June: Brides of the West By Lori Copeland
I found a recommendation for this author and our local library only had this series so I thought I'd check it out before I bought anything from the bookstore. So glad I did! This book reminds me of what I used to read in 7th grade. The plot runs something like this. Spunky young woman in (fill in the blank) time period sets out on her own. She meets nice man who she is intended for and second man who irrates her but is strangely handsom. Bickering, rescue, true love, the end. Yup. Only this book throws in a religious bent so it's a Christian, historical romance. It wasn't bad or anything but I managed to read it in about one hour while watching both girls. I think I'd recommend it to a young reader but it's just a little too light weight for me.
Outlander by Diana Gabaldon
I am new to the world of romance but have been told there is a whole subsection dedicated to tales of fiery passion set in ancient Scotland. I think it has something to do with the idea of bonny red headed men running around in kilts wearing nothing underneath. But whatever the charm, there are a whole slew of romance novels set around stubborn clansmen and feisty heroines.
Just to make things interesting, this book throws in a time traveling twist as well. The party line is:
Claire Randall is leading a double life. She has a husband in one century and a lover in another. In 1945, Claire Randall, a former combat nurse is back from the war and reunited with her husband on a second honeymoon when she innocently touches a boulder in one of the ancient stone circles that dot the British Isles. Suddenly she is a Sassenach -an "outlander"- in a Scotland torn by war and raiding border clans in the year of our Lord...1743.
Hurled back in time by forces she cannot understand, Claire's destiny is soon inextricably entwined with clan MacKenzie and the forbidding castle Leoch. She is catapulted without warning into the intrigues of lairds and spies that may threaten her life....and shatter her heart. For there, James Fraiser, a gallant young Scots warrior, shows her a passion so fierce and a love so absolute that Claire becomes a woman torn between fidelity and desire...and between two vastly different men and two irreconcilable lives.
This is an epic novel well over 700 pages long. Fortunately, it is what I call a plot book. Claire spends very little time worrying about how she was shot into the past and instead is caught up in a whirlwind of events. There are a few main characters and lots of action. Being a romance novel, there is quite a bit of rolling around in the hay and melting in arms but that is to be expected. I was a bit worried when I picked up this book. I didn't think I could make it though hundreds of pages of introspection and description. Luckily, Ms. Gabaldon knows her trade because this book is really all about action, plot twists, clan wars, deep hatred and true love. The star crossed lovers in this book endure an amazing amount of injury as every other page someone is being attacked, beaten, or mauled. Toward the end, it became a bit routine - oh look, they are in trouble again but don't worry, true love will save the day. (I have a sinking feeling I may be too much a cynic to enjoy romance novels.)
The one thought that kept running through my mind, however, was the sad realization that if I were ever shot back through time, I would be completely useless. Claire, our heroine, has just finished working as a nurse in the trenches of WWII. She is able to use her doctoring skills to establish her worth. Were I shot back to the 18th century, I would die within a week I'm sure being able to offer nothing except the ability to argue which, I would assume, would be worthless.
But back to the book, if you are into Scotland and/or romance, this would be a good novel to sink your teeth into. I enjoyed it and it managed to engage me throughout the entire novel which, given it's length, it saying quite a bit.