A Breath of Snow and Ashes-Favorite Character

Halloooo fellow Outlanders!! What a frenzy, heh with Echo coming out today!! Darn, why didn't we move to Arizona, how cool would that be to be at the opening at the Biltmore. I won't get my copy until around 1st week of Oct from Amazon. I'll be turning off the phones, computer and my husband won't see me except all curled up on the couch with my nose firmly planted, I may come out of "Echo" hibernation to eat and pee, but don't expect much else people! Oh, except for when I watch Austin, but he does nap, drat, not much though, he takes mini power naps! Karen Henry has set up comment sections for each part in Echo, visit her blog at: http://outlandishobservations.blogspot.com/



Anyway, here is my favorite character from ABOSAA. In all of the Outlander books, I try to choose a character that I really enjoyed other than Claire or Jamie. ABOSAA had many new characters introduced, I liked them all. Ian's story tears my heart out, Brianna is just ok, I don't know why I can't warm up to her. I've picked Roger twice already and Lord John once, soooooo I think it has to be Mulva Christie.

Claire took her under her wing as an apprentice/assistant and became delighted in Mulva's interest in medicine. Mulva does not have a mother, it's just her father, Tom and brother, Allen. Claire accidently comes upon Mulva being thrashed by her father and this act brings about a memory of Claire being "spanked" by Jamie back in Outlander. Claire and Jamie have a very interesting conversation regarding this again!

Anyway, I liked Mulva from the beginning because she seemed different than the other young girls, there is a mystery there. Mulva has a defiant attitude towards her father, Mulva has plans, but woman in the 18th century are treated for the most part, no better than slaves, most are extensions of the men in their family. So Mulva does what she must to survive and is put into a most troubling situation.

As the story of Mulva develops, you begin to see the predicament woman are placed in and the hardships they must endure. Revelations of Mulva's mother was quite unexpected as was her father's tormented feelings.

While Mulva's story is tragic, she spoke to me as strong-willed young woman just trying to survive and make her own mark when the men in her life only wanted to surpress her.

Not enough time for reading/listening

Why oh why does life get in the way of what you really want to do??!! I have 12 days to finish ABOSAA before the 22nd for the Outlander Challenge and my days/nights are filled to capacity!! I'm really going for the free Echo book with my reviews, wish me luck!!

Voyager-my character choice

So much happened in Voyager, it was an incredible journey, wasn't it? I'm having a difficult time choosing a character I most resonate with on this one. I think I may fall back on Jenny again. Her deep committment to her family and how she handled the situation with Ian is exactly what I would of done. Plus I love how she interacts with Jaime. She loves him dearly, but he drives her crazy at the same time!

2009 Outlander Challenge

My first blog and post(I'm a virgin blogger, be gentle!)! I decided to listen to the audio of Outlander early this year after I stumbled upon Audible.com. Hubby got me an ipod for Christmas, I thought I would just download Podcasts. The ipod has become a permanent fixture(I sometimes fall asleep with it on, crazy!). I highly recommend everyone who has read the Outlander series, pick up the unabridged CD's or download, you will not be dissappointed. (Note: Audible.com does not currently offer the unabridged version for Fiery Cross and ABOSAA. But a search at the library produced the CD's and Playaway)

So, my review of Outlander for the 2009 Outlander Challenge and how I got hooked:

First of all, kudos to DG for writing this series based on seeing a man in a kilt on Dr. Who. Amazing! In 2004, my sister gave me Outlander to take on my vacation. The plane ride gave me enough time to really get into the story. Honestly, I had a difficult time adjusting to DG's style of writing, but it didn't take long and now when I read something else, I find myself comparing! Her very detailed descriptions and conversations is what struck me first. I guess then I figured out since I'm a fast reader, I had to slow down and savor!

It was not difficult to become comfortable with Claire from the start. She's sassy, sexy, intelligent and strong-willed. I found myself thinking almost from the beginning she did not belong with Frank, him being a historian and rather dull if you ask me! Claire's sense of adventure and love of life struck me as being quite refreshing for a main character.

I've always been a fan of time-traveling novels, movies, etc. I wish I could remember the title, it was book made into a TV movie in the early 80's, a woman looks into a mirror and is hurled back in time and becomes her grandmother. I think Lindsay Wagner played the part. I'm also a novice genealogist, so with these 2 interests, DG's method of time travel resonated with me from the start. DG has taken what is real(standing stones, gemstones) and intertwined what I consider a most fascinating fantasy of time travel most eloquently. Anyway, I digress.......

It wasn't until Claire said to herself..."he can ride me....." that I truly felt her passion and pictured Jaime as man who exudes his manliness without even knowing he's doing it! As I began to know Jamie throughout the book, his devotion to family, his sense of humor and I'm sure his good looks, how could Claire resist, even though she was married!

I absolutely loved that DG let us get to know Claire more by Column's insistance that she stay put in Castle Leoch. This gave the reader a chance to hone in on her medical skills and added substance to her character. DG brings us into the castle and daily lives of people of the 18th century giving us history of the times. Man, do I ever, more now than ever, want to time-travel!

Jack Randall is one of the most sinister characters I've met. One wonders if DG is a cumulation of Claire and Jack! While Jack Randall is evil and sadistic, the book would not be as sensational without him. Geillis comes in as a close second, more kiniving than anything! Brilliant characters all around. I would like to know a bit more about Dougal and Column and what makes them tick, perhaps we will if DG writes a prequel.

While Jaimie seems to come to Claire's rescue a bit too conveniently, DG makes it seemless and gives the reader a sense of his feeling towards Claire(they truly are two twined into one!)

The imprisonment and torture of Jaimie was rough to get through. I especially liked how DG brought Jaimie's kinsman into their adventures which gives the reader a sense of how close the Scottish clans were.

The ending was perfect, setting up for the next book with the reader salivating and giddy with anticipation!