Go Tell the Bees That I Am Gone

 

I sincerely hope I don't have to wait another 8 years before book 10. 

Spoilers ahead. Beware!

The 9th book of the Outlander series was terrific. Not nearly enough Lord John 🦊, but then she could write thousands of pages of just Lord John and I'd be okay with that (whenever I type "Lord John" on my phone, it automatically inserts the fox emoji now, because I've done it so often. David Berry is gorgeous, what can I say?). 

Brianna, Roger, Jem, and Mandy are back from 1980, fleeing Rob Cameron and his goons who were after the gold. Jamie and Claire are of course thrilled to have them back. Brianna brings books for everyone: the Merck Manual for Claire, the Lord of the Rings trilogy for Jamie, and one of Frank Randall's books for herself, about the Scottish contribution to the Revolutionary War. Jamie reads it and discovers the exact date he'll die.

Oh. That sucks.

Meanwhile, in Savannah, Lord John and his brother, Hal, are living with Hal's oldest son's Ben's widow and her son, Trevor, when William shows up with a man who claims Lord John is his natural father (he's not). There were some hysterical scenes with Lord John and baby Trevor. Good thing he's a soldier and not a nanny 😃 William is still trying to come to terms with the fact that he's Jamie Fraser's son while also trying to get to the bottom of Ben's death. He's also undeniably attracted to Ben's widow, Amaranthus. Brianna and William get to spend some quality brother/sister bonding time together when Brianna goes to Savannah to paint a portrait (Lord John and Jamie hatched the plan to get the two of them together. While their friendship still hasn't been completely mended after Lord John married and bedded Claire, I think it's on the road to recovery). We actually got a lot of William in this book, and it was nice. I like him. 

Ian finds out his first Mohawk wife, Emily, has been left a widow with three children and the oldest one might be his, so he sets out to see if she needs his help. His current wife, Rachel, their baby son, Oggy, and Ian's mother Jenny all go along for the ride (God, I love Jenny). Along the way they rescue the Quaker family that helped Jamie in book 8, the Hardmans, and when they return to Fraser's Ridge they have Mrs. Hardman and her three daughters, plus Ian's son with Emily in tow, as well as a Mohawk who has taken a shine to Jenny. I kind of really love the idea of Jenny having a Mohawk suitor. 

Brianna has another baby, a boy they name David (instead of John, like I suggested). Jamie nearly dies in a battle, on the date Frank mentioned, but Claire is able to miraculously save him. Mrs. Hardman, Silvia, marries Bobby Higgins, a widower on the Ridge who has a couple of little boys. Everyone is celebrating the wedding when a rider comes tearing up. It's William. Lord John has been kidnapped and is being held captive, and William needs Jamie's help to rescue him. 

And that's how the damn book ended and I was awake all night, scared to death for Lord John. I hope nothing bad happens to him, otherwise I'm going to light something on fire.