Written in My Own Heart's Blood (Outlander #8) by Diana Gabaldon

Outlander Series:
Outlander (Outlander #1)
Dragonfly in Amber (Outlander #2)
Voyager (Outlander #3)
Drums of Autumn (Outlander #4)
The Fiery Cross (Outlander #5)
A Breath of Snow and Ashes (Outlander #6)
An Echo in the Bone (Outlander, #7)


I was very much thrilled to find this volume getting back to what made me fall in love with the series in the beginning. There were no annoying kidnappings which was, as I said previously, getting old. The back and forth between what was going on with Jamie and Claire and what was happening with Roger and Bree created a sense of tension and with each shift left me feeling glad to be back with the other but wondering what the heck was going to happen next to the group being left for awhile. This was a good thing even if frustrating.

Jenny is back, not just physically, but the Jenny met in the earlier stories, who was tough and stubborn, but loving and fair, not the Jenny who was so unforgiving and harsh on Claire when she returned. This made me glad because Jenny was a character I loved and wanted more of but the way she treated Claire was so unlike the character she had been before that it felt untrue to her spirit. Yes, she is loyal to her brother first, but to do what she did and act so cruelly, it just didn't feel real to her and this turning back to what feels like the authentic Jenny is a relief.

It is really neat to watch these characters bump up against real people who play a part in the American Revolution. The fear and danger of war, even for those not directly fighting it is well written making the tension and danger is palpable.

At the core the Outlander series is a romance and where there is romance there is sex, and in this outing, there is some young and new love sex, and it is what we have come to expect from Gabaldon, but there is a lovely sense of innocence under it that makes it feel sweet and heartwarming.

I am now anxiously awaiting the 9th Book which I hope won't be too long, as we are left on a bit of a cliffhanger here...


(Finished August 17, 2016)

An Echo in the Bone (Outlander, #7) by Diana Gabaldon

My reviews of the other books in the series:

Outlander (Outlander #1)
Dragonfly in Amber (Outlander #2)
Voyager (Outlander #3)
Drums of Autumn (Outlander #4)
The Fiery Cross (Outlander #5)
A Breath of Snow and Ashes (Outlander #6)
Written in My Own Heart's Blood (Outlander #8)

Another solid if long outing. While we spend most of the time with Jamie and Claire in the midst of the American Revolution there is time spent in 1980 with Roger and Bree and their children Jem and Amanda. 

I was pleased that there wasn't what has become a routine kidnapping this go round. That doesn't mean the Frasers were safe, but I was, as I said in the A Breath of Snow and Ashes review, quite tired of Claire and Jamie being pulled apart by kidnapping. 

There was however a kidnapping but it wasn't part of the pattern and was heart wrenching and a bit surprising. It isn't resolved at the end so to find out how the victim fares and what the fallout from the rescue attempt that is going off in a very wrong direction will have to wait for book 7 which I will be getting next week. 

There is time spent back in Scotland with Jenny and Ian and their children and I shed some tears during this. I was frustrated with Jenny but haven't given up on her, there was a hint of the Jenny I liked in the end of this book so I hope she is back next book. 

Ian (younger) has grown to be a character I love and I really like the Hunter siblings. I am not happy with where the Lord John storyline goes and I was disappointed in Claire in how this went, but that too is left unresolved and will take reading book 7 to find out if their is lasting damage from this bit. 

I loved the first 2 books, maybe 3, but then have slipped into the really like column. 

(Finished August 11, 2016)

A Breath of Snow and Ashes (Outlander #6) by Diana Gabaldo

My reviews of the prior books in the series

Outlander (Outlander #1)
Dragonfly in Amber (Outlander #2)
Voyager (Outlander #3)
Drums of Autumn (Outlander #4)
The Fiery Cross (Outlander #5)
An Echo in the Bone (Outlander, #7)
Written in My Own Heart's Blood (Outlander #8)


As we meet the Fraser clan again the date of American Independence is fast approaching. Back again is romance, adventure, intrigue, and sex.

While it is interesting to watch this family approach what thanks to its time traveling members know is coming, Revolutionary War, and how they prepare to take what they know will be the winning side, a side the members of the family born in this time are beginning to believe in, some of the plot devices are feeling over used. How many time can this family have members kidnapped? How many times will Jamie or Claire or Roger or Bree have to rescue or be rescued from abduction? Also I guess there are only so many words to describe the human genitalia and the acts that one can do with them so I give Gabaldo credit for trying to be creative with the sex scenes but at times the wording can be a little on the eye-rolling side. However what she really does best in these moments is the writing to make them seem to steam off the page with graphic description, it is that in these moments she captures the heart and soul of the connection that lives between Claire and Jamie. Their physical acts of love change in style and intensity to not only provide each other physical pleasure but to mend and heal each others emotionally. That after all these years and all the hard times Jamie still finds such enjoyment over the wonder he feels is Claire's bum just makes it kind of sweet and silly and endearing.

Some of the hard choices they face this time are murder they get suspected of but didn't commit, murders they do, revenge vs justice, and the sacrifice of being togetherness to save one of their own.

While I am going on to the next book because I have really want to know how they are and where they end up, what will happen with William and John and will the truth of that come out. I am really hoping that there is more of the same heart to this family that keeps me coming back but that there are much less by way of kidnappings this time and maybe some run ins with the members of the group of founding fathers, this is after all the days of Washington, Jefferson, Adams, Hancock, Franklin....


(Finished August 6, 2016)

Harry Potter and the Cursed Child (Harry Potter #8) by J.K. Rowling, John Tiffany, Jack Thorne (Spoilers Inside)

There are two things to review here, contact and format.

Format First, No Spoilers In This Section:
This was not written in novel form but is the script from the London Stage Production. In the past I have found scripts can be a little harder to ready style wise. But this didn't feel that way. I was immediately sucked back into the world J.K. Rowling created and that I love so much.
I read this with my son and we did it all in one day sharing the parts. We both thought the non-spoken pieces added to the story and helped us imagine how this would look on the stage. The script format does not in any way make this a difficult or stilted read.



Content, Spoilers Contained In This Section, I Will Warn You When I Start To Say Things Spoilery:
Have you ever wondered what happened after the epilogue? Harry has told his son Albus Severus that he is named for two headmasters of Hogwarts one who was a Slytherin and the train departs and Harry, Ginny, Ron, and Hermione are left on the platform? Well this is that story. The opening is that scene on Platform 9 3/4. This is a story about the painful and messy that often fills parent/child relations. There is also a thread of the danger of messing with time, one which was addressed in Prisoner of Azkaban. But it was the characters we know and love all grown up. It has been a long time since this world has been so front and center and I was glad to have the chance to visit it again. There is action, some mystery (which was well spun I think and made me think how much better this was coming after Rowling having written a mystery series), adventure, and love.




Scroll for spoilers or stop here if you don't want to be spoiled.










Don't read on if you want to avoid specifics.











You have been warned. If you read further and then feel cheated you got spoiled it is on you...Read at your own risk!!!

Spoilers begin here:

You will find out where the Sorting Hat places Albus. It was the first of many gasps and surprised utterances let out during the read.
Ron surprised me here. He still kind of gets overshadowed by Harry and Hermione but he has his moments where he really shines and you can see how he has grown into a fine and wonderful man.
Draco was still Draco but with something more, humanity. I felt for him and even cried for him.
Snape, oh my how wonderful and yet painful to see him again. His true strength of character, the part of him that made Harry name one of his sons for the man, he gets the chance to exhibit it again, even more heroically.
A man I never imagined would ever have a loss of composure does, and it makes him that much more loves, Dumbledore...and it was a moment of pure emotion.
I did find one thing a little bit of an odd choice and I didn't stop thinking that even at the end of the story, the use of Cedric and his death as a catalyst for the action. There were other plot devices that I am sure could have been used that were less odd, like the title, The Cursed Child...the mystery of who it refers to would have done fine, the friendship between Albus and Scorpius was a match lit and would have been a starting point. Just being the offspring of Harry and Draco would have been enough to set them on the path for action and trouble. But Cedric was the chosen device.

But the biggest shocker but not really a shocker was Modly/Voldy-Bellatrix love child...I am not sure I want to know the specifics of them bumping uglies..literally and figuratively...But I always thought she was a little too crushey on him....
There was a nod to the badass that is Neville which was nice!! It was a great acknowledgement to his importance in the stories.
The Godric's Hollow scenes were so powerful and painful. The sacrifice was heartbreaking. Harry has proven once again his bravery and strength is only there when he is surrounded with those he loves and who love him.
Over all I was pleased with my return to the wizarding world and would love the chance to see the stage production.


(Finished July 31, 2016)

The Fiery Cross (Outlander #5) by Diana Gabaldon

My thoughts on
Outlander (Outlander #1)
Dragonfly in Amber (Outlander #2)
Voyager (Outlander #3)
Drums of Autumn (Outlander #4)
A Breath of Snow and Ashes (Outlander #6)
An Echo in the Bone (Outlander, #7)
Written in My Own Heart's Blood (Outlander #8)


Don't think even for a second that becoming settlers in the backcountry of North Carolina not too far from Jamie's wealthy aunt's plantation will mean life becomes boring for Jamie, Claire, Bree, and Roger.

The early days of what leads to the American Revolution are the backdrop for this edition as the Fraser clan settles in North Carolina. As in prior books Jamie and Claire are the sun which the Outlander universe revolves. They are 20+ years older than when we first met them and they are still just as hot for each other. But their love is beyond just sensual, there is a connection between them that sizzles off the page. They are life's breath to each other. Learning from watching them is the young marriage of Roger and Bree.

The Fiery Cross also has its fair share of intrigue. Who killed Jocasta's slave and why? Who knocked out Duncan and tied up Jocasta and why? Are there other's like Claire, Bree, and Roger, able to step through the stones and into the past or future? What role if any will they play in the upcoming revolution? After what they went though in Scotland can they manage to stay out of it the coming war?

All in all a good addition to the series, but jeez these books are getting long!! This one was the longest yet coming in at 1443 pages for the mass market paperback edition.

(Finished July 29, 2016)

Drums of Autumn (Outlander #4) by Diana Gabaldon

My thoughts on
Outlander (Outlander #1)
Dragonfly in Amber (Outlander #2)
Voyager (Outlander #3)
The Fiery Cross (Outlander #5)
A Breath of Snow and Ashes (Outlander #6)
An Echo in the Bone (Outlander, #7)
Written in My Own Heart's Blood (Outlander #8)

Be warned if you haven't read the first three books there are what could be considered spoilers in this post.


Drums of Autumn is as much the story of Brianna as it is her parents. As her and Roger have grown closer, Roger is surely in love with her, Brianna has something on her mind and heart. As she has started to have these feelings she has realized something important was missing from the marriage of her mother and Frank Randall (the man she knew as her father before learning about her mother's time travel and about Jamie Fraser). She tells Roger she needs to be sure about them because she plans to only marry once. He thinks she needs time to make sure she loves him, but really what she wants is to meet Jamie and see him and her mother together.

There is only one way to do this, to go through the stones and find her parents. When Roger figures it out he goes through too and goes after her.

Will Bree find her parents and learn what she needs to know? Will Roger find Bree? What will happen when Jamie and Bree meet? These are the storylines of this installment.

Living in the wilds of North Carolina in the late 1760's- early 1770's means encounters with Native Americans, living off the land, slavery, and no modern tools of medicine for Claire to treat people with. And into the mix comes Bree, full of questions and so very much like Jamie that there is no way it will be smooth going.

Drums of Autumn, much like the other books in the series combines romance and relationships in all their messy truths, battles of the heart and mind, struggles with 20th Century knowledge and values clashing with 18th Century life, and kilts! A solid and enjoyable entry, now onto book 5, The Fiery Cross.  Boy these books, they keep getting longer!!! But I love Jamie and Claire so I don't mind.

(Finished July 23, 2016)

Voyager (Outlander #3) by Diana Gabaldon

My thoughts on the other books
Outlander (Outlander #1)
Dragonfly in Amber (Outlander #2)
Drums of Autumn (Outlander #4)
The Fiery Cross (Outlander #5)
A Breath of Snow and Ashes (Outlander #6)
An Echo in the Bone (Outlander, #7)
Written in My Own Heart's Blood (Outlander #8)


Voyager begins with filling in some of what has been happening to Jamie during the time since Claire went back to the future (gigglesnort). We are given Jamie's story, some of it anyway, from the time Claire left as part of the search being done in 1968 by Claire, Bree, and Roger as they try and find out what happened to Jamie following Culloden since he seems to not done as he intended and died.

Claire makes up her mind, with Bree's blessing and a kiss for her father, her birth father, to go back and try and find Jamie. Once reunited, this being them, means that things will not go smoothly. Danger and adventure as much as love and a burning desire, seem to follow them everywhere.

From Scotland, to France, to the West Indies....from taverns to brothels to plantations....there is the awkward reconnection after 20 years apart and lots of intrigue and not a little danger.


I found myself missing Bree and Roger once they were left behind and I hope they make a reappearance in the next book but I find myself really loving Claire and Jamie and wanting to see what they face next and how they handle their intense bond. Ok and their love (sex) is pretty darn steamy at times :D

(Finished July 20, 2016)