A Breath of Snow and Ashes by Diana Gabaldon

From Goodreads: A Breath of Snow and Ashes continues the extraordinary story of 18th-century Scotsman Jamie Fraser and his 20th-century wife, Claire. 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.

I am continuously amazed by the depth of detail and character building in these books. There is so much packed in here, from historical events to medical knowledge and beyond, it exhausts me to think of how much research has to take place for each and every one. The Outlander novels stand apart for me on an untouchable pedestal of their own, spotlighted in my mental museum of all time favorites. You know that question of what books would you take with you if you were stranded on an island? I would take these, because it would take many many re-reads before you might remember everything and connect the dots, AND because with all the things that Jamie and Claire and their family go through, being stranded on that desert island would seem like a vacation in comparison!

I highly recommend the audiobooks read by Davina Porter. They are long, this one was 57 hours and took me just under two months (with a break for another audio in the middle) but so very worth it. The characters come alive with Davina's amazing performance. It's very difficult to come back to reality after finishing one. It seems to be a series you either love, or just can't get interested in, but I am firmly in the love category! I hope to get to the next book before the end of the year, as part of the Seriously Series Challenge, it's about 10 hours shorter, which is the length of a regular book in some cases! Just another reason to be in awe of Diana Gabaldon!

The Outlander Series on Audible.com

Diana Gabaldon's Website