Es, with the first one, my favorite book of the saga.

And that's saying a lot considering my dear JAMMF can't take much more.

There's everything in it, from exciting reunions and others that are nerve-wracking, to crazy Chinese people and pirates.

It's just non-stop action and adventure.

The story is filled with twists and turns that keep you on the edge of your seat from beginning to end.

You never know what's going to happen next, which makes it so engaging and impossible to put down.

Whether you're a fan of the genre or just looking for a good read, this book is definitely worth checking out.

It will take you on a wild ride that you won't soon forget.

“Voyager” by Diana Gabaldon is a complex and often controversial installment in the “Outlander” series. The first part of the book, which is around six hundred pages, is quite engaging as it delves into Claire’s efforts to track down Jamie after his survival at Culloden. Gabaldon cleverly interweaves Jamie’s perspective through flashbacks, adding depth to their story. However, there are several issues with the book. Brianna’s sudden change in attitude towards Jamie is confusing, and the treatment of Frank lacks nuance. Additionally, the scene where Jamie is forced to have sex with Geneva is disturbing and problematic. It not only fails to acknowledge Jamie’s trauma as a rape survivor but also presents a one-sided view of sexual violence. The last 400 pages of the book struggle without a clear direction, and the new characters are often caricatures. Claire’s actions at the Slave Market are also questionable, as they seem more about her own vanity than the plight of the slaves. Overall, “Voyager” has its strengths, but it also has several flaws that prevent it from being a truly great book.

  I had not dared to think what life might be like once I had found Jamie, lest I not find him after all. Then I had found him, and in quick succession, had contemplated life as a printer’s wife among the political and literary worlds of Edinburgh, a dangerous and fugitive existence as a smuggler’s lady, and finally, the busy, settled life of a Highland farm, which I had known before and loved.

Now, in equally quick succession, all these possibilities had been jerked away, and I faced an unknown future once more.

Voyager is essentially two different stories — books even.

At over a thousand pages, the first six hundred explore Claire’s final few weeks in the twentieth century as she works with Roger and her daughter to track Jamie’s whereabouts since his miraculous survival at Culloden. Gabaldon wisely invests in Jamie’s perspective, too, adding flashbacks when Claire discovers a new bit of information. It charts the course up until their reunion, reconciliation, and an overwhelming amount of melodrama thereafter.

Of the two books, this is undoubtedly the strongest. Its not without its issues of course. Picking up right where Dragonfly in Amber left off, Brianna’s change in temperament toward Jamie is confusing. She goes from vehemently making a point of calling Frank her father (in the last book) to casually referring to Jamie as such here, and the difference is a matter of hours, maybe a day.

Then there’s the treatment of Frank, himself. He’s a fairly sympathetic figure in this series. Not an ideal husband, to be sure (its heavily implied he cheated on her during wartime), but neither was Jamie. Sadly, his reintroduction lacks the nuance and subtlety of his position in the story — as a poignant echo of what might have been, of the road not taken. He lost Claire three years ago, and suddenly she’s reappeared, pregnant and raving about travelling though time — and not just any period, but the one he has a special interest in as a historian.

And the best response Gabaldon has for him on reuniting with her again is declaring theatrically that he’ll find out where she’s been as the hospital staff sedate her. Maybe if we’d actually gotten his perspective it wouldn’t feel like such a left-turn, but you’d think the shock of the situation would keep him from acting so brashly from the jump. It just feels underwritten and manipulative — a through-line for everything involving Frank in this book, come to think of it.

Outside of that, I really enjoyed the majority of Jamie’s perspective, especially his relationship with John Grey, but that comes to an abrupt end by the time we’re introduced to Geneva. Described as a “spoiled brat” from a wealthy family Jamie works for, the young woman decides that since she’s going to be married off to an unattractive old man, she’ll threaten Jamie’s family so he’ll be the one to take her virginity. The sheer ridiculousness of this scenario makes it come across like a porno. I get Jamie is the sexiest motherfucker to grace the Highlands, but the leaps and bounds it takes for me to believe this scenario aren’t there.

To protect his family, Jamie’s agrees and the framing of this encounter is disheartening. Jamie is a rape survivor, and here he is, again, about to be raped to protect a loved one and there is no acknowledgment of that. Which, naturally, makes me think Gabaldon doesn’t view it as a rape. Whether unintentionally or not, it positions sexual violence — no matter how unambiguous, as it is here — as something that can only be perpetrated by men. The mere suggestion of a romantic overture from John Grey was enough to evoke his trauma and his wrath, but the exact same scenario (right down to him having to submit to his rapist) is played out by a woman and there’s nothing.

That said, Gabaldon goes and adds another awful dimension to this. Geneva gets cold feet once she experiences the pain of Jamie penetrating her and says, “Stop it” and “take it out”. Jamie replies, “No,” and continues on. So he’s now raping her. It’s as horrendous as it sounds.

There’s a particular phrase that gets bandied about nowadays when talking about consent: “no means no”. Some view it as a paltry and naive conceit of modern sensibilities, but that requires you to take the phrase at face value only. To treat it as a full thought rather than a springboard to be launched at more complicated ideas. It’s an acknowledgement of a larger vocabulary for consent that’s only been explored and championed in the last decade, if even that. We still live in a time when an article of clothing can discount any action or word a victim of sexual violence might take during their attack, and so its important to buttress dialogue that explores how consent can be given and taken away at any point.

Tragically, all of this is in service to giving Jamie a son — so Geneva dies in childbirth, snipping that loose end in the bud.

The last 400 pages operate much more like the last two books, but with even less direction. Without the spectre of the Jacobite Rising in Dragonfly in Amber or Claire’s desperate attempts to return to her time in Outlander, or Claire’s determination to return to Jamie at the start of this book, the second half struggles. Badly. That everything-and-the-kitchen-sink approach could be forgiven with effective melodrama to tether it, but there isn't any.

Crossing the Atlantic Ocean in search of Young Ian is a poor substitute. Despite the size of these novels, Gabaldon hasn’t really invested in characters beyond Jamie and Claire. What’s more, the new slate of background characters include grueling caricatures like Joe Abernathy, Claire’s black best friend from the sixties whose Jive-talking and respectability politics are then traded for Mr. Willoughby, a Chinese man whose introduced doing back-flips and fiendishly harassing women to satisfy his foot fetish. Even the way Claire refers to him in her internal monologue is degrading.

Worse still, Gabaldon has Claire attend a Slave Market and cause a scene.

  Somewhere deep inside, I knew it would make no difference, would not help in any way, would do nothing but harm. And yet I could not stand here, consenting by silence. It was not for the branded girls, the man in the block, not for any of them that I did it; it was for myself.

The self-awareness heightens the performative nature of Claire’s outburst, one that prioritizes her vanity over actual slaves. On a meta-textual level, its Gabaldon admitting to the audience she’s using the Slave Market as just another dramatic encounter — the plight of the slaves will not be covered as the Scots have been previously.

Voyager hits its emotional peak and narrative catharsis about halfway through with the reconciliation of Jamie and Claire, and scrabbles unsuccessfully through its remaining several hundred pages trying to find another in a new continent.

Diana, Diana— you’re truly killing me! There was misogyny in your first book and now we have racism in your third? I must admit that I do love the storyline. It is thrilling, intense, and wonderful. However, can we please put an end to these damaging stereotypes?

Let's be serious for a moment. Is it really necessary to call an integral character "the little Chinese" for the plot? Is it appropriate to depict him as completely inhuman, with animal-like movements and character, and horribly perverted? And is it acceptable to stereotype and mock an entire culture by incorporating ignorant and manipulated versions of ancient cultural practices into this character's storyline?

No, Gabaldon. I don't think so.

Needless to say, with a super slow start and the introduction of a poorly thought-out character (as mentioned above), the third installment of The Outlander series was definitely not my favorite.

Voyager also had some rather far-fetched twists and turns in the plot. Don't get me wrong, I love a good cliffhanger. But when we're cliff-diving every other chapter, the ride starts to feel a little less enjoyable and a little more nauseating. This is made worse by the fact that at every heart-stopping moment, something completely improbable and maddeningly miraculous occurs to bring the whole story back to "happily ever after."

Ugh. No thanks. Here's hoping for better luck in the fourth book, Gabaldon!

Oh my goodness! This book has pleased me as much as Forastera... in a different way, of course. Both books are quite different even though they have the same main couple.

In Forastera, things were in this order: Disorientation - Uncertainty - Adventures with a lot of intrigue - Romance - Anguish - More Anguish. And in Viajera, it is: Disorientation - Anguish - A lot of Anguish - More Anguish - I can't take my Anguish anymore - Romance - Adventures - A lot of adventures with a lot of intrigue. Oh yes, and I really liked it.

Twenty years, ladies and gentlemen. Twenty years apart. Jamie wanted, desired to have died in Culloden. And not to have survived for the misery that awaited him in the following twenty years. But at the end of the road, his reward awaited him, although... were twenty years necessary? The answer is yes. Because Claire was raising her little one. She found out that Jamie was still alive... just when her little one was no longer so little and didn't need her. But those twenty years were not a bed of roses for Claire either. Frank didn't make her life impossible, but he didn't make her happy either. And it's that on both sides of the stones was her other half. Do you know what it's like to live twenty years being half a person? With your heart divided in two? Being a ghost in life because real life has been left on the other side of the stones? That's how both of them felt. It's very, very distressing because it's about 200-odd pages narrating how those twenty years passed. Jamie was locked in a cave for seven years, coming out once a month because he was at risk of being arrested and hanged by the English after having his entrails removed. Then he decided to give himself up when he knew that they no longer hanged the four Scottish stragglers who had survived Culloden. And he spent many years in prison, living in misery, condemned to forced labor and with shackles leaving his wrists raw. Then the prisoners were sent as slaves. Jamie was lucky as he became a stable boy for a good family. Even so, it wasn't easy for him. Finally, he was set free and returned to Lallybroch. Where he was not happy at all since his sister encouraged him to... well, anyway, I don't want to spoil that. And two years later, his beloved Sassenach arrives. Please. When he no longer expected to be happy again, happiness knocks on his door in the best way. Jamie, you deserve it. You are very noble, a very good man, you have suffered a lot. You really deserve to be happy. You deserve to be with the love of your life. You have changed a lot, you are no longer the innocent youngster who married the Sassenach. You have been violated, tortured, you have seen yourself make decisions and do things that I know have not been easy. You didn't deserve those twenty years without the person who makes your life meaningful.

And well, after the happy reunion... which perhaps for some people may have seemed a bit lacking, but what do they expect? That they run towards each other, merge into an embrace and start fornicating right there? Let's be realistic. I think Jamie's reaction was appropriate considering what it means to see the most important person in your existence, the one you thought you would never see again.

And regarding the main adventure. Basically, one of Jamie's nephews is kidnapped, and Jamie has to go after him. Crossing the Atlantic. Jamie, who just by looking at a boat already gets seasick and thinks he's going to die. If ten hours crossing the English Channel are hellish, imagine two months at sea. The journey will not be without complications. And once on land... Gabaldón gives us a great twist and brings back a character we didn't think would appear again. The whole plot has left a very good taste in my mouth.

Highly recommended. I had never cried with a book in my life, and with this one, I did. Of course, it had to be Jamie Fraser who deflowered me in that sense (I'm glad, since it had to happen, that it was that piece of a man who did it). Jamie and Claire are two characters I will never forget.

On to the next book.

Without a doubt, it is the book that I have liked the most so far in the saga. Despite its extremely large size (1023 pages), it has never felt heavy to me at any moment. Chapter after chapter, it piques your curiosity to know what will happen. It has a great pace and the dialogues are very well constructed.

It is a novel that has all the ingredients to make me love it: adventures, intrigues, mysteries, secrets, love and accounts... All of this wrapped in an unimaginable setting.

We can see how the characters are evolving and we will get to know more aspects of each of them. We will take away surprises that I am convinced you will not see coming.

I think it has been a very good continuation. I am looking forward to continuing with this saga.

Still a 5-star read the fifth time around

This book remains my absolute favourite from the series, aside from the first one, of course. I am still deeply in love with the first chapter, which hooks you right in. And Lord Grey, he's still my heartthrob. In my mind, he looks exactly like Henry Cavill. I still remember turning off my phone during the lead up to that crucial moment. If you don't know what I'm referring to, you'll find out when you read it! I'm still proud that I managed to get through this almost 1000-page behemoth. And I still have the desire to read it again, one day.

Original review from 2014 below:

This was definitely my favourite one of the series so far! Reviewing these books without spoilers or adding anything new to the countless reviews before me is extremely challenging. While I thought the second book dragged a bit (okay, a lot, especially in France), I completely lost myself in the rich history and the intertwined lives in this one. The pages seemed to turn themselves. Gabaldon takes you on adventures away from the beautiful Highlands, out to sea and to the Caribbean. Her meticulous research and detailed descriptions are truly remarkable, making each setting come alive through the characters that inhabit them. I've thoroughly enjoyed these books, but they are long and require a significant commitment. However, after the first three, I feel I can take a break. The story could end here quite nicely. Of course, it doesn't, as there are at least five more, but if you can't face an eight-book series, in my opinion, the first three books could stand on their own. Sometimes, for books like this, 5 stars just aren't enough!

A perfect adventure spread over almost a thousand pages that I read with unwavering attention. Exotic destinations and characters, plus the perfect chemistry between Claire and Jamie which, in this installment, is actually not in the focus, contributed to a better overall impression of this part of the series. There is a lot of exciting events, sometimes predictable coincidences, often also unreal ones. All of this still gave charm to the story that will grip you and not let go until you see what was next, and that is actually sometimes the most important thing when reading. I am now also enjoying the series that has just started to be shown!

Trigger warning for sexual abuse, child abuse and rape.

When we last left Claire and Jamie, the battle of Culloden was on the verge of starting. Fearing for the safety of Claire and their child, Jamie encouraged Claire to pass through the stones for the second time. It would be twenty long years before these two star-crossed lovers would see each other again. And, of course, the path of true love most definitely couldn't run smoothly.

I don't even know where to begin with this review. Having read Dragonfly in Amber, I truly thought this series couldn't get any worse. But how wrong I was. The Outlander series has always required suspending belief. Otherwise, the very premise - a woman traveling through the stones and ending up 200 years in the past - would be a non-starter. There is only so far an author can ask a reader to do this, and Gabaldon goes well beyond this point with Voyager. Throughout the novel, too many improbable incidents occur, which Jamie and Claire just miraculously manage to escape from, along with far too many ridiculous interactions with characters from the past. The number of coincidences and repeat meetings is simply absurd. For example, Jamie and Claire just happen to run into a minister who is a serial killer of prostitutes. Claire gets shipwrecked and just happens to run into a scientist Jamie met in Scotland. Jamie marries the woman who tried to have Claire killed. Geillies Duncan isn't really dead and shows up long enough to be evil and inspire a slave rebellion. Lord Grey, who is still in love with Jamie, first works as the warden of the prison Jamie is held in and then just happens to be posted to Jamaica as governor at the moment that Claire and Jamie really need official help. The hurricane that sinks the man-o-war chasing Jamie and Claire's boat just happens to carry them 600 miles across the ocean to America. I could have accepted the journey if any of these leaps had made any kind of logical sense, but it all came down to believing this nonsense because Gabaldon wrote it.

One of the things I learned while reading Voyager is that one of the worst things a woman can do as she ages is get fat. The requirement of thinness, of course, makes Claire (oh, she of the perfect, ever so white skin) stand out. And in case you are in any doubt at all, Jamie makes sure to tell Claire so repeatedly. A little thing like medicine and the proper nutrition of the twentieth century didn't give Claire an advantage, did it? Women pale in Claire's shadow, and most certainly Laoghaire and Geillis Duncan.

First, it's worth mentioning that the fact that Jamie just happened to marry Laoghaire, who tried to have Claire murdered, is ridiculous. But I suppose Gabaldon felt that all ties with Scotland had to be neatly bound. Did anyone even care about this character to begin with? It's perfectly understandable that Jamie would try to move on with his life after Claire left, so I fail to understand why he wouldn't just tell her about his marriage rather than have Claire find out by having Laoghaire burst into their bedroom. Did this story really need more angst and drama? From the beginning, Laoghaire didn't hold a candle to Claire, but this had to be reasserted for some reason. Then we have Geillies, who we were led to believe had died. Her reappearance comes down to a lack of imagination. Did Gabaldon think that readers simply couldn't handle a new character as evil? Of course, the once bonnie Geillies is now hideously fat and unhealthy, with her size increasing in direct proportion to the evil that she does. Gabaldon is none too subtle with her fat hatred here.
We also know that Geillies is evil because she is a rapist. For some reason, Gabaldon seems absolutely fascinated with rape. So far, each of the books in the series has either had a rape scene or very much implied it. In this case, Geillies has young boys kidnapped and then she drugs them and rapes them. We do have a scene in which Young Ian talks about how his body reacted to the sexual stimulation, though he didn't want to be touched. It was good to have Jamie empathizing with Ian, having been through this situation himself, but it still begs the question of why Gabaldon felt the need to include the rape in the first place? It's as though a story for her isn't complete unless it includes some gratuitous rape.
Geillies isn't even the only rapist in this novel. Yes, that's right, our favorite red-headed Scotsman, after being blackmailed into taking Geneva's virginity, ends up raping her. The description of the rape is disturbing and graphic. After being raped, Geneva doesn't cry or even try to get away. Instead, she apologizes to Jamie, believing that the grimace he made during orgasm indicated that he was hurt by raping her. Deciding that her rape wasn't all that bad, Geneva then initiates sex with Jamie. Not only is this another gratuitous rape scene, but it's not acknowledged as such because the rapist is Jamie, the perfect Scot.
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After twice stating that I would abandon this series, I am now quitting. I simply cannot seem to discover sufficient interesting aspects on all those pages to keep me reading. Moreover, I still am not a fan of Claire, and my dislike for her has reached a new high with this book.

You might wonder why I picked up book 3 if I was almost certain that I would not like it. Well, I enjoyed watching the TV series and desired to know how the author managed to write about Claire's return to the past in a believable manner.

Most of my friends love this series and will surely continue to attempt to convince me that I might also like it. However, sorry, it's just not working for me. And with this, I close the chapter of Outlander for myself.

My review of book 1 and book 2.

*SPOILER ALERT*

Okay, let's face it. This book really pushed the boundaries of what's believable. It was filled with prophecies, magic, voodoo, and yet more time travel. Our two main characters seemed to miraculously escape countless harrowing and life-threatening situations without a scratch. But that was nothing compared to the crazy coincidences that kept popping up over and over again. It was just plain silly, especially when you think about the fact that the story takes place across England, Scotland, France, Haiti, and Jamaica.

I mean, seriously. The same Jewish philosopher that Jamie meets in France just so happens to be wandering around the jungles of Haiti where Claire is lost? The uptight priest who asks Claire for help with his sick sister just so happens to also be the crazy serial killer on the loose in Scotland, and then they just run into him again in Jamaica? And the British soldier who's in love with Jamie (and really, how many British soldiers are going to be hot for Jamie throughout this series?) conveniently turns out to be the new Governor of Jamaica when Claire and Jamie arrive and need his assistance? And when Jamie and Claire are cast out to sea in a storm, their boat somehow manages to go off course and end up in America, which is probably where they were headed anyway. It's just one happy coincidence after another, and it gets a bit tiresome.

This was definitely my least favorite of the three books so far, simply because it seemed so unrealistic. I'm not sure if I'll bother reading the fourth one, especially since the ending of this one didn't really leave me on the edge of my seat. Maybe if I'm really bored and there's nothing else on my nightstand, I might give it a try.

4.5 ⭐

OMG, I truly need a breath!

Okay, wow! I absolutely loved this book. It was truly a remarkable read that captivated me from the very beginning. The story was engaging and filled with twists and turns that kept me on the edge of my seat. The characters were well-developed and I found myself easily connecting with them. Each one had their own unique personality and backstory that added depth to the overall narrative.

The writing style was also excellent. The author had a way of painting vivid pictures in my mind, making it easy for me to imagine the settings and scenes. The descriptions were detailed and precise, which really enhanced my reading experience. I also appreciated the pacing of the book. It wasn't too slow or too fast, but just right, allowing me to fully immerse myself in the story.

In conclusion, I would highly recommend this book to anyone looking for a great read. It's one of those books that you won't be able to put down and will leave you thinking about it long after you've finished. I can't wait to see what the author comes up with next!