Including author Diana Gabaldon’s short stories and novellas that add depth to the series.
Courtesy: Outlander/Starz | Amazon
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When Diana Gabaldon first published Outlander in 1991, no one would’ve expected the fantasy novel to eventually become an international phenomenon. Telling the tale of a 20th-century nurse time traveling to 18th-century Scotlandand falling in love with a Jacobite soldier, the love story of Claire Randall and Jamie Fraser quickly became an international success among readers. What’s more, folks got to see Outlander come to life, with the critically acclaimed series airing on the Starz network and Caitriona Balfe and Sam Heughan portraying the star-crossed lovers on the small screen. And if that wasn’t enough, the world of Outlander is expanding with a prequel series, called Outlander: Blood of My Blood.
Now, with the latter half of season 7 airing new episodes starting November 22, 2024, there’s no better time to dive into the vast literary universe that makes up the Outlander series. What’s more, Diana confirmed in January 2023 that she has plans to write the tenth (and possibly last) installment in the book’s main series. Now, if you’re someone who’s only seen the romantic drama on TV, it may surprise you to hear there are over a dozen published stories that make up the world of Outlander. Canonically, however, there is a collection of main novels featuring Jamie and Claire — nine in total. As these novels are designed to be consumed all their own, many series fans have only read this collection of novels that have inspired the Outlander series as we know it.
Diana also released shorter novels and novellas outside this collection, which diehard fans will want to consume as well. They concern Lord John Grey primarily, and the four existing novellas can be read after you’ve completed the main series. However, Diana did say on her official website that those who are starting anew in reading the main series may wish to work these shorter Lord Grey stories into their lineup. What’s more, they can “be read alone, without reference either to each other or to the [main series] — should you be in the mood for a light literary snack.”
While we’re recapping each of the main series’ novels in our guide to Outlander books below, here’s how you can consume all of Outlander‘s offerings in chronological order:
- Virgins, a novella
- Outlander
- The Exile: An Outlander Graphic Novel, a follow-up to the first novel
- Dragonfly in Amber
- A Fugitive Green, a novella pulled from Seven Stones to Stand or Fall
- Voyager
- The Lord John Series, which includes portions of Seven Stones to Stand or Fall, Lord John and the Hand of Devils, Lord John and the Private Matter, Lord John and the Brotherhood of the Blade and The Scottish Prisoner, amid others.
- Drums of Autumn
- The Fiery Cross
- A Breath of Snow and Ashes
- An Echo in the Bone
- The Space Between, a novella
- Written in My Own Heart’s Blood
- A Leaf on the Wind of All Hallows, which is set within the novel above
- Go Tell the Bees That I Am Gone
Not sure if you’re in for 15 different tales? Here’s a recap of the main Outlander series books, with snippets of what occurs in each adventure.
Outlander
We’re first introduced to Claire Randall, the series’ burgeoning heroine, as she reunites with her new husband after tending to wounded soldiers in WWII. It’s 1945 when Claire and her husband go on a honeymoon and travel through the British Isles, only to find herself instantly transported back to 18th century Scotland in the midst of strife. Navigating the conflict between Scottish clans in 1743, this novel also explores how Claire first meets Jamie Fraser.
Dragonfly in Amber: A Novel
The second entry in the Outlander series brings readers back to Claire’s present reality, where she’s found herself back in the mid-1940s. Gabaldon brings readers along for the ride on a simultaneous adventure back in the 1700s through the streets of Paris, where Claire and Jamie work together to prevent the worst of the Jacobite Risings.
Voyager: A Novel
Claire now faces a personal impasse as she must choose between returning to Jamie in centuries prior and her husband and daughter in her own era. Just as she ends up finding a balance between the two worlds, Claire’s reunion with Jamie is cut short as they’ve become targeted by pirates. Witnessing Jamie’s nephew kidnapped, the pair set off across the big blue to save his family. This novel is a direct prequel to Gabaldon’s Lord John series.
The Drums of Autumn: A Novel
Readers spend time following Jamie and Claire’s previously mysterious daughter, Brianna, as she stumbles into a shocking discovery that leads her to the same stone circle that started the whole series. Brianna risks her life to reunite with her mother and the father she’s never met — and ends up playing a part in saving Jamie and Claire from further misfortune, as the pair build a life in the New World.
The Fiery Cross: A Novel
In the decade prior to the American Revolution, we find the clairvoyant Claire and Jamie firmly established in the mountains of North Carolina — an area that’s experiencing a small revolution of its own. With uprisings leading to violent, territorial behavior among those in the province, Jamie and Claire fight once more to protect the community they’ve established at Fraser’s Ridge before the young nation rebels at large.
A Breath of Snow and Ashes
Picking up from what many readers consider a cliffhanger in the previous novel, Claire faces new challenges tied to her medical prowess, as those in her own community begin to speculate how she knows so much (spoiler: they accuse her of witchcraft!). Jamie faces a personal impasse on his values and ties to Great Britain as the American Revolution begins to catch fire among other loyalists.
An Echo in the Bone: A Novel
Written in a style that’s most similar to Gabaldon’s shorter novellas, this entry in the main Outlander series recounts how the cast of characters handle themselves during the Revolutionary War. Readers will jump between storylines, following Jamie and Claire, Lord John, supporting characters Roger, Brianna and Ian, all as they face conflicts in America, England, Scotland and Canada at different points in time.
Written in My Own Heart’s Blood: A Novel
Diehard fans recall this entry of Outlander to have many historical references that line up with major American Revolution events, everything from Valley Forge to the Battle of Monmouth. Jamie returns from what readers likely presumed was a painful death to discover that Claire has been wed to his best friend in his absence. There is a mountain of other personal conflicts within this entry, including a narrative that allows readers to get to know nephew Ian in great detail.
Go Tell the Bees That I Am Gone: A Novel
Recently released, this novel is set in 1779, a few years before the inevitable end of the American Revolution. Jamie and Claire have reunited once more and are safe at Fraser’s Ridge, and readers will be delighted to see Brianna and her husband, Roger, once again living with their parents. As Claire continues to foretell the raging war around them, she realizes that having her whole family under one roof may end up being more of a risk than anyone could have guessed.
