Rating:  Summary: good read Review: Kept me interested from page 1. Liked the middle section a lot
Rating:  Summary: Good writing skills, short on history and logistics. Review: The plot was interesting, but hardly original. Most disturbing was the author's lack of knowledge about many aspects of the frontier as well as improbable/impossible situations. On the other hand, she had some very nice touches.
Rating:  Summary: An excellent historical fiction piece. Review: I am an American history major from college days, with a specialty in early national United States, that is, from about 1760 to 1820. This book successfully places the reader into the late eighteenth century, and describes the wilderness that was then western and upper New York State. The characters have life and power; they seem to leap out of the pages into the reader's consciousness. I especially enjoyed reading something from the point of view of an independent woman of the time, and how the restrictions that society laid upon her affected her views, her choices, her entire life. This is sometimes an untold story. I liked the book very much, and recommend it highly. I already have two friends who want to borrow it from me.
Rating:  Summary: I thought it was in interesting view of early America. Review: I was really expecting a more extensive section where Jamie, Claire and Ian (from the Outlander books) were spoken about, and not really interacted upon. However, the book stood on its own and I am looking forward to reading the continuing epic. Does anyone know when it is actually coming out (other than Fall of 1999) and what is the title going to be?
Rating:  Summary: Totally consuming - I fell in love with Donati's characters Review: I asked for a book similar to Diana Gabaldon's "CrossStitch" series, and was highly recommended "Into the Wilderness". I couldn't put it down - very similar writing style, totally absorbing characters, with a story which unfolds with every page. Unpredictable, but very comfortable. I loved the way you even "met" Gabaldon's Claire and Jamie Fraser again in this book - it is written very much in the same time-span, well researched and interesting without boring detail. I cannot wait for the sequel to find out what happens to Elizabeth and Nathaniel, and their families.
Rating:  Summary: Not Gabaldon? Good. Review: What in the heck is with all this whining about this not being a Gabaldon novel? She writes time travel. This is historical adventure, and well done historical adventure. I suppose you'll give Will Shakespeare one star because he's not Gabaldon either. I for one am looking forward to the sequel.
Rating:  Summary: my wife made me read it Review: I didn't think I'd like it, and I was wrong. Maybe it doesn't read like some other book (that seems to have got some folks here upset, but who cares). This lady has spent some time in the bush, that's clear. The kind of detail she's got in here you won't find in books. She's taken the Daniel Boone legend and done good things with it. Even the love story was kind of interesting.
Rating:  Summary: strong characters Review: I'm a fan of historical adventure, so it was the quote by Allan Eckert that got me interested, and I'm glad I took a chance. Couldn't put it down.
Rating:  Summary: A Gabaldon fan that was sorely dissapointed! Review: I can't believe all the hype about Donati's first book. Like so many other people, I only read it because of the comparisons reviewers have made to the simply amazing Outlander series by Diana Gabaldon (which I simply adore!). I never got the feeling that I could relate to the characters, the plot was sooooooooo incredibly unoriginal, and it lacked the extensive research and creativity that made Gabaldon's books such a great read. Don't read this book if you're expecting Gabaldon-style writing because you'll be in for a huge dissapointment.
Rating:  Summary: No humor! Contrived plot! Review: I read this b/c Diana Gabaldon recommended it. I was very disappointed. The plot was so contrived, it was laughable.Elizabeth is supposed to come across as a headstrong, intelligent woman (think Elizabeth Bennet of Pride & Prejudice). Elizabeth Bennet was a woman ahead of her time: she read books, went through long walks in the rain, she spoke her mind, and she had a razor wit. But, equally important, she also had vulnerabilities: her love of her family who frequently mortified her, her snap judgments about people, her quick tongue, and her pride. Donati's Elizabeth possessed all of Bennet's headstrong qualities, with nothing to soften her. No fast wit, no vulnerabilities, no humor. And certainly no love of family. And while we as 20th century readers can understand and respect her opinions on slavery and equal opportunity, it's hard to believe that an 18th century woman would be so ahead of her time. I half expected her to start up the suffragette movement. In the end, I thought this book was contrived and way too serious.
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