Voyager by Diana Gabaldon

                                                              

 Title: Voyager

Author: Diana Gabaldon
Genre: Fiction, SciFi, Historical, Fantasy

Other books I've read by this author: Outlander, Dragonfly in Amber

Synopsis: "Their passionate encounter 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.
Then Claire discovers that Jamie survived. Torn between returning to him and staying with their daughter in her own era, Claire must choose her destiny. And as time and space come full circle, she must find the courage to face the passion and pain awaiting her...the deadly intrigues raging in a divided Scotland... and the daring voyage into the dark unknown that can reunite--or forever doom--her timeless love." - back cover

My Thoughts

So much happens in this third book of the Outlander series that I had to use the back cover synopsis rather than write my own. Just thinking about all the settings in this book was overwhelming to try to write about; 1969 in Boston, 1766 in Edinburgh, Lallybroch, France, at sea, Jamaica. All taking place in 4 months' time and just over 1000 pages... its a lot.

As ever, Gabaldon brings back a bunch of familiar characters, even ones you don't expect to find in Claire and Jamie's varied travels. It is well researched, so it all makes sense why certain unexpected characters would pop up in new places based on what was happening there in the mid-1700s.

For those of you who also watch the show, there are a few major events that are portrayed differently than they were in season 3 but the outcome is the same so the story still goes in the same direction. Often I would think, well that would be hard to portray on TV, or that would take way more time than the show could allow for.

Once again, I was engaged from beginning to end and read it faster than I thought I would. I look forward to book 4! 

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Victory at Valley Forge by Newt Gingrich and William R. Forstchen

                                                        

Title: Victory at Yorktown
Author: Newt Gingrich and William R. Forstchen
Genre: Historical Fiction


Synopsis: The story of the events that lead to the battle at Yorktown in the American Revolution. Two young men who were friends before the war have ended up on opposite sides, one a loyalist fighting for the king, the other fighting for the continental army, working his way up to report information directly to George Washington. 

My Thoughts

I found this book in the discount section at Barnes and Noble and decided to give it a shot. July has been about reading stories set in the United States. Turns out that it was the third book in a series about George Washington. While I hate reading a series out of order, I didn't even realize it was part of a trilogy until after I had finished it and saw the other two listed in the back. So it speaks for itself saying that it can stand alone, not requiring the reader to have read the others in order to follow the story. 

I like that there are three perspectives explored in this novel, the one of George Washington, one of a young Continental, and one of a young Loyalist. It allows the reader to see what is happening on all fronts of the war while taking historic events and making them feel more real. It also provides an added dimension that the two young men had been friends before the war, and who have encountered one another over the course of the six years of fighting several times.

  I appreciate it when a war novel can be historically accurate and a well-told story. 

I look forward to finding and reading the other two books in the series!

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The Underground Railroad by Colson Whitehead

Title: The Underground Railroad
Author: Colson Whitehead
Genre: Historical Fiction


Synopsis: Cora was born a slave on a cotton plantation in Georgia. Her mother had also been born on this land, and her grandmother had arrived here by slave ship. Her mother ran when Cora was only a child, leaving her alone. As she grows up on the plantation she becomes an outcast amongst the other slaves. A new slave, Caesar, shows up on the plantation and asks her to consider running away, and when they do the course to freedom is not a straight line.

My Thoughts

This book has been on my 'to be read' list for some time. When the public library opened back up (after closing for COVID) I requested this book right away because the waitlist had been so long. Two days later I got a notification that it was available and picked it up from the drive-through window!
There are a few things that make this book feel unique. First, each chapter starts with a newspaper ad for a runaway slave, reminding the reader with the description of the person missing that they were completely considered as property, not humans. Second, in addition to the main storyline following Cora's travels on the Underground Railroad, there are short chapters scattered throughout that are about each of the important characters she meets along the way. It provides backstory that helps the reader understand why the motive that the person has for the role they play in Cora's life, good or bad. I also enjoyed the author's choice to imagine the Underground Railroad as a literal railroad beneath the ground, with stations to pick up the runaways dug beneath the homes of those who help them. 
I really enjoyed reading this novel and hope that you get a chance to read it as well! 

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Dragonfly in Amber by Diana Gabaldon

Title: Dragonfly in Amber
Author: Diana Gabaldon
Genre: Fiction, SciFi, Historical, Fantasy

Other books I've read by this author: Outlander

Synopsis: The second book in the Outlander series picks up as Jamie and Claire leave Scotland and head to the continent to live in safety. It chronicles their lives in France, where Jamie is working for his cousin and becomes a confidant to Prince Charles, the ousted Scottish prince. Claire and Jamie work to stop the uprising and save the Highlanders from the battle of Culloden, but can they change history?

My Thoughts

900 pages have never gone by so fast for me as when I am reading this series. It is so fast-paced and intriguing that I had a hard time putting down, reading until I cannot actually keep my eyes open anymore. If you liked Outlander, then you will love this book as well. All of the best characters, plus a few great new additions continue the complex and varied storylines created by Gabaldon. 
If you have watched the series, you will find that this book covers season 2, but also crosses a bit to season 3 with some time spent in the 1960s. 
I am all caught up on the TV series, so being able to go back and read the books has helped me survive 'Droughtlander' as fans await season 6. 
I cannot wait to read the next book in the series! 

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The Wrath and the Dawn by Renee Ahdieh

Title: The Wrath and The Dawn
Author: Renee Ahdieh
Genre: YA Fiction, Fantasy


Synopsis: A young king (Caliph) in Rey, Khalid, is taking a new wife every day and then having her killed the next dawn. When her best friend is selected to marry him and killed, Shahrzad volunteers to marry the Caliph in order to take revenge on this murderer. Shahrzad's father and childhood friends work to free her from certain death, but she begins to understand there is more to the story of this murderous ruler. He may be a person and not a monster after all.

My Thoughts

A friend of mine suggested we read this during the stay at home order, and I'm so glad she did! Nothing is a perfect palate cleanser after an intense nonfiction piece like Young Adult fantasy. That being said, as I read this novel, it did not feel overly young-adulty. Several stories are going on at once, Shahrzad and Khalid, her father and friends, and the back story for why Khalid is killing these women. While each individual story is simple, how they fit together is a bit more complex. 
This novel is a retelling of Arabian Nights,  A Thousand and One Nights. I have not read that, so I cannot compare but I will be adding it to my reading list and keep you all informed. Overall, if you are looking for a fun, quick read this summer I suggest you pick up a copy! 

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Public Enemies by Bryan Burrough

Title: Public Enemies: America's Greatest Crime Wave and the Birth of the FBI
Author: Bryan Burrough
Genre: Nonfiction


Synopsis: This work chronicles the formation of the FBI and the growing pains in its creation as they tried to thwart notorious criminals like Pretty Boy Floyd, Baby Face Nelson, The Barker-Karpis Gang, Bonnie and Clyde, and John Dillinger.

My Thoughts

This book was meticulously researched to the point where it feels more like a story than real life. Burrough uses all the facts to create a clear picture of the events in the criminal lives of each of these notorious gangs. He can say who was there, what was said, where the FBI was when each robbery or hideout was happening. He shares what critical pieces were missed that allowed the gang members to get away again and again, and what changes were made that led the FBI to finally get to each of them. 
As a Clevelander myself, it was interesting to find out that members of the Karpis-Barker gang lived on the west side Cleveland for a while lying low. It makes them seem that much more real.
It is also intriguing to know that when the FBI began the agents were not armed and were mostly young Ivy League lawyer-types that Hoover felt were the right type of men for the job. 
I wouldn't say that this reads like fiction, because it doesn't, but once you figure out all of the major players (there are so many people in this book) it is really engaging and interesting to read about these kidnapping bank-robbers trying to survive during the Great Depression.

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Flight of Dreams by Ariel Lawhon

Title: Flight of Dreams
Author: Ariel Lawhon
Genre: Historical Fiction

Other books I have read by this author: The Wife, The Maid, and the Mistress

Synopsis: This story follows several people, both crew and passenger, and their experiences on the last flight of the Hindenburg. From take-off to disastrous landing, what might it have been like for those who were aboard the grand zeppelin? What really caused it to go up in flames?

My Thoughts

This was another recommendation loaned to me by a co-worker. Like the first book I read by this author, Lawhon uses multiple points of view to explore an infamous historical mystery; what happened on the Hindenburg to cause it to burst into flames? She uses detailed research to find facts to form the backbone of the story and then fills in the missing details with her fictional version of the character's experiences. The reader gets to experience the flight from the perspective of a stewardess, only female crew member ever on a Zepplin; a navigator, a teenaged cabin boy, a German journalist passenger, and a mysterious American passenger.
 In the author's note, Lawhon mentions that the characters were all real people who were on that flight and that she chose to keep their fates, whether they survived the explosion or not, true to history. I think that is such a cool choice, writing a fictional story knowing what happened to these real people in real life. I loved the mystery and the author's choice for her version of what caused the disaster.
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