Outlander Book Club: Written in My Own Heart’s Blood Chapter 96 breakdown

Just the Outlander chapter

The chapter starts with Roger and Buck finding Mr. Cumberpatch, who shares that the dog tags came from a “hairy man” who lives by the Roman wall. Roger gets the information while he buys a garnet and a bed sack.

The two discuss what they may find by the Roman wall. Will it be Roger’s father? What will they do if it’s not?

This is the point when Roger decides to tell Buck about his parentage. I do wonder if this was a good idea, but at the same time, Buck does need to know. He’s in the same time period as Dougal and Geillis. He’s come across Dougal and he’s heard about Geillis, so telling Buck is important.

Buck is shocked to hear the truth. He later wants to know why Roger told him now. Why not before? Should Roger have said something before? Roger admits that he didn’t plan on telling him, but with being away from Leoch, now made sense. It would give Buck a chance to figure out what to do before they get back to Leoch.

The two sleep, and when Roger wakes, he realizes that clearing his thought doesn’t hurt that much. This is where the foreshadowing comes in, and I’ll get to that shortly. Roger can’t help but think about the blue light that McEwan emitted though, and he remembers that Claire once mentioned it. Is that what took the pain in his throat away?