Rating: 
Summary: just finished it... with complete satisfaction
Review: If you look at this brilliant and beautiful series as a soon-to-be completed arc stemming from the heavenly Outlander to the following titles, then The Fiery Cross will be a satisfying read. Diana gets you there. Afterall, Jamie and Claire are almost at the end of the adventure and so are we, dear readers. The layering of characters and topics can be daunting, but we've come so far and The Fiery Cross starts to place us on the path to the end of this tale. It's all worth it. And this latest is full of all the classic aspects that make this tale (in totality) so profoundly appealing. If you truly love Diana Gabaldon's work, and admire her craft and this intense story for all it has going on, then you will savor this read. **And I hate to admit it, but the first 150 pages are a bit slow, but that passes....enjoy it.
Rating: 
Summary: Confused and Disappointed
Review: The Fiery Cross was a great disappointment. I skimmed the book the first time and then went back and read it again. It did not read like a Gabaldon book. The story was disjointed and did not move smoothly. Even the main characters were different. I appreciate that people change as they age, but would Jamie really have whined just because Clair wouldn't kiss him? His actions at Joscasta'a wedding were completely out of character. And what about Clair being worried about burning the clothes when Jamie was perhaps going to die? Then there's Furgus, has he been overlooked by Jamie now that Jamie has a son-in-law? Who by-the-way, is a jerk. The book doesn't fit with what has gone on in the other four books. The book just doesn't ring true. I really got the impression that Ms Gabaldon had to rush to get the book done in a short period of time. I hope she takes as much time as is needed to finish the next book.
Rating:
Summary: Not a Romance Novel--thank-you!
Review: I think that Diana is getting caught in cross-genre crossfire. She never intended to write romance novels; she just picked up some readers who happen to be romance novel readers. Her books are NOT romance novels. Some of these reviewers would give Anna Karenina one star because it is not a "page turner." I read DG because she is unique and does not write according to formula. In this book she explores the very practical reality of 20th century people living in 18th century backcounty. How do they re-establish their identities? Make lives for themselves? It is wonderful. Living in the 18th century required a lot more than a change of clothes and adjustment to dim lighting (unless you are in the world of an 18th century romance novel.) Keep writing Diana. There are plenty of us who will keep reading!
Rating: 
Summary: Long Awaited - and dispointed
Review: I loved the first three books, reading them twice through. I thought books 4 & 5 not as good, however still interesting. I waited so long and was so excited for The Firery Cross to be released. I bought it as soon as it was available. I am very dispointed in the book. Jamie and Claire have lost their spark. The interplay between them is nothing like the first books. I really missed that. They are now boring. The book had entirly too much detail about day to day life and could have had about 300 pages cut and you would not have missed a thing. I hope Diana G. Can get back some of the spark in her future books.
Rating: 
Summary: The Adventure Slows
Review: I have read the four previous books and enjoyed them. When this book was published, I bought a copy right away and began reading. I thought the pace was too slow in the first three hundred pages because it dealt primarily with family living. A friend called after the first 300 pages and said she was disappointed. I told her to give it a chance as the excitement picks up in the next 600 pages. The story does come together, in surprising ways. Diana's sixth book is the last in the series and she has set the stage for it. Will Jamie and Claire return to Scotland? Will Brianna, Roger and Jemmy return through the rings? Will Jamie or Roger be successful in killing Stephen Bonnet and win the revenge they so desperately seek?
Yes, the pace is slower and the book is not as good as the previous four are, but loose ends needed to be tied together and they are. I eagerly await book six.
Rating:
Summary: Fiery Cross: Dead in the Water
Review: Coming back to Claire and Jamie in the Fiery Cross was much like reuniting with your old high school lover and discovering he's got a paunch, a bald spot, and works for his father in law because no one else will hire him. It didn't measure up to its earlier promise. Like others, I found it nearly impossible to read for long, because the plot can more accurately be described as "plod." I bought it several weeks before going on vacation and worried that I wouldn't be able to "save" it for my trip. If only. It took every bit of 4 weeks to slog through the book and if the story had FINALLY picked up a hint of momentum by the last 100 pages or so, I'd still be working on it. The irony is that for a boring book, it was exceptionally well written....but it could (and should) have been edited down to about 200 pages and been a MUCH better showing. I get the impression that this is intended as a "bridgework" between Book 4 and 6, but there *had* to have been a better way to construct it than The Fiery Cross. I have to believe that Gabaldon has become such a huge money maker for her publishers that they are willing to rubber stamp anything she offers them just to get it out the door and in the stores--much akin to the hideously edited "Left Behind" series--except, unlike LeHaye, Gabaldon actually CAN write her way out of a fictional paper bag (although if The Fiery Cross is anything to go by, doing so would account for approximately 20% of the book). I hope she finds an editor worthy of the name in time for Book 6.
Rating:
Summary: Quantity over Quality
Review: I think Ms. Gabaldon has a gift for writing and storytelling. With that said, I can only assume that she has grown tired of these characters. Afterall, how many years has it been since the first novel was written? People change and their writing changes with time. To sum up my feelings - this book was way too long and boring. I enjoy the way Ms. Gabaldon writes; therefore, I kept reading, all the time hoping the story would improve - unfortunately, for all of us, it did not. I'm sorry - but I doubt if I would buy another book in this series.
Rating:
Summary: Worth the wait?
Review: I have been a Gabaldon fanatic since I first read Outlander and waited impatiently for this latest book, eagerly anticipating devouring every word of my favorite author. It was almost anti-climatic when I finally got it, I found the first 300 pages slow and lacking in the edge of your seat thrill the other books had, the kind that kept me up to all hours of the night. But then it finally picked up speed and things started to tie together and the passion was back. It is quite obvious that there was extensive research put into this book and it was blended well into the story, (part of the long wait between books I'm sure).
Now I will not throw in any spoilers at all for those of you who will read this book, but I will say that you have to drag yourself through the first half of the book to get to the good stuff and I found it was worth it. I look foward to the next book which I predict will be a whirlwind of activity and this book sets the stage for what will be the last of the series. Hopefully all of the loose ends will be tied up upon completion of the story, thats what these books are, one very long story of a marriage. I have enjoyed the whole thing thus far and if you are a Gabaldon fan or new to her and her books start with Outlander and work your way to The Fiery Cross, it won't be a disappointment. Overall I don't feel quite as passionate about this book as I do the others but I still want to know what happens to Jamie and Claire in the end. I will say I did enjoy the book after I got through the begining and I do think that she could have cut the whole description of the gathering in half at least and it would hve flowed better. Not her best but even Gabaldon at her worst is still pretty darn good.
Rating:
Summary: Like a tv show on too many years...maybe it's time to go
Review: After reading the first four Outlander books in record time, I was eagerly anticipating the Fiery Cross. I had also kept tabs on DG's website, and know she had lots of scenes written far ahead of time, with periodic snippets published on her website. Well, FC reads like she took all these scenes and snippets and threw them all together to please her fans and make some cash. I love the characters and love reading about them, but I am over halfway through, and can't find a plotline for the life of me! The book opens with one day at the Gathering, and this took almost ONE HUNDRED Pages! One day! I think the pace could be much faster; we need some classic evil characters who are actually THERE, and not just talked about (i.e. Bonnet). I agree with the other review about time travel - that is part of what I loved about the first few -- Claire reconciling the two eras, etc. Now, it should move on to Roger and Bree more, I think, as the *new* couple. J and C are getting a little old - running out of stuff that can happen to them! (much like a tv show on air for too long....). I will also "wait and see" before reading the next one. I hope DG takes her time writing it!
Rating:
Summary: A "Must Have" for every library
Review: Once again, Diana Gabaldon has written a perfect novel! If you haven't already, you need to read the first four books of the series (Outlander, Dragonfly in Amber, Voyager and Drums of Autumn). #5, The Fiery Cross, continues a sweeping saga of love, hate, history and most importantly of an undying, unending passion of heart and soul between the two main characters. If you think these novels are the standard "Romance" type stories, you are greatly mistaken. I would call them Historical Fiction with a great love story entwined. Just like the first four novels, The Fiery Cross will hold you captive for as long as it takes to finish the book. At nearly 1000 pages, it is lengthy but not one page is wasted. I could go on and on...Absolutely, breathtakingly, marvelous!!!
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