Drums of Autumn by Diana Gabaldon

The magnificent saga continues....

It began in Scotland, at an ancient stone circle. There, a doorway, open to a select few, leads into the past—or the grave. Claire Randall survived the extraordinary passage, not once but twice. Her first trip swept her into the arms of Jamie Fraser, an eighteenth-century Scot whose love for her became legend—a tale of tragic passion that ended with her return to the present to bear his child. Her second journey, two decades later, brought them together again in frontier America. But Claire had left someone behind in the twentieth century. Their daughter, Brianna....

Now Brianna has made a disturbing discovery that sends her to the stone circle and a terrifying leap into the unknown. In search of her mother and the father she has never met, she is risking her own future to try to change history...and to save their lives. But as Brianna plunges into an uncharted wilderness, a heartbreaking encounter may strand her forever in the past...or root her in the place she should be, where her heart and soul belong.... @goodreads 

And we have more Jamie and Claire and the others =)



I'm always going to put up the spoiler alert because there is always so much for me to say. I was also talking with a friend about how the books are starting to run together. My reviews may end up being from books before, all combined. Who ever knows!



So far I have loved every one of these books, they are on my favorites list and I hope that doesn't change!

I freaking loved this book! It's one of my favorites in the series.

"Do ye not understand?" he said, in near desperation. "I would lay the world at your feet, Claire--and I have nothing to give ye!"

He honestly thought it mattered.

I sat looking at him, searching for words. He was half turned away, shoulders slumped in despair.

Within an hour, I had gone from anguish at the thought of losing him in Scotland, to strong desire to bed him in the herbaceous borders, and from that to a pronounced urge to hit him on the head with an oar. Now I was back to tenderness.

At last I took one big, callused hand and slid forward so I knelt on the boards between his knees. I laid my head against his chest, and felt his breath stir my hair. I had no words, but I had made my choice.

"'Whither thou goest,'" I said, "'I will go; and where thou lodgest, I will lodge: they people shall be my people, and thy God my God: Where thou diest, will I die and there will I be buried.'" Be it Scottish hill or southern forest. "You do what you have to; I'll be there."

*Sob*

Jamie and Claire landed in Georgia and then ended up in North Carolina. They had to deal with pirates again and Claire lost one of her rings, luckily, not Jamie's ring =) But the other ring does come back later on when Bree has a run in with the sorry arse pirate that had it.

As usual peeps, I'm going to be all over the place with this review.

It turns out that Jamie has an aunt and some cousins and what not in North Carolina. His aunt runs River Run, a plantation with slaves that Claire and Jamie weren't too fond of. So they go out into the wilderness and start building, Fraser's Ridge. They want to have a colony there.

They also take up good with the Native American's (which I loved) after Jamie kills a bear they were tracking when it tries to attack him and Claire. That was a tense moment. Anyway, they were friends with the Native since then and shared many things together.

Ian is living with them and he brought along an Irishwolfhound/Wolf mix he named Rollo! I love Rollo so much. Ian ends up going to live with Native American's later on, getting married, having a baby and Rollo having a bunch of babies. I was so thrilled. I just hope nothing happens to any of them =( But he was with Jamie and Claire for some time, this is toward the end of the book. See, I'm not following anything.

Claire has to try to help treat measles that one of the Native's gets and then Lord Grey and Ian get. The Native died but Lord Grey and Ian lived. She caught theirs right away.

Yes, Lord Grey comes to visit and brings William. I keep having a hard time with Willie because I don't want Jamie to have a son from some stupid woman he didn't like but he had sex with her anyone because she was marrying an old man and didn't want him to be her first. Get a clue that your going to get some twat pregnant. Anyway, it's not Willie's fault but I still wish he didn't exist. I'm not a kid person anyway. I just wish the family would keep popping out their own. Lol.

Then we get to read about some of the stuff that Brianna and Roger are doing on the other side. Well, that sounded funny but you know what I mean.

Then Bree decides to go through the stones and find her mom and dad. She ends up at Lallybroch and gets to meet her extended family! I loved it =) Although, old stupid Laoghaire was there and I wish Bree would have beaten her to a pulp, but I digress.

Oh, and at one point Jamie gives Claire a medical kit of sorts for their 24th anniversary. I almost forgot to mention that random tidbit. I thought it was so freaking sweet that he remembered! He's the man!

Oh, and Fergus and Marsali were having a baby and they left Marsali in Jamaica when they came over to America so nothing would happen to her. But then she came over when Fergus son, Germaine was born. It's so sweet, they are all growing up and having babies =)

There is a sh•t ton more stuff but I'm not going into all of that for Pete's sake.

Bree and Roger had a time of it though. Well they had sex, ew. Bree was raped, of course. There was a misunderstanding with Roger and Jamie knocked his block off and gave him to the Natives. Never fear, Jamie and Claire got him back.

Now, when Bree and Jamie first met I cried. I just couldn't help it. I laughed and then I cried. There is a whole section but I'm only going to add a couple of excerpts from that part.

She could scarcely breathe. His eyes were dark blue, soft with kindness. Her eyes fixed on the open collar of his shirt, where the curly hairs showed, bleached gold against his sunburnt skin.

"Are you--you're Jamie Fraser, aren't you?"

He glanced sharply at her face.

"I am," he said. the wariness had returned to his face; his eyes narrowed against the sun. He glanced quickly behind him, toward the tavern, but nothing stirred in the open doorway. He took a step closer to her.

"Who asks?" he said softly. "Have you a message for me lass?"

She felt an absurd desire to laugh welling up in her throat. Did she have a message?

"My name is Brianna, " she said. He frowned, uncertain, and something flickered in his eyes. He knew it! He'd heard the name and it meant something to him. She swallowed hard, feeling her cheeks blaze as though they'd been seared by a candle flame.

"I'm your daughter," she said, her voice sounding choked to her own ears. "Brianna."

some more stuff and then...

"My God," he croaked. "You're huge."

Her own blush had subsided, but now came back with a vengeance.

"And whose fault is that, do you think?" she snapped. She drew herself up straight and squared her shoulders, glaring. So close, at her full height, she could look him right in the eye, and did.

a bunch more words that made me cry and then.....

And suddenly it as all simple. He held out his arms to her. She stepped into them and found that she had been wrong; he was as big as she imagined--and his arms were as strong about her as she had ever dared to hope.

This was a very emotional moment with a lot more said that just broke me down. Claire was back home and had no idea Bree was there yet.

It was wonderful when she got back and was with them both. Jamie took her hunting for bees, yes bees, to bring back home for them to live and they could have honey.

They had long talks and loving times. AND then, they had knock down drag out fights. I mean Bree is just like Jamie. I could finally see it when they were fighting together. Even Claire said they were so much alike and just let them go at it. Red-headed and stubborn as mules! =)

Bree finally tells Claire that she was raped when she got her mother's wedding ring from Frank back. And, Bree was also pregnant and she thought it was the rapist instead of Roger's but she didn't know for sure. Claire kept telling her it was too close together to decide that.

They took Bree back to River Run and she had the baby and they finally showed up with Roger and told him what all happened. But he loved Bree and didn't care and said that was his son. It was really sweet. And of course Jamie threatened him if he didn't take good care of Bree.

I just wonder what all is going to happen next. There is just so much going on all of the time. I really loved that they were making their own place. It was just beautiful there in the wilderness, of a sorts.

I will say I do miss Scotland and I was glad when Bree got to spend some time at Lallybroch. I really hope they get to go back some day and not on their dying days!

GOODREADS REVIEW:

https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/1988904527