Brianna and Roger are at Lallybroch in Outlander Book 6, Epilogue 1
There are two epilogues at the end of Outlander Book 6. They are important to help get us ready for events in An Echo in the Bone.
The first epilogue picks up with Bree and Roger at Lallybroch. They are in the future, but we have no idea what’s gone on for Mandy up to this point. All we know is that she’s clearly had the surgery she needed and her health problems are no longer a major concern.
What we do get to find out is what happened after the fire at Fraser’s Ridge. Claire and Jamie have found a way to get word to them, and I love that we see just how much planning must have gone into this. Claire and Jamie had to figure out when Roger and Bree would have made it back, and just hope that there was a way for them to find out about the box they were leaving.
There is a little bit of foreshadowing in this chapter for An Echo in the Bone and Written In My Own Heart’s Blood. I’ll get to my thoughts on that in the foreshadowing section.
I really hope we see this chapter used in the TV series. I’ll get to my thoughts on why as we get into the adaptation section of the post.
Let’s dive into A Breath of Snow and Ashes Epilogue 1.
Just the Outlander chapter
The series starts with Brianna at Lallybroch in the 1980s. She is running through things with a building, while her children play upstairs. It’s clear that she is working on repairs needed for a house that has been left empty for some time.
Jemmy calls out because Mandy has bitten him. This is when we get an idea that some time has passed. Mandy is able to say some words, and there’s no way that would happen in just a few months.
The builder thinks back to Scotland’s past as Roger appears with some boxes that he found at the Reverend’s house. One of them had a note from a defunct banking house in Edinburgh. The note makes it clear that only the name on the box can open it: Jeremiah Alexander Ian Fraser MacKenzie. This is for young Jemmy.
Brianna ends up opening the box, and she is immediately hit with the smell of her mother. Yes, this is a box from Claire and Jamie and holds some letters, books, and a well-handled Cherrywood snake. I just love that Jamie saved the snake from the fire and sent it to his grandson as a way to keep the two of them connected. It still sends shivers down my spine when I think about it.
One of the letters has the date Dec. 31, 1776. The first thing she learns is that Claire and Jamie are alive and well. It’s after the fire. We just have this collision of past and present, but it’s so warming for Bree to learn that her parents did make it—and that the newspaper was wrong.
This is one of the reasons why I don’t mind the TV series having the date smudged. After all, the date wasn’t correct in the book. Why did we need the exact year in the TV series?
Foreshadowing in the Outlander chapter
There is a little bit of foreshadowing in this chapter. It all comes from this box and the letters. This is not the first time Bree will read a letter from the past. I get the sense that this foreshadows Bree finding the letters from Frank, making it clear that Frank knew a lot more than he ever let on. There’s also that reminder of the work Jamie and Claire put in to get the box to Bree in the future, which reminds us of the work Frank would have gone into to get the letters to Bree
I think there’s also foreshadowing in Claire and Jamie going back to Scotland at some point. There is no way the two of them would have trusted getting the box to a bank in Edinburgh with anyone else. They needed to do this themselves.
Adapting A Breath of Snow and Ashes chapter
I do hope to see this chapter developed for Outlander Season 7. We do know from leaked photos that the MacKenzies go to the 20th century. I want to see Bree and Roger learn that Jamie and Claire survive the fire through this letter. I want to see Jemmy end up with the snake. We need this ability to keep everyone informed through methods like boxes in a bank.
Of course, the chapter isn’t all that important except for that knowledge Bree and Roger end up at Lallybroch. I want to see that happen in the series. However, there’s just something positive and heartwarming to see Bree learn her parents are alive through their own letters.
What did you spot while reading A Breath of Snow and Ashes Epilogue 1? Let us know in the comments below.
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