Royal Reviews: Voyager by Diana Gabaldon

Title: Voyager

Author: Diana Gabaldon

ISBN: 0385335997

Publisher: Delta

Format: Paperback

Pages: 870

Publication Date: August 7, 2001

How I Read It: From my own personal library

Rating: 5 Crowns

Synopsis (from Amazon): In this rich vibrant tale, Diana Gabaldon continues the story of Claire Randall and Jamie Fraser that began with the now-classic novel Outlander and continued in Dragonfly in Amber. Sweeping us from the battlefields of eighteenth-century Scotland to the exotic West Indies, Diana Gabaldon weaves magic once again in an exhilarating and utterly unforgettable novel....

Their love affair happened long ago by whatever measurement Claire Randall took. Two decades before, she had traveled back in time and into the arms of a gallant eighteenth-century Scot named Jamie Fraser. Then she returned to her own century to bear his child, believing him dead in the tragic battle of Culloden. Yet his memory has never lessened its hold on her ... and her body still cries out for him in her dreams. When she discovers that Jamie may have survived, Claire must choose her destiny. And as time and space come full circle, she must find the courage to face what awaits her ... the deadly intrigues raging in a divided Scotland ... and the daring voyage into the dark unknown that lies beyond the standing stones.

My Thoughts:

Reunited and it feels so good

Reunited 'cause we understood

There's one perfect fit And, sugar, this one is it

We both are so excited 'cause we're reunited, hey, hey

You guessed it! In the third installment of the Outlander series Claire realizes that her beloved highland warrior Jamie Fraser may not have been killed in the battle of Culloden after all. Twenty years have passed since she last laid eyes on him-having fled 1746 Scotland for her own time and Frank Randall, the husband she left behind when she originally traveled through the stones to the past. The first part of Voyager focuses on telling how Claire has spent the last 20 years-pursuing her ambitions to become a doctor while trying to piece together some semblance of a relationship with Frank. It can't be easy when your wife you thought was dead returns pregnant with another man's child and gives unbelievable explanations when you ask where she's been. Claire's past is revealed as she, Brianna, and historian Roger Wakefield try to track Jamie through time to find out what really happened to him following Culloden. When evidence points to Jamie being alive and well in Edinburgh, Claire must make the gut wrenching decision to keep living in the present or to follow her heart back into the past and find Jamie.

It should come as no surprise which one she chooses and once the two meet again and the adventure starts. Things have changed for both of them and now they've found each other again I loved watching as they try to get used to one another after the long absence. It is obvious that the love they have always carried for each other is still there but both have dealt with their trials and tribulations in their twenty years apart and changed because of it. Their relationship evolves quite a bit as they try to rebuild the trust and accept that they are both not the same people as before. This book has a lot more action than Dragonfly in Amber did-a serial killer on the loose in Edinburgh, Jamie on the run for his illicit smuggling activities, and a journey on the high seas! I was totally engrossed in the book from beginning to end. We are also introduced to Lord John Grey in this novel who is the subject of Gabaldon's Lord John series).

In addition to Jamie and Claire we are reunited with characters from the two previous novels (Jenny and Ian, Fergus, Loghaire, and even a character you don't expect to return) and also a few quirky new ones, most notably Mr. Willoughby-the Chinese man with a rather strange fetish who is fiercely loyal to Jamie. As can be expected for an Outlander novel, this one is full of historical detail and the plight of the Scottish highlanders after Culloden is brought to life here. Oh, and the sex scenes are present in abundance as well (Making up for lost time, ye ken?). I was a little iffy on the whole idea of an older Jamie and Claire twenty years later but I absolutely loved this book! It has a little bit of everything and I think it has got to be my favorite of the series so far.