Why Outlander show-only fans need to give the books a chance

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Outlander is a book series before a TV series, but many fans have been introduced purely throught the show. It’s time for show-only fans to jump into the novels.

If you haven’t started reading the Outlander novel series by Diana Gabaldon, now is the time to start. There are eight books to get through so far, with another two planned to round-out the series. Isn’t that a lot to get through? Well, yes, but the show is only up to book three, “Voyager,” so far, with book four, “Drums of Autumn,” currently being filmed.

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The TV series Outlander has pulled many fans into the world of Claire and Jamie. After more than 20 years of the first novel being written, someone was brave enough to finally tackle the books as a TV series. It was a dream many book fans have hoped for.

There have certainly been many TV show-first fans who have picked up the novels, but others want to wait. That’s understandable, but you can read books one and two right now without fear of spoiling the future of the TV series. Here are four reasons you should give the books a chance.

#1. The books go into far more detail

One of the downsides of TV is the time and money to tell a story. Gabaldon’s novels are 800+ pages per novel. That’s a lot of content to get through in 13-16 episodes. It’s no surprise that the recent episodes of Outlander have increased in length to help get the full story in.

There are many elements in the books that are missed in the show. Claire’s personality shines through a little more in reading, as well as her life with Frank Randall before she travelled through the stones. It’s easier to connect with characters other than Claire, Jamie, and Frank earlier with the books, as the descriptions are clear, concise, and focused. It was a little hard to feel anything for Dougal, Angus, Rupert, and even Murtagh when the pilot episode aired. They grew as the series continued.

The detail continues. While it’s all from Claire’s point of view, it’s possible to connect more to her feelings and experiences. The way she feels travelling through the stones is explained in more detail and her thought process as she figures out she’s in the past is explained better.

#2. More is left to the mind’s eye

While there is more detail, there is also more left to the mind’s eye. When Outlander Season 1 was originally created, the showrunners had no idea if they were going to get a second season. They had to add clues for the future throughout in hope that it would draw in interest. They had to write for a TV show and not a novel.

With a novel, Gabaldon knew how far she wanted to take this series; well, she had an idea. While some clues for the future novels were important, she didn’t need major ones. For example (spoiler for the book), Claire never told Jamie that Laoghaire was the one involved in Claire’s witch trial, so Jamie’s marriage to Laoghaire in the future made more sense.

With more left to the mind’s eye, it’s easier to create suspense. Fans will speculate more, rather than just seek answers to their questions. /

#3. The storylines are slightly different

Yes, there are things missed out from the novels in the TV show. This is to be expected due to time constraints. However, things have completely changed in the show in recent storylines. Some of the changes started as early as Season 1, but there are many more as the seasons progress.

Sometimes making changes is good. It creates a new story for those who have already read the books. For the TV show-only fans, it isn’t clear where the changes are. The storyline works for the purpose of the actual show.

Reading the novels now will help you see where the slight (and big) changes to the storylines have taken place. It’s possible to learn more about the characters and understand the book fans when they get irate at some of the changes.

#4. It’s easier to get involved in discussions with other fans

If you’re a member of any Facebook group, you’ll notice that the majority are for book and show fans. This means plenty of spoilers if you haven’t read the books yet. It can be hard to get into a discussion with anyone, in fear of a spoiler from later in the books being shared. People just aren’t that considerate when it comes to a spoiler from a later novel. Even if you state you’re only a show-watcher, there will be people purposely spoiling the rest of the storyline for you.

A lot of others will just state “read the books” in answer to a question. That’s not the most helpful response. Many show-only fans have stayed away from the Facebook groups until they’re caught up with the books.

If you want to avoid spoilers then you’ll want to avoid the groups. It’s worth reading the novels just to get caught up.

While the novels are important, the TV show is now its own entity. It’s worth reading the novels, but do try to keep the two separate in your head. This will help to avoid getting irate when there are weird changes.

Next: Diana Gabaldon pens NaNoWriMo pep talk

Are you an Outlander show-only fan? Will you give the novels a chance? Share your thoughts in the comments below.

Outlander Season 3 continues on Sundays at 8/7c on Starz.

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