Lord John Grey reaches out to Jamie and Claire for help in Outlander Book 7, Chapter 71
Lord John Grey finally reaches out to Jamie to ask for Claire’s help in Outlander Book 7, Chapter 71. He needs a talented surgeon to save his nephew.
Of course, we know that Jamie and Claire are now heading to Scotland. They can’t take a detour for this one, and it means Claire can’t go to save Henry. What will happen to poor Henry Grey? John needs to weigh up all his options.
He would have some time to think and plan, but the British coming into Philadelphia changes a lot. This puts all the rebel’s prisoners at risk, including Henry Grey. Dottie is scared for her brother, and John needs to take all rumors seriously to protect his family.
This chapter doesn’t really foreshadow all that much for me. What it does is continue the plot for Henry, a character we could have forgotten about recently with everything going on with Jamie, William, and Ian. It also seems like Henry is doing pretty well with metal in his stomach at this point. I don’t think I took this storyline all that seriously at first because of how long Henry was around.
I do think we’ll see this storyline play out in the series, and I’ll get to my thoughts on that in the adaptation section.
Let’s dive into An Echo in the Bone Chapter 71.
Just the Outlander chapter
The chapter starts with John worried about his nephew. Henry is still sick and needs a good surgeon. John finally reaches out to Jamie to ask for Claire to come. It’s too late, though. Jamie is off to Scotland. It’s only for a trip and the Frasers will be back, but it won’t be in time.
John needs to rely on the abilities of Dr. Rush. It’s clear that he doesn’t have much faith in this doctor, though.
So, John works through all his options. He could take Henry to England. He’d need a rebel prisoner to trade with for that to happen as he needs to get Henry out of being a prisoner. Of course, Henry might die on the ship across, and he probably doesn’t want to leave anyway. John, once again, tells us about the feelings Henry and Mercy have for each other.
John also doesn’t want to get Henry back just for Hal and Minnie to say their goodbyes. He fears this for them.
Dottie is also worried. The British are coming into Philadelphia. Washington’s army was knocked down a little and the British got back control. Washington is trying to get the land back, but right now, the British are threatening to move in. Dottie knows that the Americans could choose to execute all their prisoners, including Henry Grey.
John needs to take the rumors seriously. Time is of the essence for multiple reasons now.
Foreshadowing in the Outlander chapter
This chapter is more about plot development. We need to remember where John is right now. We also need to remember why he’s in Philadelphia. This is all important for Claire’s storyline coming up. I just don’t see any foreshadowing in the chapter at this point.
Adapting An Echo in the Bone chapter
I do expect the chapter to be used in the TV series. I’m not sure it’s going to be at the same time. I think some of the timing and the reasons are going to be changed, but I still expect to see John in Philadelphia for Henry. This brings Claire to John, and she needs to be there for a storyline to come between John and Claire.
That does happen in the seventh book, right? I’ll admit that some of the storylines get combined. For example, sometimes I put Malva and the Christies into the fifth book even though I know they’re in A Breath of Snow and Ashes. Then there are times that I’ll mix up Roger’s trip through the stones in the eight book and put it in the seventh. There’s so much going on.
However, based on what I’ve seen from filming shots in Liverpool, I suspect that this whole storyline is going to be included and linked to the storyline at the end of the book.
What did you spot while reading An Echo in the Bone Chapter 71? Let us know in the comments below.
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