I have to say, although I find myself very wrapped up in the adventures of Claire, Jamie, and their family, The Fiery Cross was not my favorite. At almost 1000 pages, the pacing for this one was slow. Part of me was relieved that everybody finally got a rest from the relentless adventures they found themselves on, but on the other hand, this one took me some time to read. You really got a good idea about what the day-to-day life is like on Frasers Ridge, but I think a lot of chapters could have been cut. 

Perhaps it was just me, but for most of the book, I could not determine what the plot was. Gabaldon would start on interesting points and then wouldn't follow up on them. It was only toward the middle that I became to suspect what path she was taking us toward, but it really was not clear enough. Most of the chapters were about the day-to-day life in Frasers Ridge. Fortunately, the plot thickened at the end of the book and the ending was worth the challenge, but you have to earn it! 

I think Roger had the most character growth. He had a lot of challenges throughout and it provided a great insight into the roles he has taken on throughout the series. I didn't particularly like Brianna as much in this one, but I respect her role and can't wait to see how her character develops in the later books. 

Overall, this one was not my favorite. It was much too long and took a great amount of time to get to the point. The ending was really intriguing. I'm just going to take it as it is though and on to the next!