenes and then piecing them together with a plot. Thus very often her plots are overridden with very unlikely coincidences and sometimes deus ex machina. Drums of Autumn is no exception, but here the entire misunderstanding twist is just way overdone and makes some characters (particularly, to my chagrin, Jamie) act like complete idiots.
Another hot button issue for me is this: does every character in the
Outlander series have to get raped at some point? There is a new addition to the list of Lord John, Jamie, Claire, and Fergus. I mean, enough already with the sexual abuse! I am sure even 200 years ago not everyone was assaulted, right?
Brianna and Roger's relationship is given a lot of screen time in this book. Not sure if I care for these two much and believe in their love. Brianna is a pretty unlikable, spoiled, rash person and a source of almost all misfortunes in the story. And poor Roger. He has to go through a lot of pain and suffering for his love.
And the last complaint. For a book of this length (1070 pages!) and with such an extensive use of words like "virgin" and "maidenhead," Drums of Autumn is definitely very light on sex.
You might ask why with all these problems I am giving this novel 4 stars? Well, like I said, Gabaldon is a great storyteller. She is so wordy, so descriptive, so in love with the scenes she writes, so self-indulgent to the point, I think, that she doesn't edit out any of her own writing, and yet I am ready to read anything she writes. There is just an addictive, cracktastick quality to her stories. I love being taken on adventure and Gabaldon does just that. I will undoubtedly read the next book, regardless of rapes, deus ex machinas and contrived plots. But can Jamie be not such a possessive dumb-ass in The Fiery Cross though? Pretty please?
Rating: really liked it
And we have more Jamie and Claire and the others =) ♥
I'm always going to put up the spoiler alert because there is always so much for me to say. I was also talking with a friend about how the books are starting to run together. My reviews may end up being from books before, all combined. Who ever knows!
So far I have loved every one of these books, they are on my favorites list and I hope that doesn't change!
I freaking loved this book! It's one of my favorites in the series.
"Do ye not understand?" he said, in near desperation. "I would lay the world at your feet, Claire--and I have nothing to give ye!"
He honestly thought it mattered.
I sat looking at him, searching for words. He was half turned away, shoulders slumped in despair.
Within an hour, I had gone from anguish at the thought of losing him in Scotland, to strong desire to bed him in the herbaceous borders, and from that to a pronounced urge to hit him on the head with an oar. Now I was back to tenderness.
At last I took one big, callused hand and slid forward so I knelt on the boards between his knees. I laid my head against his chest, and felt his breath stir my hair. I had no words, but I had made my choice.
"'Whither thou goest,'" I said, "'I will go; and where thou lodgest, I will lodge: they people shall be my people, and thy God my God: Where thou diest, will I die and there will I be buried.'" Be it Scottish hill or southern forest. "You do what you have to; I'll be there."
*Sob*
Jamie and Claire landed in Georgia and then ended up in North Carolina. They had to deal with pirates again and Claire lost one of her rings, luckily, not Jamie's ring =) But the other ring does come back later on when Bree has a run in with the sorry arse pirate that had it.
As usual peeps, I'm going to be all over the place with this review.
It turns out that Jamie has an aunt and some cousins and what not in North Carolina. His aunt runs River Run, a plantation with slaves that Claire and Jamie weren't too fond of. So they go out into the wilderness and start building, Fraser's Ridge. They want to have a colony there.
They also take up good with the Native American's (which I loved) after Jamie kills a bear they were tracking when it tries to attack him and Claire. That was a tense moment. Anyway, they were friends with the Native since then and shared many things together.
Ian is living with them and he brought along an Irishwolfhound/Wolf mix he named Rollo! I love Rollo so much. Ian ends up going to live with Native American's later on, getting married, having a baby and Rollo having a bunch of babies. I was so thrilled. I just hope nothing happens to any of them =( But he was with Jamie and Claire for some time, this is toward the end of the book. See, I'm not following anything.
Claire has to try to help treat measles that one of the Native's gets and then Lord Grey and Ian get. The Native died but Lord Grey and Ian lived. She caught theirs right away.
Yes, Lord Grey comes to visit and brings William. I keep having a hard time with Willie because I don't want Jamie to have a son from some stupid woman he didn't like but he had sex with her anyone because she was marrying an old man and didn't want him to be her first. Get a clue that your going to get some twat pregnant. Anyway, it's not Willie's fault but I still wish he didn't exist. I'm not a kid person anyway. I just wish the family would keep popping out their own. Lol.
Then we get to read about some of the stuff that Brianna and Roger are doing on the other side. Well, that sounded funny but you know what I mean.
Then Bree decides to go through the stones and find her mom and dad. She ends up at Lallybroch and gets to meet her extended family! I loved it =) Although, old stupid Laoghaire was there and I wish Bree would have beaten her to a pulp, but I digress.
Oh, and at one point Jamie gives Claire a medical kit of sorts for their 24th anniversary. I almost forgot to mention that random tidbit. I thought it was so freaking sweet that he remembered! He's the man!
Oh, and Fergus and Marsali were having a baby and they left Marsali in Jamaica when they came over to America so nothing would happen to her. But then she came over when Fergus son, Germaine was born. It's so sweet, they are all growing up and having babies =)
There is a sh•t ton more stuff but I'm not going into all of that for Pete's sake.
Bree and Roger had a time of it though. Well they had sex, ew. Bree was raped, of course. There was a misunderstanding with Roger and Jamie knocked his block off and gave him to the Natives. Never fear, Jamie and Claire got him back.
Now, when Bree and Jamie first met I cried. I just couldn't help it. I laughed and then I cried. There is a whole section but I'm only going to add a couple of excerpts from that part.
She could scarcely breathe. His eyes were dark blue, soft with kindness. Her eyes fixed on the open collar of his shirt, where the curly hairs showed, bleached gold against his sunburnt skin.
"Are you--you're Jamie Fraser, aren't you?"
He glanced sharply at her face.
"I am," he said. the wariness had returned to his face; his eyes narrowed against the sun. He glanced quickly behind him, toward the tavern, but nothing stirred in the open doorway. He took a step closer to her.
"Who asks?" he said softly. "Have you a message for me lass?"
She felt an absurd desire to laugh welling up in her throat. Did she have a message?
"My name is Brianna, " she said. He frowned, uncertain, and something flickered in his eyes. He knew it! He'd heard the name and it meant something to him. She swallowed hard, feeling her cheeks blaze as though they'd been seared by a candle flame.
"I'm your daughter," she said, her voice sounding choked to her own ears. "Brianna."
some more stuff and then...
"My God," he croaked. "You're huge."
Her own blush had subsided, but now came back with a vengeance.
"And whose fault is that, do you think?" she snapped. She drew herself up straight and squared her shoulders, glaring. So close, at her full height, she could look him right in the eye, and did.
a bunch more words that made me cry and then.....
And suddenly it as all simple. He held out his arms to her. She stepped into them and found that she had been wrong; he was as big as she imagined--and his arms were as strong about her as she had ever dared to hope.
This was a very emotional moment with a lot more said that just broke me down. Claire was back home and had no idea Bree was there yet.
It was wonderful when she got back and was with them both. Jamie took her hunting for bees, yes bees, to bring back home for them to live and they could have honey.
They had long talks and loving times. AND then, they had knock down drag out fights. I mean Bree is just like Jamie. I could finally see it when they were fighting together. Even Claire said they were so much alike and just let them go at it. Red-headed and stubborn as mules! =)
Bree finally tells Claire that she was raped when she got her mother's wedding ring from Frank back. And, Bree was also pregnant and she thought it was the rapist instead of Roger's but she didn't know for sure. Claire kept telling her it was too close together to decide that.
They took Bree back to River Run and she had the baby and they finally showed up with Roger and told him what all happened. But he loved Bree and didn't care and said that was his son. It was really sweet. And of course Jamie threatened him if he didn't take good care of Bree.
I just wonder what all is going to happen next. There is just so much going on all of the time. I really loved that they were making their own place. It was just beautiful there in the wilderness, of a sorts.
I will say I do miss Scotland and I was glad when Bree got to spend some time at Lallybroch. I really hope they get to go back some day and not on their dying days!
My Blog: Melissa Martin's Reading List
Rating: really liked it
The universe had shifted, with a small, decisive click; he could still hear its echo in his bones."This was already the fourth book of the “Outlander series” and since I didn’t write reviews about the other books I just decided to type one of my “What I liked” and “What I didn’t like” reviews.
First of all I have to say that the pacing of this book was very slow! Truth be told, it was actually so slow that I was even tempted to DNF it! And that means something, because I’ve never ever DNFd a book in my entire life! Gemma is my witness! *lol* I struggled through the first 400 pages and hoped that it would get better. And oh boy, how good it turned out to be!!!! XD
All told, I don’t regret that I fought my way through the beginning, because the rest of the book definitely made up for it! ;-)
If you’ve read the book: Proceed!
If you haven’t read the book yet: Be cautious! =)
If you haven’t read the books before: Why the hell are you even reading this? ;-PGuess that should be a fair warning! Now let’s go to the fun part!
What I liked: - My precious boys and men!!! <333
Fergus: He is and will forever be my precious cinnamon roll!! I loved him ever since he’s been introduced to the series and even though he’s always been a side character I’m more than just attached to him!!! Fergus is amazing and I really hope that he’ll continue to be a part of the series!
Ian: My baby boy!! He’s been through so much and he’s still such a cheerful character!! I adore him and this book broke my heart!!! (view spoiler)
[WHY DIANA??? Why did you have to leave him with the Mohawks??!!! That boy grew on me and now you tore him away!!! I’m heartbroken!!! Hell, I even cried!!! I really hope that he’s going to be alright and that he’ll be mentioned in the next books, because if not I’ll never recover from his loss!!! (hide spoiler)]Roger: ”Feel my heart,” he said. His voice sounded thick to his own ears. “Tell me if it stops.”Aka the cutiepie! I can’t even put into words how much I love this man and I’m so glad he’s become one of the main characters in this book! Roger is amazing and I really hope that he will be happy in the next books because he definitely deserves it!!! Do you hear me Diana? HE. DESERVES. IT!!!
Lord John Grey:”Child, you would make an angel weep, and God knows I am no angel!" Last but not least, Lord John! I have no words for this man. They just fail me when I try to explain how much I love, admire and adore him! Lord John Grey is everything!!! <333 He’s an angel and a saint!!! XD (view spoiler)
[I don’t understand why Claire doesn’t like him!! I mean seriously that man is perfection and it’s not his fault that he loves Jamie!!! He just loves that stupid, stubborn Highlander and he shouldn’t be ashamed of it!!! GIVE THAT MAN A BREAK!!! How much does he have to do to prove that he truly cares about Jamie and Claire?? He even almost married Bree and he’s taking good care of Jamie’s illegitimate son!!! Lord John Grey deserves so much more than their hostility!!! He deserves all the love!!!! (hide spoiler)]- That we found out more about the theory of the stones and how to travel through them!
- Jamie and Claire are still cute together!
- As always I enjoyed the historical details! Especially the interactions between the Indians and Jamie’s people!
- The humour! XD
What I didn’t like: - Jamie! ARGH!!! He gave me all the feels but this time around it were rather negative ones!! I think he deserves the title of the worst father ever! Like seriously!!! I really like Jamie but he sucks as a father figure!! *lol* For someone who’s been through so much he really didn’t show any sympathy! (view spoiler)
[Alone how he treated Roger!!! I mean WTH???!!! At first he almost kills him because he thinks he raped his daughter! Jeez! He didn’t even let him explain!!! And then he finds him and wants to bring him back but still treats him like shit??!!! That scene when they were in the longhouse and he didn’t want to tell him anything about Brianna!! That was so cruel and heartless!!! As if it would have hurt him to give Roger some information! And then when Claire and him told Roger about Bree’s rape!! He didn’t even give him a second to digest it!!!! WTH!!! THAT BOY WAS A PRISONER OF THE INDIANS AND SUFFERED ABUSE!!! CUT HIM SOME SLACK!!! DAMN IT!!! My poor Roger!!! He didn’t do anything to deserve this and it just made me so angry!! Daingead!!!! I’m so mad at Jamie!! Urgh! (hide spoiler)]- Bonnet! I hope the next time we see that man he’s actually getting what he deserves!!
- Claire! For a stubborn lass she was way too lenient with Jamie’s misbehaviour! I would have expected more of her!! She should have given him hell for how he treated other people!!! *grrr*
- Brianna! I really don’t know how I feel about her… I understand her somehow but I’m also angry at her! (view spoiler)
[Yes it was wrong that Roger didn’t tell her about the newspaper article, but he really just tried to protect her! He loved her so much and she doubted him almost all of the time! I mean he even went through that freaking stone circle to get to her and she can’t even listen to him?! Hear him out and try to see things from his point of view?! She’s definitely Jamie’s daughter! That’s for sure! *argh* (hide spoiler)]Well, despite all of my anger I still loved the book and cared about its awesome characters! Since this was already the fourth book some of them really grew on me and I can’t even imagine the next books without them! T_T
“Drums of autumn” left me thoroughly heartbroken and I’m most likely going to pick up “The Fiery Cross” soon! Maybe even at the beginning of the next year! ;-)
Rating: really liked it
Drums of Autumn (Outlander #4), Diana Gabaldon
It began in Scotland, at an ancient stone circle. There, a doorway, open to a select few, leads into the past—or the grave.
Claire Randall survived the extraordinary passage, not once but twice. Her first trip swept her into the arms of Jamie Fraser, an eighteenth-century Scot whose love for her became legend—a tale of tragic passion that ended with her return to the present to bear his child.
Her second journey, two decades later, brought them together again in frontier America. But Claire had left someone behind in the twentieth century. Their daughter, Brianna….
Drums of Autumn opens with a hanging. One of Jamie’s old companions from his days in Ardsmuir prison is being hanged for theft, and Jamie has come to lend what support he can. Suddenly the proceedings are disrupted, as another prisoner makes a break for it–and Jamie, moved by the death of his friend, impulsively helps the man, a pirate named Stephen Bonnet, to escape; a decision that will have long-reaching and unforeseen effects.
تاریخ نخستین خوانش: روز پانزدهم ماه فوریه سال 2018 میلادی
عنوان: طبلهای پائیز: کتاب سوم از سری بیگانه؛ نویسنده: دایانا گبلدون؛
کتاب طبلهای پاییز؛ با حلق آویز کردن آغاز میشود؛ یکی از همراهان پیشین «جیمی» بخاطر دزدی به دار آویخته شده، و ....؛
تاریخ بهنگام رسانی 27/06/1399هجری خورشیدی؛ ا. شربیانی
Rating: really liked it
Gabaldon's sex-ridden, hugely researched, academically adventurous, time travel/sci-fi meets historical romance novels qualify as trash novels for lit nerds -- they're absolutely a guilty pleasure. From clan warfare to herbal medicine to genealogy to British history to WWII, the books are packed with information (what little Gaelic I know started with these book). Bonus: the heroine gets to have many, many rolls in the hay with a handsome hard-bodied Highlander. Can't really go wrong.
The books were recommended to me while I was living in England, and a lucky thing, too, because had I taken one look at the Fabio-in-a-kilt-of-passion American paperback cover I would have refused to read it (note: the British version was called Cross Stitch and the cover had a less-than-sexy field of heather on it). For a while I was caught up on the series, but I lost interest once the Frasers headed to America.
They are long books but the pages turn quickly. Gabaldon has a way with characters and her prose flows along at an engaging clip. Oh, but if you get all squeamish about buggery, don't bother -- the negative reviews of these books always focus prudishly (and tediously) on one specific encounter in an otherwise pretty rampantly heterosexual landscape.
Rating: really liked it
Another epic read. This will be a quick review as I dinna have the time to do a full one.
It took me two weeks to read this one. Granted it coincided with the start of holidays so that usually means less reading time for me. I LOVED it, I LOVE Jamie, I LOVE Jamie and Claire.
Roger and Brianna, yes, you got it, I loved them too.
You need patience to read these books. They are verra long indeed. So much goes on in them. Won't say much as you are better off experiencing all things Outlander fresh and new!
Even Lord John melted my heart a little.
A lot happens in this book. Did it drag for me? No, not really. I hear the next one is a bit drawn out!
Ian, what a brave lad he is.
“You are my courage, as I am your conscience," he whispered.
"You are my heart---and I your compassion.
We are neither of us whole, alone.
Do ye not know that, Sassenach?” 
I might take a wee break now from all things Outlander, although I did say that after I finished Book 3!!
Rating: really liked it
1.) Outlander ★★★★★
2.) Dragonfly In Amber ★★★★.5
3.) Voyager ★★★.5
4.) Drums of Autumn ★★★.5
--------------------------------------------------
Definitely my least favourite in the series so far, purely because the first 45% of this book was SO BORING. But the last 55% almost made up for it.
Rating: really liked it
I too, am one of those folks that was totally in love with Outlander and, despite some rather graphic violence, thought it was a good enough book that I have continued to read the series up to this one. Unforunately, like most series, this one does not get better. By this book DG is reusing plots that we've already seen and the characters are becoming two dimensional caricatures of themselves. Jamie, the tough masculine hero, Claire, the strong and fiesty woman that knows how to handle her man, the fiery Scots, the stereotypical early Americans. I gave it two stars because I did finish the book and found it entertaining at points, but I also found it a bit high-handed and offensive at time. The overall sense I had at the end was "I wish someone else I know had read this book so they can just tell me what happens, because I can't deal with another 1800 pages of these characters!"
Rating: really liked it
First half of this book was fairly slow, but the second half blew me away. I especially loved watching Brianna and Roger's relationship blossom.
Roger Mackenzie
Jamie Fraser
These characters are a pleasure to read, it's like coming home to family. Loved it!
Rating: really liked it
This book was the final straw for me. I wanted to love this whole series as I loved book one, but it has gotten progressively worse with every book, in my humble opinion. Ms. Gabaldon's editors should be taking a much closer look at the arc, plot, and character development for inconsistency and redundancy. The first book was amazing, though the ending was very difficult to swallow. The second was very good, compelling but heartbreaking. The third starts to teeter on unnecessarily verbose with a wandering plot where characters tend to do things out of character. However, it still had merit as an overall work. This one was disappointing on so many levels. Ms. Gabaldon drags on for pages at a time about absolutely nothing that pertains to the plot--bee hives, sunsets, the various shades of red of Jamie's hair, you name it. I realize many readers enjoy this in historicals, and while I enjoy beautiful imagery, I'd rather it not take over the entire plot. Pacing was WAY off for me here.
Also, the characters do several heinous things that are completely out-of-character from how the author originally wrote them. At least, that's how it appeared to me. It is as if the characters switched places with people I've never met before. So much so that Ms. Gabaldon has permanently scarred me from ever wanting to read one more word about their lives--good or bad. I just don't care anymore. All three main characters do ridiculous things which results in a forced plot. I was so disappointed with this book that I only skim/skipped to the end from the middle on just to finish it for closure. Ms. Gabaldon is an excellent writer, there is no mistaking that. However, for me, there should be more than eloquent imagery and sexy lovemaking to keep me on the hook.
Rating: really liked it
I'm kind of all over the place.
1. These books are so freaking big.
2. These books are sooooo freaking loooooong.
3. A huge portion of this book was very boring
4. Wine didn't help at all
5. Like almost the last half of this book made up for the boringness in the beginning.. almost
6. WHY?!!?
I love Jamie and Claire. I just do. Their relationship is basically goals for me. But
Drums of Autumn was so boring. It almost put me to sleep. Then I tried wine because that usually helps me when books are boring or characters are just plain annoying. Yeah, no amount of wine made this book better to me. Which makes my heart hurt because I really wanted to love this book - but god damn Diana.. WHY!?!
I feel like if this was a lot shorter then I would've liked it a lot more. Plus, it kind of felt repetitive - at least to me? It seems like the same storyline.. but again, it could just be me.
I'm kind of hesitant to start the next book because I really want to finish this series and fall even more in love with Jamie and Claire's relationship but right now I have no idea what I want to do..
Rating: really liked it
Wow! I loved the ending of this book. I especially loved the birth scene. It was funny, touching, and made me cry. Finally! Jamie has a grandson that's truly his own. Someone to help make up for the loss he's suffered in being denied the opportunity raise his own children. If anyone deserves lots of grand-babies, it's Jamie.
I love Lord John in this book. He kinda became my hero. Shocking, I know, considering how much I disliked him in the last book. He's charming, witty, and very sweet in this story, and I love the relationship between him and Bree. Their characters had such great chemistry. And I don't mean sexually. Lol.
Roger is such a wonderful character. My heart broke, then ached for him in this story. I hope the next book is kind to him. He deserves some happiness.
Drums of Autumn felt different from the previous three books. There was a gradual shift in the storyline, from Jamie and Claire, to their posterity. In many ways, Jamie and Claire's story end with
Voyager. They were finally reunited and for good. So I'm grateful Mrs. Gabaldon has continued to write about these wonderfully complex characters. Allowing us to find out what happens, not only to Jamie and Claire, but to the people they love.
I liked this book. A lot. I'm looking forward to reading the next.
Rating: really liked it
Where do I start with my review of “Drums of Autumn”, the fourth book in Diana Gabaldon’s wildly popular “Outlander” series, which is also a highly-rated television show on Starz? How do I put into words the massive thoughts and emotions running through my head after finishing this grand opus of adventure, honor, love, and family? I think it starts with, “My name is Scott and I am an Outlander fan…”
Over the last year I have devoured the first three books in this unbelievably well written series. It has so many elements, including history, time travel, adventure, mystery, and yes, romance. Each book is epic and overwhelms the reader with rich background, complex plotting, and strong dialog. Each book in the series builds on the multi-layered mythology of the previous one. And each one just seems to be better than the previous one. I can only speak for myself, but I am living proof that men can read and enjoy the Outlander series.
As many are already aware the plot involves Claire Randall, a 20th century doctor who survived going back and forth through the ancient stone circle multiple times. There she met Jamie Fraser, an 18th century Scot involved in the Jacobite uprising against England. In order to avoid death they were forced to marry and fell in love. She later returned to the present to bear and raise his child when he was assumed killed in battle. Twenty years later, when their daughter, Briana is grown, Claire discovers he survived and she risks everything to return through the stones to Jamie.
When “The Drums of Autumn” begins, Claire and Jamie have landed in colonial America several years prior to the War for Independence. The story alternates between them building a homestead and future together amongst many challenges in the untamed frontier of North Carolina while their daughter Brianna and her boyfriend/family friend Roger deal with their developing relationship and being left behind in the late 1960’s. There are several plotlines that pull the characters together and create lots of conflict, starting with Brianna and Roger finding an article that tells of Claire and Jamie’s deaths a few years after reaching America in a horrible house fire. Roger is driven to keep it a secret from Brianna, only to discover she knows and plans to go through the stones to save her mother and finally meet her biological father. However, Brianna’s and Roger’s journey into the past is full of struggle, pain, and heartache as they struggle to be reunited with both her family and with each other.
“Drums of Autumn” is a massive read. My copy clocked in at 888 pages. Patience and attention are required of the reader, but it comes easily. In being completely honest, the first 20% of this book starts slower than the previous three in the series, but that doesn’t mean I didn’t love it, because I did. The primary reason was that this story built slower at the beginning, needing more time to percolate and heat up in order to create the multiple emotional payoffs throughout the last half of the book, including golden moments between Brianna and Roger, Brianna and Jamie, Brianna and Claire, Jamie and Roger, Brianna and Lord John, and Brianna and Roger again. The strength in this book was how Gabaldon elevates love and conflict in the relationships of family – of father/daughter, mother/daughter and husband/wife. The use of secrets, good intentions, and a lack of willingness to open up are lessons learned the hard way in the “Outlander” world.
In my opinion, Gabaldon is an excellent writer that has mastered several key areas of great writing, including plotting, character, scenes, and dialog. Her plotting is well-planned, multi-layered, detailed in whatever time period is involved, and full of many twists that lead to opportunities for future development. She grabs your attention and requires even your senses as you delve into her world. Her characters are rich and complex. Each have their own unique personalities, motivations, and attributes. You cannot stop yourself from loving the good guys and hating the bad guys, but every character is three dimensional and real in every sense. You can picture them so clearly in your mind.
I personally believe that her ability to write scenes and dialog is probably her greatest skill as a writer. Each of these books have such wonderful pay-off moments in them, especially in this book. I mentioned several of them earlier, but my one that really stuck out to me was Lord John counseling Brianna on raising someone else’s child. It was a golden moment. When it comes to characters conversing and providing information each other to push the plot forward she is excellent. Her conversation flow and have a certain rhythmic quality that stands out above most writers. I was especially impressed with how much Roger’s character changed and grew through the challenges he faced. He was not the same man at the end of the book that he was in the beginning.
Overall, “Drums of Autumn” is another excellent outing for Gabaldon. For me, she has found a way to create unforgettable characters that I have come to know and deeply care about. I am not afraid to admit that I have shared some deeply personal moments with them, including laughter, struggle and challenge, pain and sadness, and tears of joy in the moments that matter most in a family. I cannot wait for the journey to continue…
