The Fiery Cross

Book number five in The Outlander series did not disappoint in my opinion! It was full of family, love, affection, bravery, horrible scrapes and snarls, but all the same it was interesting. There's something about the life of Claire and Jamie Fraser, it can never be dull. As the main man, the leader, the laird in a way, Jamie is always busy with the goings on of Fraser Ridge. It does help that he now has Roger MacKenzie, formerly Roger Wakefield, to help him. He also has my love Fergus! You know how Lord John has his own series, I think that there should be books dedicated to Fergus and what he does when he's on his own, I bet he can't resist the urge to pick a pocket every now and again. Plus being the dear that he is, I'm sure he gets into his own troubles. Anyway, with the introduction of Brianna and Roger, the loss of Ian, and Duncan marrying Jamie's aunt Jocasta; there's a lot going on. Not to mention Stephan Bonnet has yet to be dealt with! There's death and mayhem; near wars and near deaths, this book has a little bit of everything! We get to see the lovely Jemmy go from a tiny baby to a toddler whom Brianna and Roger are trying to potty train which leads to many interesting conversations. One of which is with Jamie where they talk about ball, Jemmy can't figure out why someone said that Jamie has balls, Jamie is wearing a kilt at the time and shows young Jemmy his balls, Jemmy says "Is Willy!" Which caused me to laugh so hard that I dropped the book and there were tears running down my face. What a childlike thing to say and Jamie and Roger of course went back to trying to show him about balls but outside.
Jemmy's paternity is always wondered about, he doesn't look like Roger but no one can really see Stephen Bonnet in him either, to say the least he looks like Brianna. Roger spends a lot of his time not knowing whether Jemmy is his or not and though it doesn't seem to bother him, he has to wonder. There's also the chance that if they should have to go back to their own time, that if Jemmy is Stephen Bonnet's that he couldn't time travel. Which is worrying to them all. They know that the revolution is coming and they know that times with become hard; they want to go back to the 60s if they can but it won't be easy if Jemmy can't travel with them. How could Brianna and Roger leave their child? The deaths of Claire and Jamie also play a big part, they know when they are supposed to die and they know that it says that they are not survived by any children. Therefore, Claire worries about Brianna, Roger, and Jemmy; while Jamie just worries in general about everything. Or does he? Who can tell? He does nearly die but I think at this point that's quite normal for Mr. Fraser. It is known that he struggles with Ian staying with the Mohawk. But other than that, there's not a whole lot known. Jamie keeps it to himself. Stephen Bonnet and the smuggling ring that he runs becomes a big part of this book because we do know that Jamie is quite content to get his revenge on Bonnet. He feels tremendous guilt in sparing his life and having it come back on him. Does Jamie find Mr. Bonnet, who is a disgrace to all of those who have a good Irish name? Well you'll have to read the book to find out now won't you?
What I think? 
I think that if you're looking for a good historical fiction series that will keep you in a time that is so unlike your own. Then you'll really like the Outlander series and though it does have death, destruction, and all of this; it's also funny because you never know what some of the characters are going to say. My main man Fergus for one! This book shows a lot of settling in, not only the Frasers but the MacKenzie's as well. Brianna and Roger find a way to exist in this time and they do a good job of it. Of course it's difficult and they do fall on hard times and things are not easy but they manage to get through it. Their love story might be different from Jamie's and Claire's, some people might find it not so interesting but I think it's great! There's no doubt about that! Jemmy and Fergus' children add a different element than it has in the past. We didn't see Brianna growing up and we didn't really know what she was like but we're getting a good taste of children and the mischief that they can get up to in this installment. They provide a bit of comedic relief at times because the story can get quite heavy and there's some struggles that just make you think, people are cruel but that's true in any time. Also can we talk about how many people have had name changes? Claire Randall --> Claire Beauchamp ---> Claire Fraser ---> Dr. Claire Randall ----> Mistress Fraser! Brianna Randall ---> Brianna Fraser ---> Brianna MacKenzie/ Himself's Daughter! Jamie Fraser ---> Jamie MacTavish ---> Captain Jamie Fraser ---> Dunbonnet ---> Mac Dubh ---> Alex Malcolm ---> Jamie Fraser/Himself! Roger MacKenzie --> Roger Wakefield ---> Roger MacKenzie! Look at that! That's just crazy is it not? How many times are people going to change their names back and forth? I think it's because there are so many people who have been adopted. Jamie just changed his name because he's an outlaw and therefore a bad lad. Oh my bad! Claudel---> Fergus ---> Fergus Fraser. Jeez that's as bad as the amount of times that Jamie's aunt Jocasta married a Cameron! Although she's Mrs. MacInnes by the end of the book! It's a good book and it's 1400 pages so if you're on the fence about it at all, don't read it. Probably won't be worth it but if you've made it that far and are as sucked in as I am, you'll need to read it! I think this book is worth 8.5 White Bears out of 10! Now there's a rating for ya! ;)