Michelle Emma Rose – Review of Outlander

Michelle Emma Rose is an American author of historical fiction. She has written six books, with Nefertiti becoming her best-selling work; Diana Gabaldon described it as an “exquisite tale with human warmth”. Rebel Queen tells the true tale of Sita – wife of Emperor Kanishka who endured immense danger throughout her life – with remarkable adventure and conflict throughout.

She has contributed regularly to Reference Reviews and many scholarly and popular publications, both academic and otherwise. As both a professor and librarian, she specializes in gender theory courses as well as history of women’s rights, women and religion studies, and gender theory courses. Furthermore, she serves as editor for NoveList database by EBSCO as well as serving as reviewer for several journals and blogs.

Outlander is a series about more than just sexual encounters; rather, its main theme lies within its historical setting and emotional drama between two lovers as well as between a wife and her husband.

Noteworthy is the opening scene when Claire travels back to 1743 Scotland and meets up with Captain Black Jack Randall (Frank’s ancestor), only for members of Clan MacKenzie to intervene and save her. Instead of following his traditional behavior and raping her as planned, this series depicts his respect and interest in Claire as more than just an object for sexual gratification.

Outlander stands out as an extremely refreshing series in many ways, not least its feminine-centric approach to sexuality – one reason it stands out among popular historical dramas such as Black Sails, Penny Dreadful and Game of Thrones among many others. One reviewer2 referred to Outlander as a female-skewing historical adventure.