Finished: Dragonfly In Amber (Gabaldon) I am now hooked on this Outlander series! I don't know if I have the will to read the next six books in a row though. I might just start speaking with a Scottish brogue! I think I'll read a couple of other things before diving into the third book (though I really want to dive into the third book, lol). In the second book, the story starts 22 years after Claire has gone back through the stone from 1746 Scotland. Or, I should say it starts 222 years later...in 1968. She's now got a 21 year old daughter, Jamie's daughter, Brianna. Claire has taken Brianna back to Scotland, where the adventure began, to investigate what happened to all the clansmen she knew back in 1746. Had they all died at the horrible Battle of Culloden, where the Scottish clans followed "bonnie" Prince Charles into battle with the English Redcoats to try and take back the thrown? Claire knew because of history that it would be a slaughter, and the end of clans as they were known back then...and so she had warned her beloved Jamie. Claire has assumed all these years that Jamie died in battle after forcing her to go back through the stone into the future for the safety of herself and their unborn child. She waits until her first husband, Frank, who took her back after being gone three years, raising her child as his, has passed away before taking this new journey to Scotland. Once there, Claire sees a shocking reminder of Jamie and ends up blurting out the entire story to Brianna and Roger, the young boy who had been adopted by Frank's close associate and friend in the first book. Of course, Roger and Brianna feel instantly connected and most assuredly will become an item. Anyway, once Claire blurts out that she traveled back in time 200 years, and what's more, Brianna's father wasn't Frank after all, but really a clansman from 1746 named Jamie Fraser, the book heads back in time. It picks up two months from where it left off in book one. Claire is pregnant with Jamie's child, and they are both headed to France with a plan to try and stop Prince Charles from gathering the support and money needed to fund his battle campaign. To do this, Jamie must befriend the prince, and act as if he is, in fact, also one of the Jacobites. Lots of adventures and strives surround Claire and Jamie, as usual. For one thing...they come face to face with the presumably dead John "Black Jack" Randall who mercilessly abused Jamie, physically, emotionally and sexually in book one. They also meet Randall's younger brother, Alexander, who is a much nicer person. And...they discover that it was the Duke of Sandringham who made attempts on both of their lives while secretly funding the Jacobites, but outwardly speaking against them. Once again, I can't possibly recap the entire book. Claire, though, does lose her baby. :-( And, it takes 'til the end of the book for us, and Claire, and Jamie to find out she's pregnant again during the most dangerous time of this snippet of history. Jamie swears to Claire that he will first lead his small, loyal band of Scotsmen from his homestead Lallybroch to safety, and not let them die in the battle...and then that he'll turn around himself and go fight to the death rather than be taken by the English as a traitor. With a heartfelt goodbye, he insists that his beloved Claire go back through the stone to safety. Then, we are back in 1968 in the book. Brianna is furious at her mother, who she thinks has gone crazy. Roger actually believes her! Brianna finally believes her mother when she witnesses someone else "travel" through the stone. When they all come across information that Jamie may, in fact, have not died back in 1746, that is where the book ends. You can tell that in book three, Claire will go back 200 years to see her beloved Jamie, 20 years later. Sigh. It's a love story that I'm definitely hooked on. As I said, though, I don't think I can just delve into so many more books in a row. I think I'll read a couple of other things before going back to the series. :-)