Claire pays Tom Christie a visit in Outlander Book 6, Chapter 66
Claire is fed up with being confined to her bed in Outlander Book 6, Chapter 66. She decides to head out to the Christies’ cabin to see Tom.
Of course, this goes as well as you’d expect. Tom is shocked to see Claire, especially considering it’s clear that she’s still weak and ill. When Tom does get her back home, everyone there is shocked to see that she’d left the house without them realizing.
However, Claire needs to ease her curious mind. She wants to figure out why Claire and Tom were sick with something that wasn’t dysentery. Is it all that surprising? There are ways that they could get ill, but Claire’s doctor mind needs to know the truth. Tom isn’t having any of it though.
I love that this chapter was mostly used in the series. Claire didn’t quite sneak out, but some of the more humorous moments (involving the hat) were included. We also got the most important elements of the chapter.
It also foreshadows things. It’s clear that Tom and Claire had the same illness, but why? That will eventually become clear.
Let’s dive into A Breath of Snow and Ashes Chapter 66.
Just the Outlander chapter
Claire can’t stand being stuck in bed. She decides to sneak out through a window to be able to get to Tom Christie’s cabin. She wants to know what illness he had.
Tom is shocked to see Claire arrive. He’s also very shocked to see her hair cut so short, telling her she looks like a convict. At least she’s wearing a hat—and when they do leave to return to the Big House, Tom makes her wear the hat again. I love it!
Claire notes that she and Tom had something that wasn’t dysentery. She wants to know what it could be. Did Tom get bitten by mosquitos recently to end up with malaria? Tom notes that everyone gets bitten. Well, Claire thinks that everyone but she and Roger do. Bree and Jemmy get bitten a little but not as much as others in the time. She notes that mosquitos and other bugs likely adapt along with humans and Claire and Roger’s blood tastes weird.
Tom doesn’t help Claire get to the bottom of the illness. To be honest, Tom doesn’t really care about it. They’re both recovered from it now. He decides that he’s going to walk Claire back to the Big House.
Nobody realized that Claire was gone, and naturally, they’re angry when she does return.
Toward the end of the chapter, Claire wakes in the night. She realizes that Jamie is sleeping on the floor, where he’s been for a while. Claire wants to be close to Jamie, and they end up making love that night for the first time since she fell sick.
Foreshadowing in the Outlander chapter
The chapter certainly foreshadows the real illness that affected Claire and Tom. It’s clear that they had the same thing, but Claire can’t quite get to the bottom of it. Tom doesn’t care for now, but he probably will when he figures it all out.
This all foreshadows that Malva has been up to something. She made them ill and used the dysentery to make it look like they had the same thing as everyone else. If only for her Claire wasn’t a doctor.
Adapting A Breath of Snow and Ashes chapter
Some of this chapter was used in Outlander Season 6. It was mostly the part where Claire goes to visit Tom. She doesn’t sneak out of the house and isn’t as weak as she is in the book, but the main part of the storyline remains the same.
Tom is still shocked to see Claire, and she still wants to get to the bottom of the illness. She even goes as far to ask for a stool sample, which embarrasses Tom. This is what leads to him escorting Claire back home—and he does expect her to wear the hat.
I adore the way this chapter was adapted. With how short on time the series is, only the important points can be included. This is an important point as it makes it clear that Claire and Tom were infected with the same illness. What Claire can’t figure out yet is what it was and how it happened.
What did you spot while reading A Breath of Snow and Ashes Chapter 66? Let us know in the comments below.
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