Audiobook Review: Clanlands

By Sam Heughan & Graham McTavish

Narrated by the authors

Duration: 10 hours, 40 minutes

From their faithful camper van to boats, kayaks, bicycles, and motorbikes, join stars of Outlander Sam and Graham on a road trip with a difference, as two Scotsmen explore a land of raw beauty, poetry, feuding, music, history, and warfare.

Unlikely friends Sam and Graham begin their journey in the heart of Scotland at Glencoe and travel from there all the way to Inverness and Culloden battlefield, where along the way they experience adventure and a cast of highland characters. In this story of friendship, finding themselves, and whisky, they discover the complexity, rich history and culture of their native country.

Goodreads

My thoughts: I love Outlander, both the book series and the television series. When I heard that this book came out, I immediately bought it. I began to read the physical copy and noticed the back and forth writings between Sam and Graham and thought to myself, "This will be awesome as an audio!" So I immediately looked up to see if this was an audiobook, and yes, it was! I then decided to listen to the book and relied on the physical copy to look at the photographs. It was a fun adventure!

This was an entertaining buddy book between Sam and Graham as they traveled through Scotland to learn more about their home country. Their silly banter and adventures had me grinning from ear to ear. Not only did I hear how Sam loved to torment Graham, but I also heard their mission to learn more about the rich history of Scotland. They gave the reader a glance as to how things went down in Scotland, such as the famous battle that ended the clans, and talked about the filming of Outlander. They also talked about the culture, the people, and the landscape. They even gave some heart-to-heart advice/stories that brought a couple of tears to my eyes. Yes, some of their sarcastic remarks and childish behavior had me rolling my eyes, but I could not help but enjoy this book.

The audio production of this book was well done. Sam and Graham took turns narrating their parts of the books in a seamless conversation. It felt as if they were both in the room storytelling instead of reading from the actual book. As actors, they did a fantastic job with changing their voices to fit the tone of the chapters and messages. Again, it simply felt as if they were both in the room telling me their adventures. It was great!

Overall, I found this book to be entertaining. I am so glad that I decided to listen to the audiobook because it gave it life. This book is a perfect pairing with their show, Men in Kilts! I give this audiobook: