5 out of 5 stars *****
The best historical fiction romance I've come across. Apparently I'm not the only one who thinks this fantastic story ranks as one of the best. This book series is widely acclaimed around the world, written in several languages, debuts on Starz premium channel and is available on Netflix. The characters are so well developed, three dimensional, and the story, itself, portrays the gamut of struggles in love and war.
The story opens through the eyes of the protagonist, Claire (Beauchamp) Randall. She is simply Claire Randall, a battle trained nurse from World War II, in 1945. She becomes Claire Beauchamp, her maiden name, to conceal her real identity in Scotland, 1743. This comes about through the genius of Diana Gabaldon's descriptive prose weaving romance with science fiction and history.
Claire Randall is very much in love with her husband, Frank, when the mystic time travel occurs on a most auspicious day for fantasy to become reality. What Claire Beauchamp discovers is a dangerous environment fraught with civil war, unfamiliar customs, strange languages, and her husband's double, an ancestor in the British military.
Gabaldon develops her characters so well that my loyalties vacillate once Claire's adventures spring into life-or-death situations. The action is riveting once Claire explains her dress, speech, and sudden appearance to the British Redcoats and then to the Scottish rebels who rescue her from the rape that her husband's double, Blackjack Randall, attempts.
This is where the plot twists and Claire's affections turn from shock and fear to hope and admiration. She is forced to ride on horseback with one Jamie Fraser, a tall, good-looking lad who treats her with a modicum of respect based on his Christian morality. So begins the human drama of the damsel in distress rescued by a prince charming capable of swaying her thoughts away from the man she left 200 years in the future.
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