Hester was just one of those beautiful books that got you to think, and for reimaging who inspired the main character of a book that is considered an American classic, it was just extremely well donr.
Isobel moves to Salem from Scotland with her husband in the early 1800's for a new start after her husband makes a number of bad business decisions. She is descended from women who were thought to be witches and sees words in color.(which today we know as Synesthesia). While her mother told her growing up to ignore the colors to protect herself, Isobel, who is gifted with embroidery, begins to channel them in her work. This helps her to support herself when her husband abandons her and goes off to sea.
Isobel meets a young Nathaniel Hawthorne, who is trying to make a name for himself beyond his ancestors' involvement in the Salem Witchcraft Trials. They become close, finding understanding with each other in trying to rise above their ancestors' histories and eventually begin an affair that has lasting consequences for them both.
Hester was a book that was well written and I thought it was beautifully descriptive, the author's words were just as lovely as I would expect Isobel's embroidery to be. I thoroughly loved reading it and was honestly sad the book ended.
Thank you to Netgalley for the eARC. All thoughts are my own.

Imaginative historical fiction, Hester was gripping from page 1 until the very end. Albanese is a vivid storyteller who paints an atmospheric picture of a historic era. I learned so much about the Salem Witch Trials, but also found myself lost in this uniquely brilliant novel.

Hester by Laurie Lico Albanese is a beautifully written historical fiction. I love a retelling, and the author does a great job staying true to the original while adding her own spin to the take! A beautiful cover and a wonderful story inside! Read this one!

Thanks to #Netgalley and the publisher for providing a free copy in exchange for an honest review.

✨ Review ✨ Hester by Laurie Lico Albanese; Narrated by Saskia Maarleveld

Oh man, I have a lot of feelings about this book. I think that the concept was super inventive - I loved that it told the fictional backstory of the woman who inspired Nathaniel Hawthorne to write the Scarlet Letter. It was such a clever approach to thinking through the role of color and sound via synesthesia, and weaving in different elements of Hester's story.

With that said, I think that there were pieces of this that weren't fully fleshed out or that were problematic. I don't think the book handles race and racial difference well. I think it left loose ends in whether magic existed or was just an excuse used to gain power. I also think she really wrote NH as kind of a jerk (and maybe he was, but 🤷‍♀️ )

I was swept up in the story and certainly engaged, but I was also left wanting more from it. Great concept, but mediocre execution!

⭐️⭐️⭐️💫
Genre: historical fiction, literary fiction, women's fiction
Location: Salem
Reminds me of: The Scarlet Letter 😂
Pub Date: out now!

Read this if you like:
⭕️ The Scarlet Letter
⭕️ discussions of cloth and other textiles
⭕️ fictional contextualizations of the past

Thanks to St. Martin's Press, Macmillan Audio, and #netgalley fo advancedr e-copies of this book!

Our main character, Isobel Gamble is a young girl living in Scotland in the 1800's. As a child, Isobel's mother teaches her the art of embroidery, and becomes aware that Isobel has a rare gift of seeing letters in different colors, as a type of synesthesia. Her mother becomes alarmed because they are descended from Isobel Gowdie, who was tried for witchcraft in the 1600s.

As Isobel makes her way in the world, she comes to Salem, Massachusetts, where she meets Nathaniel Hawthorne.

As I read this book, I couldn't help thinking that this was sort of a mashup of Arthur Miller's "The Crucible" and the Scarlet Letter, while really being its own entity. Isobel's story is compelling and it takes surprising turns. I really enjoyed it and would recommend to anyone who enjoys historical fiction. I received a complimentary copy from the publisher through Netgalley.

I loved this book! I’m a historical fiction fanatic, and this was such a wonderful imagining of a woman we perhaps never thought about when reading The Scarlet Letter in high school, but now know must have existed.

It was especially poignant reading this in present day, when women are still somehow fighting for their basic freedoms and rights. We’ve come a long way. But this is a cautionary tale of what life could look like if we continue to go backward.

I really enjoyed this take on the character from The Scarlett Letter. I’ve never read that book but I actually want to after listening to this. I loved the Salem Witch Trials angle and the weaving of two storylines.

Also, as someone with synesthesia, I’m very aware that this could have caused problems for me had I been born 200 years earlier. I liked reading about a character with the same sensory ability.

I received an advanced copy. All thoughts are my own.

I can't stop thinking about this book.
Thank you to NetGalley for the arc.

I don't really remember the Scarlett Letter.
But I loved this story about Isobel and was so surprised about how many characters other than Nathaniel Hawthorne are based on real people

In a recent Instagram post, the author when referring to her recently released historical fiction work HESTER, alluded to “the power of retelling a classic through a 21st century lens”. Many students across the nation read Nathaniel Hawthorne’s classic The Scarlet Letter as part of their high school English class’s required reading curriculum. Thus upon viewing the title, readers may come with presupposed knowledge or ideas regarding this famed female protagonist and her story drawing them into the novel. Their interest may be further drawn by the magnetic cover design with its vividly gorgeous embroidered roses masterfully done. However, inside the novel with the flourish of her pen, Albanese has recreated the imagined truth and life of a woman who was previously only told by a man and society. In what women-centered historical fiction famously does, the author puts women back onto the center stage of the historical narrative, bringing their point of view to the story. In a similar style vein as author Gregory Maguire of famed ‘Wicked’, a famously known tale is flipped on its head and the reader’s lens is shifted to change everything they thought they knew or re-examine what they had been told. HESTER is guaranteed to create thoughtful discussion, closer reconsideration, and renewed interest into a classic novel’s storyline, but this time the reins are in Isobel Gamble’s hands thanks to Laurie Lico Albanese.

In early 1800s Scotland, Isobel is born with the ability to see colors--to the dismay of her mother, whose own mother was accused of witchcraft for the same skill. And misfortune seems to follow Isobel, from her mother's death to marriage to an apothecary with unanticipated weaknesses. She and her husband go to the New World, to Salem, MA--a place that has already developed a disturbing history.

When her husband leaves to be a medic on a ship, taking her savings with him, Isobel is forced to fend for herself, uncertain who to trust. She falls under the spell of the young intellectual, Nathaniel Hathorne, whose family also has a disturbing history.

The author has imagined the inspiration behind Nathaniel Hawthorne's THE SCARLET LETTER, but in so doing, has created a haunting, poignant story of his fictional muse. This is a beautiful novel that shares truths still relevant today. What seems unimaginably cruel in history still happens today, albeit in a different way. #Hester #NetGalley

This book was exactly what I needed! Strong women, men who know and do what is right, and others who cling to old stories and societal expectations that remind us what he side of history we want to be on. This book takes you inside the head and heart of the woman who, in this imagining, is the real-life voice of Hawthorne’s Hester Prynne, one of literature’s great, strong characters.

Books like this are why I love historical fiction! This is an incredible story, bringing to life the possible inspiration behind Nathaniel Hawthorne's The Scarlet Letter.

Interesting twist on a familiar story!! Thanks to the publisher for providing this free copy ; I really enjoyed it.

This was a pretty good read with an excellent ending. The author had one of the best story telling abilities I have read over the last year.

Ive never read the Scarlett Letter but you definitely don't need to to understand the characters and their stories.

Hester is an imaginative retelling of Nathaniel (Nat) Hawthorne and his inspiration for the classic novel, THE SCARLET LETTER. His inspiration for Hester Prynne - a women named Isobel Gamble who has special gifts and a secret history. Isobel’s gift is synesthesia a sensory response that allows her to see words and letters in color. She worries if anyone discovers her gift, then she will be accused of witchcraft or shunned more than she already is as an immigrant from Scotland. Weaving in and out of Nat and Isobel’s lives are the stories of women accused as being witches in the Salem witch trials and in Scotland in the 1690s. These stories also involve ancestors of both Nat and Isobel.

The writing is rich and atmospheric. The author used true witch trial events and characters which added interest to the story for me as well. Not only does it cover the witch trials but also depicts how people in Salem were making money off of slavery in the 19th century. This story is one of hope, love, pain, friendship, resilience, and strength. Isobel’s character was fierce and I enjoyed how her friendships evolved and became her family. How the story came full circle ending with the publishing of The Scarlet Letter is perfection.

I had a copy on my kindle but also received an early listening copy through @netgalley and @macmillan.audio. The narrator couldn’t have been better. Many thanks for the copies to read and give an honest review!

An interesting tale of what Hester from the Scarlet Letter could have actually been like, including Nathaniel Hawthorne as the man committing adultery with her.

What if Hester was really Isabol Gamble, a young bride and recent immigrant from Scotland? Isobel has kinesthesia and sees colors in letters and words (spoken and written.) When her husband sets sail with the captain they came over with she is on her own to survive, earn enough to eat and figure out how to deal with society.

Very interesting, fully immersive novel with twists and turns from all sides. A great read.

Hester is a story about Isobel Gamble, left to fend for herself in a strange land in a town, Salem, MA., with a disturbing history. It is beautifully written and the tale the author tells is well done. At times, however, it does get bogged down as she goes into the minutiae of things like needlework. I will also note the Isobel's synesthesia is an unnecessary addition that doesn't work as I believe the author intended. Those are my very few nitpicks in an otherwise well done and enjoyable read. I would highly recommend it especially for those that love historical fiction.

This is a wonderful imagining that explores the question: what if Hester from The Scarlett Letter told her own story. What if she was a heroine, a self-sufficient and self-made woman who makes her bad situation into a good life for herself and her daughter? I loved it!

Thank you NetGalley, St. Martin's Press, and Laurie Lico Albanese for the opportunity to read this e-arc in exchange for my honest review!

I'll be honest, I was not a huge fan of the Scarlet Letter when I read it in high school, but I LOVED this retelling! I loved how strong of a woman Isobel was and how she never gave up and kept pushing for a better life for herself, and her unborn child. Laurie Albanese did such an amazing job of making you feel like you were right there beside Isobel as she is experiencing the New World for the first time and trying to learn her way around this new country! I also loved the chapters with the point of view of Isobel's grandmother, and honestly would've loved even more from her perspective, but this entire story was so beautifully written and I was so sad when it ended! I can't stop thinking about it and I know I will be re-reading this soon!

5 star read for me!

Special thanks to St. Martin's Press and NetGalley for the ARC of this book.

I was excited I got this book in audio by another publisher and ebook as well by another publisher. At first I requested but didn't know it was also in audio. To listen to the accent was so enjoyable, but also to have the words in case I didn't bookmark on audio was helpful.

Either way, I LOVED this book. 5 stars! Easily.