A review by bree_h_reads
Outlander by Diana Gabaldon

Did not finish book. Stopped at 87%.
If I had finished the book I think it would have been 2-2.5 stars. There was a lot about the book I enjoyed and thought was well-written, but overall it didn’t appeal to me and didn’t keep my interest.
I was often bored and found it hard to focus on the book. There was also the issue of the book’s SA. It felt over done and like it was for shock value. There was just something odd about it and how often it was used. Like it was unrealistically being used for realism. The book’s men also made me uncomfortable overall. A mix of the struggle between overplaying the sexism of the time AND when the book was written. Even when male characters were meant to be likeable, I just found myself untrusting of them. The spicy in the book also felt a little odd, though it’s not as bad as the other issues.
That isn’t to say the book lacked merits.
The narrator herself was excellent. Her voice was very well-suited to the story and Claire. She also did an excellent job with the character voices. They were all well-acted and distinct. I also appreciated how much research it seemed was done for Claire’s medical knowledge. There was a distinct sense the author really understood what Claire would know and had access to after time travelling. Despite many of the men making me uncomfortable, I really liked the other characters. They all felt complex and unique. I found it interesting to sort out their struggles and secrets.
Overall I do see the appeal of these books and why people enjoy them, they just aren’t for me.
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