She had seen Brianna's face for a moment in the light; white as paper and hard as bone, with the eyes black holes. Her gentle, kindly mistress had vanished like smoke, taken over by a deamhan, a she-devil. Lizzie was a town lass, born long after Culloden. She had never seen the wild clansmen of the glens, or a Highlander in the grip of blood fury-but she'd heard the auld stories, and now she knew them true. A person who looked like that might do anything at all. She
Diana Gabaldon Drums of Autumn
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In this excerpt from "Drums of Autumn" by Diana Gabaldon, Lizzie is struck by a chilling transformation of Brianna, who appears ghostly and menacing. The once gentle and kind figure is now obscured by a dark essence, turning her into something otherworldly, akin to a demon. This change leaves a significant impact on Lizzie, who has grown up in a different time and has always been aware of the haunting tales of fierceness and fury among the Highland clans.

As a town girl born after the events of Culloden, Lizzie has never personally witnessed the wild nature of Highlanders consumed by rage, but the stories she has heard resonate with her now. The sight of Brianna's altered appearance convinces her that anyone could be capable of unimaginable actions under certain circumstances. The passage reflects Lizzie's confrontation with her fears and the terrifying reality that lies beneath familiar faces.

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Drums of Autumn
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Other quotes in Drums of Autumn

Your face is my heart, Sassenach,' he said softly, 'and love of you is my soul. But
Diana Gabaldon Drums of Autumn
Your face is my heart, Sassenach,' he said softly, 'and love of you is my soul. But
I gave ye three things that day,' he said softly. 'My name, my family, and the protection of my body. You'll have those things always, Sassenach – so long as we both shall live. No matter where we may be. I willna let ye go hungry or cold; I'll let nothing harm ye, ever.
Diana Gabaldon Drums of Autumn
I gave ye three things that day,' he said softly. 'My name, my family, and the protection of my body. You'll have those things always, Sassenach – so long as we both shall live. No matter where we may be. I willna let ye go hungry or cold; I'll let nothing harm ye, ever.
Englishman thinks a hundred miles is a long way; an American thinks a hundred years is a long time.
Diana Gabaldon Drums of Autumn
Englishman thinks a hundred miles is a long way; an American thinks a hundred years is a long time.
I've never been afraid of ghosts. I live with them daily, after all. When I look in a mirror, my mother's eyes look back at me; my mouth curls with the smile that lured my great-grandfather to the fate that was me. No, how should I fear the touch of those vanished hands, laid on me in love unknowing? How could I be afraid of those that molded my flesh, leaving their remnants to live long past the grave?
Diana Gabaldon Drums of Autumn
I've never been afraid of ghosts. I live with them daily, after all. When I look in a mirror, my mother's eyes look back at me; my mouth curls with the smile that lured my great-grandfather to the fate that was me. No, how should I fear the touch of those vanished hands, laid on me in love unknowing? How could I be afraid of those that molded my flesh, leaving their remnants to live long past the grave?
wee surprise for ye. Fergus! Fergus, likewise beaming, came from behind a wagon, ushering a slight man with windblown
Diana Gabaldon Drums of Autumn
wee surprise for ye. Fergus! Fergus, likewise beaming, came from behind a wagon, ushering a slight man with windblown
He grinned wryly at his nephew. Ye'll amount to something for your mother's sake-if it kills us both.
Diana Gabaldon Drums of Autumn
He grinned wryly at his nephew. Ye'll amount to something for your mother's sake-if it kills us both.
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Relationships and marriages are hard enough, but you add war into the mix and small fissures become gaping wounds. No one sees what you're seeing - again that clear-eyed, unbiased thing - except your fellow soldiers. It's like one of those movies where only the hero can see the ghosts and everyone else thinks the hero is crazy.
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Relationships and marriages are hard enough, but you add war into the mix and small fissures become gaping wounds. No one sees what you're seeing - again that clear-eyed, unbiased thing - except your fellow soldiers. It's like one of those movies where only the hero can see the ghosts and everyone else thinks the hero is crazy.
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