Outlander Book Club: Voyager Chapter 19 breakdown

Foreshadowing in the Outlander chapter

With so much of the chapter focused on the past, there isn’t too much foreshadowing. This is a chance to get us up to date with everything that happened to Frank. It’s a chance to see the type of man he was—or more like the type of man Claire viewed him as. Something we have to remember is that this is Claire’s memory, and she’s not exactly the most reliable storyteller at times.

The element that foreshadows the future of the story is the ending. Claire gets the telegram. It’s time to set up everything so she can leave for the past. It’s time to return to Jamie.

Adapting the Voyager chapter

This chapter was used in Outlander Season 3, but not exactly. The show decided not to include Frank’s racism. Maybe there wasn’t that much time for all the accusations flying around, but I think it was more as a way to keep some of the sympathy for Frank. Nobody likes a racist.

I do admit that I prefer Show Frank more than Book Frank. In the first books, I felt sorry for Frank, but his actions in this chapter made me scream at the man that he was.

In the series, he is still a man of his time, but the argument is more focused on his affairs and his relationship with Brianna. He doesn’t focus too much on what she could be like at university (and the drugs that are there), but on what he thinks would be best for her. I do think there’s more to his reasons for taking Brianna to England than he lets on.

He’s found something in the past and thinks it will be best for Bree to be with him so Claire gets to go back to Jamie. But, again, the writing makes Frank a more likable character than in the books.

One thing I will say is that in both the book and show, Frank’s love was for Brianna. He wasn’t an absolutely terrible father, which he could have been knowing that he wasn’t her father. However, I don’t believe he completely had her best interests at heart. In the show, at least he suggested taking Brianna to England and it wasn’t an outright “she’s going whether she likes it or not.”

While the placement and some of the details of the argument were changed, the overall message wasn’t. Nor was Frank’s death. He was killed in a car accident, and that would set up the rest of the story.

What did you think while reading Outlander Book 3, Chapter 19? Share your thoughts in the comments below.

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