Lord John and the Brotherhood of the Blade

wish I could write a review however I am still waiting for the book to arrive. It is now 25 days since placing the orser on Nov 1 and 18 business days. way toooooooooooo long.

"Lord John and the Brotherhood of the Blade" is Diana Gabaldon at her finest. For my money, no other historical fiction author manages to create such a perfect balance of historical accuracy and enjoyable story. From the opening sentence to the final scene, Gabaldon makes you care about her characters, and she does it by immersing us fully into their world and time - prejudices, elegance, constrictions, beauty, and all. First, for all the people horrified that their precious little heterosexual eyes have been tainted by having to read a gay sex scene: Quit whining and grow up. If you're really a Diana Gabaldon fan, you should already know she writes fairly graphic (and hot) sex scenes, and you know that John Grey is gay. Put two and two together, people! What, did you think he was going to spend the entire series drinking tea and engaging in witty repartee? No one complained back in "Outlander" when Jamie BEAT Claire, or when Gabaldon wrote graphic depictions of Brianna and Claire being raped, because that was nice, heteronormed male domination, right? But now we're all going to be offended because Ms. Gabaldon depicts a pair of happy, affectionate gay men having sex? Grow. Up. Oh, and those of you whining that somehow THESE sex scenes were "gratuitous" or not necessary to the plot: Did you actually read the book, or were you too busy being shocked, shocked! to notice how important the physical relationship is to the plot? The things we learn about John and Percy during their one (that's right, just one!) sex scene are central to their characters. Not to mention the poignancy their intimacy lends the eventual tragedy that befalls them... So is the sex "gratuitous"? No more so than any of the dozens of other scenes Gabaldon has written over the years. Indeed, I would rather read a scene between Grey and another man than have to suffer through another awkward, unsexy, passive-aggressive encounter between Brianna and Roger, any day. Now, for those of you who are actually adult enough to read and appreciate this novel: "Brotherhood of the Blade" is a vast improvement over "Private Matter," back to the quality of some of the earlier books in the Outlander series. (We'll say "Voyager," perhaps - nothing else to date has been able to compare with the first two books, alas.) In the chronology, this book takes place around the death of Geneva Dunsany and the birth of Jamie's son Willie. Jamie himself does make several appearances, but his role here is much smaller than the jacket copy would have you believe. (Moreover, in one scene in particular, we see a rather ugly side of him. It's justified and completely in character, but for those of us who've been a little bit in love with him for years, it's a bit upsetting.) As the book opens, Lord John's mother, Benedicta, is remarrying - a common occurrence that nevertheless sets several things in motion. For one, Grey is introduced to his new stepbrother, Percy, and an attraction springs up between them.

I have been eagerly awaiting Diana Gabaldon's next Lord John novel for quite some time. Not being a particular fan of her Outlander novels (too romancy for me)it's been a long wait; however, I was not disappointed. Not only is Lord John and his family as interesting as ever, Gabaldon's research is wonderfully detailed and accurate, but not so detailed and accurate that it makes the novel boring to read. On the contrary, I found myself caught up in the life of Lord John Grey almost from page one. Part of what makes this novel so interesting is that Lord John is a gay man living in 18th century England at a time when "sodomites" could be hanged for that alone. This novel, more so than the other, really touched on what it's like to be gay at this time in England's history and it makes John Grey all the more interesting and vulnerable. It's also very relevant because you can see some of these attitudes prevalant in modern America. If I have to quibble, it would be with the insertion of Jamie Fraser from Gabaldon's Outlander novels. I know the two characters have a "history," but I thought the plot point used to bring him into the novel was unnecessary and the scenes between the two characters were not enjoyable to read. Other than that, this is another exceptional Lord John novel. I just wish Gabaldon would write more of them.

Lord John is my favorite secondary character in the Outlander series, and here we finally get to meet him with his family, his military career, and his very personal love life. I already knew him as an honorable gentleman, courageous yet surprisingly kind and he does not disappoint in this book. It was interesting to learn of the mystery surrounding his father's death. DG provides her usual fascinating historical details that bring the action to life, from battle scenes to dachshunds. True, the gay love scenes were more than I wanted to know, but, realistically, they do form a part of Lord John's life and, as such, are very much true to his personna. The glimpses of Jamie Frasier and the tension between the two men provide an insight into their very complicated relationship. I enjoyed the book very much and highly recommend it.

This is the first true full novel about Lord John, an intriguing character from Diana Gabaldon's Outlander series. Fans of her series will be thrilled that his character gets so much time and attention from this superb author. His spin off began with the Hellfire novella, continued with Lord John and the Private Matter (DG insists that this is a short story rather than a novel), which was followed by the novella, Lord John and the Succubus. In this book, Lord John and the Brotherhood of the Blade, we see Lord John in his element, interacting with his family and with the men of his command. We also see the more personal side of him as he spends time with his step brother, Percy, and he deals with issues concerning family honor, his father's demise in particular. Jamie Fraser also makes a couple of appearances in this book, and having heard the events at Helwater from Jamie's point of view, it was fascinating to see the scenes from Lord John's. Again, there is a mystery to be solved and Lord John approaches it with his usual keen wits. The cast of characters was memorable, from the members of his family to the men whose help he enlisted late in the story. We also get a firsthand view of battle as it was carried out during the 18th century. Lord John is not just the gentleman soldier in this book but shows both a tender and as well as a ruthless side to his character. All in all this was vintage Diana Gabaldon--fascinating, realistic, well-drawn characters; intelligent dialogue, often interspersed with her trademark dry humor; great attention to historical detail; and skilled description. Lord John and his world came alive. Fans of Lord John have more to look forward to: another novella, Lord John and the Haunted Soldier, in a collection called Lord John and the Hand of Devils, with a release date in late November. I can't wait!

Diana Gabaldon has that happiest and rarest of gifts for the modern writer--the turn of phrase that lets you fall head first into her world without any sense of transition from your own reality. Tolkien had it, Patrick O'Brian had it--and Diana has it. It doesn't matter which book it is, whether you open it to the first page or let it fall open to a random page, it's there. There's no question when you read the first phrase whose world you're in, or where, or when. It's why I always pay hardback prices for her books, in the first hour of the day they come out, wherever I can get them the earliest. And Lord John is perhaps her most irresistible creation. Right from the moment he defended Claire's `honor' as a 16 year old and got his arm broken for the privilege, he's been unforgettable. I've always found myself wondering in the `main' books, "What's Lord John up to? When's he coming back?" I'm SO glad his back with another book of his own! And I can't wait for the hard back anthology that's coming out with the short stories later this year. I've read Brotherhood of the Blade twice--almost three times now--since I picked it up last Tuesday, just for the sheer pleasure of Lord John's company; the mystery of the not-suicide of Lord John's father seems just an excuse to peek in on his life. Second only to her turn of phrase, Gabaldon has a gift for making her plots organic to her characters. Rather than choosing a story to tell, and creating characters to tell it, she chooses to create her characters, and then tell their stories. And of course, it's always big plus to any novel to include a scene or two with Jamie Fraser, growling around in that Scottish burr of his! :)