In the sixth installment of her enormously popular
Outlander series, Gabaldon takes us back to 1772 and the
years just preceding the American Revolution.
On Fraser's Ridge, life is brutal for the early colonists
who make the backwoods of North Carolina their home. Yet
it's these everyday life and death struggles that serve to
intensify their times of peace and joy, making the good
times all the sweeter for Jamie and his family.
After a series of violent attacks, the governor asks Jamie
to help restore and keep the peace. Through Claire, his
time-traveling wife, Jamie already knows the war for
independence is only a few short years away and that it's
the colonists and not the king who'll be victorious. Jamie
is loath to brand himself and his family traitors by
declaring for the radicals and must walk a tightrope until
he judges the time is right. As always, he'll do what he
must to safeguard his family and friends. Another shadow
hangs over the Frasers -- a newspaper clipping, dated 1776,
reporting the death of Jamie and his family in a cabin
fire.
Although it's set against a big backdrop, A BREATH OF SNOW
& ASHES is very much a book about family and relationships.
The struggle for common ground continues between Claire, a
20th century woman, and her 18th century Highlander
husband. But there's never any doubt that they love and are
devoted to each other. Gabaldon's careful research has
resulted in a series of books that places the reader so
firmly in the time period, it would be easy to believe it
is Diana Gabaldon and not Claire who's the time-
traveler. She paints a picture of life in 1772 so detailed
that you'd swear she had experienced it for herself.
Although there were supposed to be only six books in the
Outlander series, I can't help but think there will be at
least one more. The question that's perplexed readers from
the very first book, OUTLANDER, still remains unanswered.
And although I don't want to spoil the ending, A BREATH OF
SNOW & ASHES does leave it open for more books to follow.
This book is a strong comeback from THE FIERY CROSS, which
left many readers disappointed. Always a gifted writer,
Gabaldon will satisfy even her most demanding fans with A
BREATH OF SNOW & ASHES.
The year is 1772, and on the eve of the American Revolution,
the long fuse of rebellion has already been lit. Men lie
dead in the streets of Boston, and in the backwoods of North
Carolina, isolated cabins burn in the forest.
With chaos brewing, the governor calls upon Jamie Fraser to
unite the backcountry and safeguard the colony for King and
Crown. But from his wife Jamie knows that three years hence
the shot heard round the world will be fired, and the result
will be independence — with those loyal to the King either
dead or in exile. And there is also the matter of a tiny
clipping from The Wilmington Gazette, dated 1776,
which reports Jamie’s death, along with his kin. For once,
he hopes, his time-traveling family may be wrong about the
future.
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