Scan barcode
creeepybones's review against another edition
dark
emotional
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
I honestly have no idea what the hype or gross fixation people have with this book.
I could understand how the basic story line could be romantic; but the toxicity and open sexual violence and misogyny is sickening.
I did not enjoy it at all.
As well as it being such a slow read.
I would not recommend to anyone.
I could understand how the basic story line could be romantic; but the toxicity and open sexual violence and misogyny is sickening.
I did not enjoy it at all.
As well as it being such a slow read.
I would not recommend to anyone.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Infidelity, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Torture, Toxic relationship, Violence, Kidnapping, Medical trauma, Stalking, Murder, Pregnancy, Gaslighting, and Sexual harassment
aspiritofspring's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
2.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Physical abuse, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Torture, and Injury/Injury detail
cafelatte235's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
This book is a good, overall read but I found it very long and dragged out at a few points. Although I did enjoy the many adjoining plots this book provides, the scenes at times are very graphic.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Rape, Violence, and Vomit
Moderate: Sexual assault, Murder, and Pregnancy
adam_z's review against another edition
adventurous
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.5
A few years ago Mike's Book Reviews (YouTube) posed the following question: Can a guy enjoy Outlander? He went on to talk about the first season of the television adaptation on Starz, (which I'm not going to get into here), but never really gave an answer about the book.
My answer to the question is yes - somewhat. I liken Outlander to Terry Goodkind's Sword of Truth series in the sense that both series have attracted a lot of strong praise and criticism. I come away from Outlander with similar feelings to what I had for Wizard's First Rule (Sword of Truth book 1): It was okay. I enjoyed it somewhat. It wasn't amazing or terrible. There were things I liked, and there were things I didn't like. I get why some people love this book/series, and I also get where much of the criticism comes from as well. If Goodreads allowed half-stars this would sit right in the middle at a 2.5 for me.
It's hard to classify Outlander - I've seen it called a romance novel, historical fiction, historical romance, historical fantasy... and none of these genre tags really fits quite right if applied individually. I think if I had to pick just one, I'd probably land on putting it in a general historical fiction category, with the caveat that there is a strong romance subplot. Not so strong that it is the dominant theme of the story--first and foremost it's a fish-out-of-water story about an English nurse from the 1940's trying to survive when she is unexpectedly finds herself in 1740's Scotland--but the romance subplot is somewhat more prominent than what I'm used to seeing in the books I typically read.
For me, the romance element just doesn't land. I really don't really enjoy reading the inner monologues of characters in the throes of the puppy love stage of a relationship. It feels voyeuristic to me. It wasn't terribly sappy/cringy - it's just not what I'm into reading.
What I DID really enjoy experiencing with Claire (protagonist and sole POV character) was the feeling of newness and discovery of this strange time and culture from centuries past. Talk about history coming to life! There were times where her knowledge of mid-20th century medicine put her in an advantageous position over the methods of the 1740's, but she had much to learn in order to get along in the time she found herself in - things that a mere introductory knowledge of 18th century history couldn't have prepared her for.
I have nothing against long books in general, and will never shy away from a book based solely on length, but if I'm reading a long book I also expect the author to make the added length worth it. The mass-market paperback edition I have is 850 pages, and I feel like this could have had appx 150 pages worth of content trimmed and been better off for it.
YMMV
My answer to the question is yes - somewhat. I liken Outlander to Terry Goodkind's Sword of Truth series in the sense that both series have attracted a lot of strong praise and criticism. I come away from Outlander with similar feelings to what I had for Wizard's First Rule (Sword of Truth book 1): It was okay. I enjoyed it somewhat. It wasn't amazing or terrible. There were things I liked, and there were things I didn't like. I get why some people love this book/series, and I also get where much of the criticism comes from as well. If Goodreads allowed half-stars this would sit right in the middle at a 2.5 for me.
It's hard to classify Outlander - I've seen it called a romance novel, historical fiction, historical romance, historical fantasy... and none of these genre tags really fits quite right if applied individually. I think if I had to pick just one, I'd probably land on putting it in a general historical fiction category, with the caveat that there is a strong romance subplot. Not so strong that it is the dominant theme of the story--first and foremost it's a fish-out-of-water story about an English nurse from the 1940's trying to survive when she is unexpectedly finds herself in 1740's Scotland--but the romance subplot is somewhat more prominent than what I'm used to seeing in the books I typically read.
For me, the romance element just doesn't land. I really don't really enjoy reading the inner monologues of characters in the throes of the puppy love stage of a relationship. It feels voyeuristic to me. It wasn't terribly sappy/cringy - it's just not what I'm into reading.
What I DID really enjoy experiencing with Claire (protagonist and sole POV character) was the feeling of newness and discovery of this strange time and culture from centuries past. Talk about history coming to life! There were times where her knowledge of mid-20th century medicine put her in an advantageous position over the methods of the 1740's, but she had much to learn in order to get along in the time she found herself in - things that a mere introductory knowledge of 18th century history couldn't have prepared her for.
I have nothing against long books in general, and will never shy away from a book based solely on length, but if I'm reading a long book I also expect the author to make the added length worth it. The mass-market paperback edition I have is 850 pages, and I feel like this could have had appx 150 pages worth of content trimmed and been better off for it.
YMMV
Content Warnings
Moderate: Sexual content
Minor: Sexual assault, Torture, Violence, and Injury/Injury detail
ruinstoroots's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Gore, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Suicidal thoughts, Torture, Violence, Blood, Vomit, Medical content, Kidnapping, Grief, Murder, Pregnancy, Alcohol, War, and Injury/Injury detail
knottyrissareads's review against another edition
I watched the series, so I thought I’d read the books. I got almost halfway through this and just cannot stand the sexual violence.
She gets assaulted many times, even by her husband.
I googled “does the sexual assault in the outlander books end” and found a Reddit thread saying there’s more scenes in the books than in the shows, so I’m out!
She gets assaulted many times, even by her husband.
I googled “does the sexual assault in the outlander books end” and found a Reddit thread saying there’s more scenes in the books than in the shows, so I’m out!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Domestic abuse, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexual assault, and Violence
booksnart2023's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
emotional
inspiring
reflective
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Misogyny, Torture, Murder, Colonisation, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Animal death, Child abuse, Child death, Confinement, Cursing, Domestic abuse, Panic attacks/disorders, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Suicidal thoughts, Forced institutionalization, Police brutality, Grief, and Sexual harassment
fairytales's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
This is a challenging book to rate. I enjoyed most of the characters and the romance but the violence, particularly the sexual violence was both frequent and severe and I found it difficult and upsetting to read (anything to do with Jonathan Randall in particular, who is one of if not the most villainous characters I’ve come across in my reading). It’s also challenging to sort out how to apply historical context to these characters and their actions, since both the 1940s and 1740s are not current times. I enjoyed Claire’s personality, though I occasionally found her incongruent or confusing, but I think some of that can be chalked up to the time travel and her changing thoughts around it. I did really enjoy her medical background and innovation without modern medicine. The witch trials were interesting though I wish we had learned more about Geillis Duncan.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Violence, and Sexual harassment
Moderate: Blood and Medical content
mcshib's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
2.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Physical abuse, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Torture, and Colonisation
mada_lean's review against another edition
3.0
I really liked the idea of the book in terms of the time travel, but there was a lot of violence. Not sure if I’ll continue the series
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual assault and Violence