Outlander Book Club: Drums of Autumn Chapter 60 breakdown

Foreshadowing in the Outlander chapter

Not everything comes out in this chapter. Jamie doesn’t tell Roger why Brianna didn’t come on the journey with them, and there’s a reason for that. We find out in the next chapter why Jamie didn’t say anything and how Roger reacts when he does learn the full truth.

Other than that, there isn’t all that much in the way of foreshadowing. Maybe there is just a hint that Roger will choose Brianna and the baby in the end. He gets that jolt of happiness knowing that Brianna still loves him, and he clearly still loves her despite everything that’s happened. There is some hope.

Adapting the Drums of Autumn chapter

While the chapter was partly used for Outlander Season 4, not all of it was. The conversation between Jamie and Roger in the hut didn’t happen. Well, some of it did but it was with Claire around and they were in the forest by that point.

Instead, we got to see what happened to Father Alexandre. Roger witnessed it. In fact, Roger managed to escape, trying to put himself first. It was the screams of Alexandre that brought Roger back, knowing that he would be put back into the “idiot hut.”

I really liked the way the TV show worked this storyline. Having Roger have these thoughts of being selfish but then realize that he couldn’t do it after all felt real. I think I’d be in that mindset, but when it came to really putting himself first, he couldn’t do it. And while Alexandre didn’t get the death he wanted (and he got in the book), it was just right to pull Roger back in from a distance.

With TV, we also get to see more rather than being told things. I’ve always appreciated that in fiction, and it is something I’ve mentioned in previous Outlander book breakdowns.

What did you spot while reading Drums of Autumn Chapter 60? Let us know in the comments below.

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