While on her honeymoon, WWII combat nurse Claire Randall is mysteriously transported back to 1743 Scotland, where she is kidnapped by a group of Highlanders - and meets an injured young man named Jamie.
Claire is taken to meet the Laird. As suspicions about her grow, Claire befriends the mysterious Geillis Duncan. When the clan discover her medical skills, Claire goes from guest to prisoner.
Claire decides to use her medical skills to aid her escape from Castle Leoch - with Jamie's help, she tends to an ill child. During an evening's entertainment, a story gives Claire hope for her freedom.
As the Castle prepares for The Gathering, Claire plots her escape. But after a dangerous encounter with a drunken Dougal and an unexpected run-in with Jamie, her plans are dashed.
Claire joins the MacKenzie rent-collecting trip. To her horror, Dougal uses Jamie's scars to gain sympathy for the Jacobite cause. Claire recalls that a defining moment in Scottish history is fast approaching.
Claire's unexpected meeting with a British general turns tense when Captain Jack Randall arrives. Claire finds herself alone with Randall - a dangerous man determined to uncover her secrets.
Claire and Jamie are thrown together in marriage, but as their emotional and physical relationship unfolds, deeper feelings arise. Claire is ultimately torn between two men in two very different times.
Frank desperately searches for his missing wife, while Claire tries to come to terms with her new marriage. Claire is faced with an emotional quandry as a life-altering opportunity presents itself.
Jamie and the Highlanders rescue Claire from Black Jack Randall. Back at the castle, politics threaten to tear Clan MacKenzie apart and Jamie's scorned lover, Laoghaire, attempts to win him back.
Jamie hopes the newly arrived Duke of Sandringham will help lift the price from his head, while Claire attempts to save an abandoned child.
Claire and Geillis are on trial for witchcraft. Jamie manages to rescue Claire, but not before she discovers a secret about Geillis' past.
Reunited, Claire and Jamie make their way to Lallybroch - Jamie's family home. Reality quickly sets in, and old wounds are reopened between Jamie and his sister, Jenny.
Jamie finds himself between a rock and a hard place when a redcoat deserter from his past resurfaces. Claire tends to a laboring Jenny while Jamie and Ian join The Watch, resulting in devastating consequences.
Claire and Jenny set out to rescue Jamie from his redcoat captors. When Murtagh joins up, they turn to unorthodox tactics to send word to Jamie. When word finally arrives, the news isn't what anyone had hoped.
Jamie awaits his passing sentence at Wentworth Prison, while Claire and the Highlanders search for a rescue plan. When Jamie is visited by Black Jack, he realizes there is a fate worse than passing.
A desperate plan manages to free Jamie, but his wounds are more than just physical. At a nearby monastery, Claire attempts to save both Jamie's heart and soul, as his mind lingers on the torture.