Outlander Book Club: Book 2, Chapter 24 breakdown

Foreshadowing within the Outlander chapter

There’s a little bit of foreshadowing within this chapter. When Claire thinks of her own bleeding, there is a thought of Jamie stabbing Black Jack Randall in his crotch area. I had to read it a couple of times this time to really get the picture, as I do have the picture of the show in my head at the same time.

This is foreshadowing of Frank’s story. It’s clear that Black Jack Randall probably isn’t Frank’s direct ancestor. It’s all setting up the story that Alex Randall is the direct descendent afterward.

We also have this foreshadowing of Frank being unable to have children. In the show, we’ve already learned this. In the books, that’s not been mentioned yet. We don’t know why Claire and Frank haven’t had children of their own after Brianna. This foreshadows that.

Then we have a foreshadowing of Claire’s second pregnancy. Claire is losing this baby. Now it makes sense how Brianna has been born in 1948/1746 and there isn’t an older sister or brother. However, the pregnancy with Brianna isn’t going to be all that unproblematic. Many women who suffer one placenta abruption tend to suffer from them in the future. Claire needs medical help in her own time to ensure a safe delivery.

Adapting the Dragonfly in Amber chapter

This chapter was definitely used in the TV show, but with some slight changes. In the book, we don’t know why Jamie has broken his promise.

The show gives us a chance to understand Jamie’s reasoning. Part of this would have likely been due to time. There are still plenty of chapters left to cover Claire’s loss of her child, finding out the truth about why Jamie broke his promise, and getting Jamie out of the Bastille. All of this had to fit into one episode, which was never going to be easy.

So, it made more sense to let us see Fergus stealing from Black Jack Randall. This would then give the implication that poor Fergus would be raped by BJR. There was no need to have a conversation in the show. It could all be shown through Fergus’s dreams and the silent words between Fergus and Claire.

Another element was to help us understand Jamie’s decision to break his promise. I can only imagine how people reacted when they first read this chapter without knowing anything else. Could you imagine how the viewers would have reacted without reading the books first? Instead, we understood immediately what would make Jamie break a promise he made. It was all to protect this boy that had become like a son to him.

What did you get while reading Outlander Book 2, Chapter 24? Share in the comments below.

Like Claire and Jamie on Facebook for more from the Outlander Book Club.