Why hasn’t Jamie forgiven John yet in Outlander Book 9?

Photo credit: Outlander/Starz Image acquired via Starz Media Room
Photo credit: Outlander/Starz Image acquired via Starz Media Room /
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When Diana Gabaldon shared one of her Outlander Book 9 Daily Lines posts last week, a user wondered why Jamie hasn’t forgiven John yet for that particular act with Claire. Gabaldon shared her thoughts on the matter.

During one of the Daily Lines for Outlander Book 9, “Go Tell the Bees That I Am Gone,” it was immediately clear that there are still some complicated feelings between particular characters. Jamie and John are no longer the close friends they once were. One fan, in particular, wanted to know why Jamie hasn’t forgiven John yet, and Diana Gabaldon shared her view of the characters.

For those who haven’t read the books yet, this does contain spoilers for later books. If you don’t like spoilers, this is the time to turn back.

Jamie has forgiven Lord John Grey

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Let’s start this with the fact that Jamie has forgiven Lord John Grey, according to Gabaldon. However, it’s not just as simple as moving on. There are a lot of complicated feelings involved and Jamie knows that forgiveness, forgetting, and acceptance are different stages.

He understands that John and Claire married out of necessity. They both believed Jamie to be dead and Claire could have found herself in a lot of trouble without John as her husband. What Jamie struggles with is the fact that the two consummated their marriage and thought of Jamie the whole time. Claire thinking of Jamie was natural, but John thinking of Jamie makes Jamie feel awkward. Considering everything that happened to Jamie decades earlier at the hands of Black Jack Randall that’s really not that surprising.

Jamie needs to work through his feelings. He needs to figure out a way to move on from this point and the friendship with Lord John is not likely to be what it once was.

Here’s the Daily Lines for those who are interested and you can read Gabaldon’s comments in the comments section on the Facebook post.

#DailyLines #GoTELLtheBEESThatIAmGONE #BookNine #noitsnotclose #goingverywellthough …

Posted by Diana Gabaldon on Monday, May 14, 2018

Next: Outlander Book 9 Daily Lines: Lord John Grey thinks of Jamie

Were you surprised by what initially looked like a lack of forgiveness in the Outlander Book 9 snippet? Can Jamie and John find their way back to their friendship? Share your thoughts in the comments below.