Outlander Book Club: Drums of Autumn Chapter 65 breakdown

Foreshadowing in the Outlander chapter

The birth certificate is probably an element of foreshadowing. Claire will know that if Brianna goes to her own time, she will need that birth certificate. At this point, there’s no real reason for Claire to consider Brianna leaving the past. None of them know if the baby and Brianna will be able to make it through together.

However, it’s clear that Claire is preparing for it. And this does foreshadow a storyline. It’s not this baby who Bree will need to risk the stones for but her next one with Roger.

Adapting the Drums of Autumn chapter

This chapter wasn’t used for the series. Claire didn’t create the birth certificate, although there was a quick discussion about Roger. Brianna wanted to stay at River Run in case Roger returned, but together, she and Claire agreed that it would be best going back to Fraser’s Ridge.

I don’t think the birth certificate part would have been added even if the show kept the next few chapters of Drums of Autumn. If it was used, it would have just been a quick view of Claire writing it out unless the show decided to keep Jamie’s uncertainty about Brianna and Roger returning to her.

While these moments are great for the book, they don’t always work well in a TV show. With the knowledge that Outlander Season 5 was happening, the writers could work on ending the season in a traditional way for a TV show. There was that storyline for Season 5 clear with the arrest warrant for Murtagh. For me, this worked just right for the show.

What did you spot while reading Drums of Autumn Chapter 65? Let us know in the comments below.

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