Outlander Book Club: Book 1, Chapter 24 breakdown

Just the Outlander chapter

Picking out the most important parts of the chapter isn’t easy, but it all starts with Dougal’s wife dying. It sounds like it’s from natural causes. While Dougal is sad, he doesn’t show the emotion he does on the show. Jamie points out that Dougal and his wife’s marriage was arranged and they’ve never really spent a lot of time together.

It’s clear that Jamie doesn’t want a marriage like this. He wants something that his mom and dad had, which is an understandable wish. Can Claire give him that?

We do find out throughout the chapter that Claire is starting to enjoy her time in the past. She’s finding comfort in her day-to-day life and she enjoys her time with Jamie. In fact, later, she admits that she misses seeing Jamie at the end of the day. However, at the same time, she’s grateful that she’s not pregnant yet.

As we get more of the day-to-day life, we get more of Claire in the surgery. One of those moments is Old Alec bringing Jamie into the surgery with a sprain. He’d fallen of Donas, who we’d found out earlier in the chapter is a horse that only Alec and Jamie are confident enough to go near. Hamish had wanted to ride him but Jamie manages to talk his cousin into riding Cobhar instead.

This is when Claire learns that Hamish definitely isn’t Jamie’s son. That’s not why Jamie left the castle at 16 quickly. In fact, later, we learn that it was because of the Duke of Sandringham. Jamie didn’t want to risk being left in a room with the duke, who has a taste for young boys.

The people in the castle do jest about it, but it’s clear that as many people try to stay away from the duke as possible. However, Jamie is sent on a hunting trip with the duke because this is the man who could help get Jamie his pardon. He’s the only man who can help, although Claire doesn’t get a chance to tell Jamie that the Duke and Black Jack Randall are working together.

I did wonder in this chapter whether Black Jack Randall had agreed to some activities with the Duke of Sandringham as a way to gain money and importance. What does the duke get out of BJR?

Moving on, we get a little more about Jamie’s parents. Old Alec is being massaged by Claire, which is when he tells the story of how Ellen and Brian met (at a Gathering) and how they ran off together. Ellen was five months pregnant by the time Dougal found them, which meant Colum had to bless their marriage. The two were able to marry for love, even though Colum wanted her to marry Malcolm Grant. It’s no wonder there’s animosity between the MacKenzies and the Grants.

Then it comes to Claire overhearing a conversation between Dougal and Colum. It turns out Dougal has got someone pregnant, and Claire sees Laoghaire. She immediately jumps to the conclusion that Dougal and Laoghaire are secretly meeting. However, we know that it comes up later in the book.

We also see Claire help to birth a foal, which leads to Old Alec and Colum having a lot more respect for her. She receives a rosary as a special thank you.

Finally, Claire finds an ill-wish under her bed. Geillis offers to find out who put the ill-wish there, but Geillis doesn’t actually do that. Instead, she hypnotizes and drugs Claire to find out who Claire really is. We get this hint that Geillis doesn’t trust the woman, but why?

That part of the chapter also tells us that Geillis views herself as a witch. She considers herself a white witch, and she does have some belief in changelings. Claire and Geillis find the baby that is dying, and Geillis refuses to do anything. She knows what the people will do if they see Claire and Geillis tampering with the baby.

Jamie also makes it clear that while he doesn’t believe in the superstitions, people of the town do. They haven’t ridden for more than 10 miles many of them. They only hear Father Bain’s stories and the folktales told. It’s no wonder they’re superstitious and maybe just want to believe that it’s not their child that’s died.

That night, Arthur dies at dinner. It’s convenient considering he’s seen something that shocked him. Claire doesn’t think of that, but wants to save Arthur instead, believing him to be choking. We don’t focus on the death too much as the hunting party still has to leave. Jamie is gone for two weeks when Claire gets a message from Laoghaire to say that Geillis is asking for Claire.

Off Claire goes to the Duncans’ house, but she finds out that Geillis never asked for her at all. The chapter ends with an angry mob on the way to the house.