| Genre: Historical Romance Main characters: Jamie and Claire, Brianna and Roger Summary: The sixth and last (for now) book in the series. We find Jamie and Claire where we’ve last left them, at the beginning of the Revolutionary War. A difficult time to live in, fraught with perils and insecurities. However both Jamie and Claire know the side they’re on (as they jokingly say: on the winning side for once) and try to live through as best as possible. |
There’s not much more I can say about the characters after all these books. However I just have to mention the change that Brianna went through – she has at last properly adjusted at 18th century life and more than that, she’s making efforts to improve it (paper, pipes, matches, etc.) which makes her even more likable than before. Roger has also gotten over his problems (his uncertain paternity of Jem and the loss of his voice) and now wants to become a priest, as he thinks he has a bit of a calling for that. The four main characters (well five if we count little Jem in) have become a tightly knit family which is a pleasure to read about.
I have read Alexandra Ripley’s Scarlett twice and both times I have wondered about the people in that book: the same people that she helped a lot, that owed her a great deal of their belongings and that esteemed her at some moment in time enough to call her “The O’Hara” – the same people have turned against her after a while and rejected her, trying to kill her too if I remember correctly. I wondered about that, about how fickle some people are, about how they bite the hand that once fed them – can such people really exist? I have found and had the exact same issue in this book: Jamie gives his people land, helps them get started working it, and in exchange they consider him their leader and refer to him as Himself. Nevertheless after a while gossip starts spreading and at his time of need Jamie is rejected by them, by his own people, who don’t bother listening to him or protecting him in his hour of need. Human nature is a mystery to me.
One of the reasons why I really wanted to read this book was because I read on a forum that Diana Gabaldon said that in this book the mystery of the ghost we saw at Claire’s window just before her first trip to the past was going to be explained. I was really curious about it (how do you explain such a thing? a deal with God perhaps?) but the explanation proved to be a bit disappointing: one random night Jamie dreamt about seeing Claire in her own time and that was that. Actually Jamie seems to develop a bit of supernatural capabilities in this book as he also gets to see Brianna in her own time – this time unseen. However this book was based on a supernatural fact to begin with so who am I to complain :)
Also on that same forum I read that this book was originally set to be named “King, farewell”, a title which I find absolutely brilliant given that in this book America is starting the war that is going to get her out of the English king’s domination. However it seems that it was sort of hard to remember and easily confused so the author changed it into “A Breath of Snow and Ashes”, in my opinion because she really likes the imagery of white snow covering burning ashes – one example is when Claire and Jamie’s house burns down – the other just mentioned once during a scene between Bree and Roger:
Then her hands rose and rested on him, the tears cool on his face, congealing, the white of her clean as the silent snow that covers char and blood and breathes peace upon the world.
It feels so strange letting Jamie and Claire go, after all these months spent reading about them. At least I do know that they’re happy together :) I’m looking forward to see if there’ll be a next book that will bring them back though. Claire must be around 60 though so I imagine her adventurous days will be pretty much over either way.
What I liked most: the way Marsali called her yet unborn child Monsieur L’Oeuf (I’m sure there were other more interesting things to like but I’ve gotten so used with them while reading all those books I stopped noticing them).
What I liked least: The length of the book. I could easily have skipped the first two-thirds almost on the whole.
Recommend it? Well… probably. But there’s nothing like the first books (it’s good but not brilliant).
This book is a sequel to:
Outlander
Dragonfly in Amber
Voyager
Drums of Autumn
The Fiery Cross
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Hi Kay -
I’ve just finished reading all 6 of the Outlander books – back to back! I know, crazy, but I couldn’t put them down. However, this may be a stupid question, and I’m probably just delirious from reading so much, but could you please explain to me the very last page of “Breath of Snow and Ashes” – Epilogue II? It talks about the printing date of Jamie and Claire’s deaths by fire. I so don’t get it. I’ve been searching all morning for a blog on it and can’t find one. Help! Thanks so much!
Here’s how I see it: the newspapers at the time weren’t very reliable (see how they don’t bother too much with the actual date either, they just put whatever fits better in the page :) ), so when that “note from a subscriber” has arrived, stating that this house has burned down and these people had died, they didn’t actually bother to check, they just published it. That’s the certain thing.
Now the supposition part – I don’t remember it being written anywhere for sure, but what I think is that someone in the area must have seen the house burning and assumed the people in it were dead so they send that note to the newspaper. After all, it was a very close call :) (or maybe the actual people who set the house on fire in order to kill the two had sent the note, anticipating their success).
In the end, however the note anded up at the press, we know it was false news and that both Jamie and Claire survive, both because of what they wrote to Brianna and because of the two books in the series that are about to be written :) (Diana Gabaldon herself has stated that everything will end in about 1800 so there are a few years left to go :) )
anded = ended :D
Ah ha…DUH! I never went to DG’s website! Now that I know Book 7 is in the works, I feel better! Thanks for your reply. I’m in a little depression with no more Jamie/Claire for a while!
Oh well, now I can resume being a mom and a wife!! :-)
I am reading the books over the summer. I have read the 1st 3 and then discovered I was missing #4.
Went to buy it and had to order it and wait! Anyway I see where you say that there will be a book 7???
Any idea when it will come out?
Thanks!!!
Karen G.
Well, as far as I know the &th book is scheduled for release only next year (September 2009 to be more precise) and so far is to be called An Echo in the Bone. :)
&th = 7th :D