Rating: 
Summary: Fascinating and Satisfying
Review: Another fascinating installment in the series. I found this book particularly satisfying in that it tied up several loose ends from the previous book. Throughout the books, Gabaldon fleshes out her characters until they fairly glow with life. Her meticulous attention to historical detail gives one a true sense of what it must have been like to live during earlier eras in Europe and North America. In order to refresh my memory, I reread the entire series before starting in on the new book. That's a lot of reading, but I don't regret a minute I spent with Claire, Jamie, and their extended family! This latest book is a wonderful addition to a truly outstanding series.
Rating: 
Summary: Keep going, it gets much better
Review: First, to echo what others said, if you haven't read the first four books in the "Outlander" series, don't start here. Start at the beginning with the tale of Claire Randall, a former WWII nurse, who travels through a circle of standing stones and winds up in Scotland in the 1740s, where she falls in love with highlander Jamie Fraser, and continue on with the stories about Brianna, their daughter born after Claire returns to her own time. That's one of the best romance novels I've read. If "The Fiery Cross" had been the first of the "Outlander" books that I had read, I would never have finished it nor read any others in the series. But if you have traveled this far through the series, plough through the first 250 or so pages, because the last part of the book is worth it. Ultimately, you will get treated to stories of murder and mystery and intrigue. "The Fiery Cross" begins in 1770 in North Carolina with a gathering of clans --Scots who have immigrated to the colonies following the Battle of Culloden. Unfortunately, the events at this gathering get rather tediousness as Gabaldon attempts to catch up any new readers on what has happened in the previous four novels and introduce new characters who will become key to her plot. With all the side plots and vignettes of Claire in her makeshift surgery and Roger enthralling the clans with his folk songs and Jamie being manly and lord like and Brianna worrying about future pregnancies, it's hard to tell where Gabaldon is going with this book. Once Roger and Brianna marry and the family returns to their homestead, the story improves. One key theme Gabaldon develops is what happens to the Fraser-MacKenzie family on the eve of the American Revolution. The governor has asked Jamie to raise a militia to deal with the Regulators--a group of protesting colonists who have rioted against the Crown. Claire joins Roger and Jamie as they head off, hoping to avoid a violent conflict. The scenes in the militia camp are reminiscent of the tales of the Rising in "Dragonfly in Amber." The other plot line that runs through the book is Jamie's quest for vengeance against Stephen Bonnet, the pirate who raped Brianna in "Drums of Autumn," and possibly fathered her son. Throughout "Cross," Jamie receives information about how to find Bonnet, ensuring that a showdown will come by the end of the novel. Gabaldon also introduces a new villain, who I have no doubt we will continue to encounter. While I don't want to spoil any surprises, I will just mention that this villain poses some of the same dilemmas as Jack Randall did--and makes "Cross" worth continuing, even when you are thinking that the clan gathering will never end. One of the best parts of "Cross" is a murder mystery that begins at the wedding of Jamie's aunt, Jocasta Cameron, and that later weaves in part of Jocasta's history in Scotland, and elements of a plot that started in "Dragonfly in Amber." Gabaldon has said that she originally wrote "Outlander" has practice for her first "real" novel, which was going to be a mystery. The intrigue that she adds to "Cross" makes it worth reading. "Cross" definitely left me looking forward to the next in the series. No doubt the outbreak of the American Revolution will add more drama to the lives of Jamie, his time-traveling family, Claire, Roger and Brianna.
Rating:
Summary: not up to the rest of the series
Review: Enough people have talked about the content that I want to comment on the format of this book. It's extremely annoying that the publisher has decided to bring out a trade paperback of this book, making it impossible now to have a matched set with my mass market copies of the previous installments. The paper is really cheap; I understand this is a very long book, but if you're going to do a trade paperback edition, do it right and make it a quality one. That's the whole point of a trade paperback! All this is simply greed on the publisher's part, and if anyone from Delta is reading this, I hope they take it to heart.
Rating: 
Summary: Great continuation of the series
Review: I thought this was a fine addition to the series and provided much background and insight as well as (I'm sure) a transition for future novels. I personally wasn't grossed out by the detail in the descriptions of breatfeeding etc., nor did I think they were excessive. In fact, I was particularly sensitive about that after reading previous reviews and couldn't inderstand what all the fuss was about. Yes, the characters are maturing. Jamie and Claire are settling into another phase of their lives. This book shows that and describes what happens when everyday life intrudes on love and passion. Yes, Roger and Bree don't measure up to Jamie and Claire, but why do they have to? This isn't a romance novel. It is a richly detailed saga of life that's very enlightining historically. Gabaldon is a superior writer. Nuff said!
Rating:
Summary: I loved it!
Review: I don't totally agree with the previous review. Although things do change in The Fiery Cross with Brianna and Roger, I still had great difficulty putting the book down! I think that Brianna and Roger have enhanced the story. I felt it was extremely well written and also a very exciting story. It also brought others more to light in this book which I enjoyed. One thing I wish is that Jamie could travel to their time in order to see what it's like, since he has heard so much about it. What do you say Ms. Gabaldon? *S* To sum it up, I really enjoyed the book. I have just finished it and am thinking about re-reading it just because it was so well written and I did not find it boring at all.
Rating:
Summary: I read the previous reviews and had to put my two cents in..
Review: Yes, the book is long and the details do get you bogged down. But, if you are familiar w/ Miss Gabaldons' writing, you know that is how she writes and that is what makes her books a great read. I agree that the book could have sent its message w/ much less pages and that is my only complaint. I liked the book b/c she has begun to tie loose ends from previous books and in doing so, has begun to close the story of our beloved Fraser family -- there are possibly only two more books left to write and a lot still yet left unresolved and much adventure left. I see this book as a transitional piece w/ really no ending, which some readers might not like -- you really must be familiar w/ the previous books to "get it". And, if you're the squemish type, some areas of this book may not be for you, but if you can force yourself to overlook these parts, you'll focus more on the rest of the story. Once you get through about the first 200 pages, you can really get into it if you put aside your expectations and just read. That is what I did and I was glad I did it. It was worth it.
Rating:
Summary: Food for the Hungry... not Gourmet
Review: The Outlander Series is compelling and Fiery Cross is simply not to be missed by those (like myself) who are involved in the series. The main trouble with Fiery Cross is that, like its predecessors, it had to be completed at some point, and by tradition mostly, needed to run more than 700 pages. But ruthless editing is the solemn duty of any publisher who maintains stewardship of these tomes.
The flavor and pacing of the first four books has not disappeared they have just not been polished to the gleaming marquee cut that has been the hallmark of these gigantic tree-fellers all along.
It feels like no one handed the author back the manuscript and said, "This sequence needs to go." or "You've used this exact description 3 times." Also, the inclusion of anachronistic language, and ramped-up vulgarities tend to pull one out of the story and back into the room you're reading in.
HOWEVER, the story does have many breath-bated moments and a cohesive wrap-up that pays off neatly and (naturally) left me wanting another one!! It is truly a wonder no one has optioned these gems for motion picture rights. (Mel Gibson, are you listening?)
Rating: 
Summary: Diana¿s Disgusting Book of Bodily Fluids
Review: A revolting chaos of a manuscript - could the author be thoroughly sick of these books and seek to totally alienate the reader? From Outlander to Outlandish - this 1000 page tome (lots of book for the buck - with very small margins and fonts), the focus is not so much on history, or romance, but bodily secretions. ... nothing is so disgusting that it is overlooked - perhaps it should be renamed The Complete Book of Bodily Fluids? In addition to the penicillin experiments, gangrene, and an unorthodox autopsy, this tale certainly qualifies as an amazingly sick effort. No, I'm not kidding. Tedious to the nth degree I set it aside three different times. I read every blasted page of this revolting book, wanting to unearth some of the magic, mysticism and creativity of the earlier time travel books. I never found it.
Rating:
Summary: Not as bad as people are saying
Review: I've read some of the customer reviews for this book and I do not share the profound disappointment some people have. A friend introduced me to the series at the beginning of the summer as a nighttime distraction to worrying about the bar exam. What a distraction it was! Almost too much, I hope I passed. The series was very exciting and romantic. After I took the test I devoured the next two in the series. When I came to this book, I must admit it took me longer to get into it. I think after the first 200 pages I put it down for two weeks. But once I started reading it again, I began to appreciate the Gabaldon's detailed discription of pre-revolutionary life. It got me very interested in finding out more about the Scottish immigrants in North Carolina, particularly since I have a few ancestors from the backwoods of North Carolina. (Sidenote: If anyone is interested in learning more about Appalachian culture and its Scottish/English roots Songcatcher is an excellent movie.) I really appreciated the Gabaldon's humorous approach to 18th century domestic life. I even have grown to like both Brianna and Rodger. I agree with some reviews that some of the plot threads (the murder mystery, the night groper) could have been either eliminated or explained better. However, I still found this book enjoyable and I was sorry when I reached the last page. Now bring on the revolution!
Rating:
Summary: The Fiery Cross
Review: I Just finished this book and am still enthralled with Jamie and Claire Frazer and their children. I have read the entire series cover to cover and hope she will write a 6th installment. The character are timeless and she gives them life. She is so descriptive you feel you are there. I hope she continues with this thrilling saga.
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