Written in My Own Heart's Blood by Diana Gabaldon

In her now classic novel Outlander, Diana Gabaldon told the story of Claire Randall, an English ex-combat nurse who walks through a stone circle in the Scottish Highlands in 1946, and disappears . . . into 1743.

1778: France declares war on Great Britain, the British army leaves Philadelphia, and George Washington s troops leave Valley Forge in pursuit. At this moment, Jamie Fraser returns from a presumed watery grave to discover that his best friend has married his wife, his illegitimate son has discovered (to his horror) who his father really is, and his beloved nephew, Ian, wants to marry a Quaker. 

Meanwhile, Jamie s wife, Claire, and his sister, Jenny, are busy picking up the pieces.

The Frasers can only be thankful that their daughter Brianna and her family are safe in twentieth-century Scotland. Or not. In fact, Brianna is searching for her own son, who was kidnapped by a man determined to learn her family s secrets. Her husband, Roger, has ventured into the past in search of the missing boy . . . never suspecting that the object of his quest has not left the present. Now, with Roger out of the way, the kidnapper can focus on his true target: Brianna herself.

Hardcover, 825 pages

Audiobook, 45 hours

Published June 10, 2014

 by Delacorte Press

4/5 stars

My slow journey through the Outlander series continues with Written in My Own Heart's Blood, book eight in this epic historical saga. And yes you really should read this series in order. After the way the previous book ended with a couple of pretty big cliffhangers I was definitely curious to see where things were headed next.

Without giving too much of the plot away (even though the blurb above does), this installment continues to follow Jamie, Claire, Bri and Roger and the many characters whose lives are tied to theirs during the chaos of the War of Independence.

By this point in the series some of these characters really do feel like old friends that I've come to care about. I’ll admit a couple of the previous books weren’t favourites of mine as they felt a bit drawn out, but this one held my attention more with a bit more action and movement in the plot. There were new layers added as the story involves the 2 different timelines and some new characters to keep track of. Most of my time was spent with the audiobook, the narrator is awesome.

Though I’m not a huge fan of the storyline involving Lord John Grey and his 'son', I do understand why it’s there since he plays such an important role in Jamie’s life.

And yes… this one ends on a bit of a cliffhanger...of course it does. I’m looking forward to reading the final published book, and then I can join everyone else waiting a year… or two… or five for the next one.

This book was part of my 2026 Reading Off My Shelf Challenge with the audiobook purchased from Audible.