I found the Outlander series thanks to the recommendations of some wonderful ladies on another board. I thought it would be good to have a place to recommend books and authors for those looking for more ideas.

I will start by recommending the Twilight Series of books by Stephanie Meyers. Since I am betting most or all of you have read them, I will also recommend the Dan Brown books - Angels and Demons is my favorite followed closely by Deception Point and Da Vinci Code. I have not bought the new one yet but it is The Lost Symbol.

I recommend the Hunger Games and Catching Fire by Suzanne Collins. They are absolutely wonderful!

I also recommend The Mortal Instruments Series by Cassandra Claire. those books!

I've heard of two Historical Fiction series' that are supposed to be really good and have a pretty good following with Outlander fans:

The Lymond Chronicles by Dorothy Dunnett

And the Into the Wilderness series by Sara Donati

I haven't read either series yet, I'm still trying to connect with these books. If anyone has read them, I'd love to hear their thoughts.


Also, for anyone that loves Paranormal stuff, Check out:

The Fever Series, by Karen Marie Monning (her Highlander books are great romance reads, too). The last book in the Fever series is due out in the Fall of next year.

I also really liked the Immortals After Dark series, by Kressley Cole


And romance:

I have a friend who started out writing Twilight Fanfiction (as HeartBroken1). She just published her first novel entitled: FADE TO BLACK (by Morgan Kearns). This started out as a Twilight fanfiction story, but during the writing process, she discovered that she was really just writing her own characters so she pulled the story, changed the names, finished it and had it published. It's now available on amazon and it is truly a wonderfully unpredictable, heart-breaking and at times funny romance.

I have read the Into the Wilderness series by Sara Donati about a year ago. Each book centers around the same family but focuses on one individual at a time. Sara was or is a member of Compuserve Site, and therefore was able to mention Jamie and Young Ian in the 1st book. When I first read this I did not know that and was verra surprised to see their names. The series is not done with the yet, future books to read.

How was the series? Was the writing good? Would you recommend it? I'm reluctant to pick up another series that I have to wait for books to come out. The waiting is soooo painful for me. I read that the last book in that series is due early next year.

I like the books, especially the first and the last. They are set in the late 1700's in America. I thought the writing was good, but I do not consider myself an expert. If you like historical/romance then I would recommend it. You can always wait to start reading next year so the last book will be ready.

I would recommend the Wilderness series also. The characters aren't as developed as Outlander but still very good. I'm looking forward to the next book in that series. They aren't as indepth or involved as Outlander so you can read them pretty quickly. You'll like them. I was surprised to see Jamie, Ian and Clare mentioned in them and looked for the Wilderness characters to appear in Echo but I guess Diana didn't want to go there.

For me, after reading Outlander, sometimes I need to lighten things up a bit, let's face it, these books can be pretty heavy. I like the Sookie Stackhouse books and the Black Dagger Brotherhood books. Keep in mind that they both have more adult content and language but they read fast and are just plain fun.

There's another series that you may like if you like epic romances and that's The Bronze Horseman series by Paullina Simons. It takes place in Russia just as WWII is beginning and follows a young couple through the next few decades. The third book in the series is difficult to find but definitely puts a finale to the first two. They are big books and a lot of people feel too long, but I fell in love with the main couple in this story and had to see it to its conclusion. If you like characters that you can feel their joy, pain, frustration, etc., it's a good read.

I would love to recommend a little book I read several months ago that was just wonderful and kind of unusual. The book was Water for Elephants by Sara Gruen. It was sweet, endearing, sad, heartwrenching and so much more. It is the story of a young man who joined the circus in the 1930's but told from his recollections as an old man. It is just wonderful.

I highly recommend
The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society by Mary Ann Shaffer and Annie Barrows.
This book is so wonderful. The book club I belong to at work read this. Since it takes place right after wwII in England, it made me think of the time that Claire would have been coming from.

It is about the aftermath of Guernsey's occupation by the Nazis. Considering the somber nature of the topic, it was full of light and hope. The ending was fantastic. Truly worth reading.

I highly recommend The Shack by William P. Young. It is completely different from the OL series and is only the one book. It is a serious story that will change the way you approach life and deal with difficult situations.

I enjoyed reading these book which are set in the time of Culloden

White Rose Rebel by Janet Paisley
Sophia's Secret by Susannah Kearsley
Lady of Kynachan : A novel of the '45 by James Robertson.

Maria and Costantino, thank you for recommending Into the Wilderness by Sara Donati. For those who may not know, it is one of a series of six books, with the last one coming out in January 2010. The story is related to James Fenimoore Cooper's The Pioneers in that it continues the story of Hawkeye, who was married to Cora Munro. ItheW focuses on their son Nathaniel Bonner and his romance with a strong-minded, English school teacher, Elizabeth Middleton. It was well written and had wonderful plot twists. I am looking forward to reading the rest of the series.