Unrivaled storytelling ... unforgettable characters ... rich historical detail ... these are the hallmarks of Diana Gabaldon's work. Her <i>New York Times</i> bestselling Outlander novels have earned the praise of critics and captured millions of readers. <br><br>Here is the story that started it all, introducing two remarkable characters, Claire Randall and Jamie Fraser, in a spellbinding novel of passion and history that combines exhilarating adventure with a love story for the ages....<br><br>The year is 1945. Claire Randall, a former combat nurse, is back from the war and reunited with her husband on a second honeymoon &#8212; when she walks through a standing stone in one of the ancient stone circles that dot the British Isles. Suddenly she is a Sassenach &#8212; an &quot;outlander&quot; &#8212; in a Scotland torn by war and raiding Highland clans in the year of Our Lord ... 1743.<br><br>Hurled back in time by forces she cannot understand, Claire is catapulted into intrigues and dangers that may threaten her life ... and shatter her heart. For here she meets James Fraser, a gallant young Scots warrior, and becomes a woman torn between fidelity and desire ... and between two vastly different men in two irreconcilable lives.