Outlander Book Club: A Breath of Snow and Ashes Chapter 16 breakdown

Just the Outlander chapter

We start the chapter with Claire and Jamie together, with Claire trying to rank some of Jamie’s phrases in her head. However, the focus moves onto the grasshoppers.

When they arrived, Claire realized that they were a problem. They headed to a field of barley and started eating away. In an act of revenge against them, Claire, Mrs. Bug, Brianna, and Lizzie made sure the entire field was burned down, taking the grasshoppers with them.

This was Murdo Lindsey’s field, though. He was too shocked to do anything. Jamie is also shocked at Claire’s actions. After all, that’s a lot of crops gone and there isn’t time to grow more.

Plus, the new tenants arrived with Roger, Tom Christie, and Arch Bug at the same time. Arch managed to make sure the new tenants were settled with families. Now is the time to get them settled before the first frost arrives.

It’s clear that everyone is going to come together to help, though. This is a community. Everyone looks out for everyone else, and that’s something the new tenants get to experience first hand, even with Claire burning everything down.

The end of the chapter goes back to Claire and Jamie in their bed. Jamie can’t wait to have her any longer. I cringe at these moments when I read them. They are true to Jamie’s character, especially for a man of the 18th century. That doesn’t mean I find them sexy. Claire and quite a few readers do though, and I’m not one to judge. I just don’t like them.