Dragonfly in Amber

Dragonfly in Amber by Diana Gabaldon, published by Random House in 1992, is the second novel in the highly successful romance series, Outlander. Continuing the story of Claire Randall Fraser and Jamie Fraser, this novel returns the reader to 1744, as Claire and Jamie travel to France to escape the tyrannical forces led by Jack Randall, an ancestor of Claire’s first husband, Frank. The novel not only highlights the unlikely romance between a modern woman and a Jacobite man, but it gives the reader a first-row seat to the bloody struggle for the crown of both England and Scotland in the 18th century. The novel also contains dystopian elements. In 2014, Tall Ship Productions began a television series based on the Outlander series of books starring Sam Heughan and Caitriona Balfe.

This guide is based on the Dell Anniversary Edition published October 26, 2004.

Content Warning: This guide includes references to rape, sexual assault, and pregnancy loss, which are discussed in the source text.

Plot Summary

Claire Beauchamp Randall Fraser returns to Inverness, Scotland in 1968 after the death of her husband, Frank. It has been 20 years since her last visit.