I received an advanced copy of Hester by Laurie Lico Albanese from the publisher St. Martin’s via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

What It’s About: Isobel Gamble is a young seamstress who has synesthesia, and must hide her sights or be believed to be witchy. When she is forced to flee Edinburgh with her husband after he lost all their money while struggling with opium addiction, she believes she can set up a life for herself and a shop. But only days after they arrive, her husband, Edward, leaves and takes all their money. Isobel is left penniless and alone in a new country and forced to do whatever she can to survive. When she meets a young Nathaniel Hawthorne, the two are drawn to each other and find themselves connected by their shared connections to witch trials. They grow closer and closer to each other.

What I Loved: This book is certainly creative. I found the influence of synthesia in Isobel’s design work very creative and fascinating. I found the premise of a potential motivation for The Scarlet Letter to be really intriguing and the story was captivating enough that I could read a good chunk at a time. I also really thought the ending was kind of perfect for the novel. I think that if you’ve read The Scarlet Letter you will appreciate this more.

What I Didn’t Like: I feel like the novel was trying to do too much, I found the storyline that focused on abolition to be particularly sacrificed by the rest of the novel. I believe it took away some of the impact and importance of this storyline with all the other things that were going on. I also felt like there was lot of tell and not so much show which made a lot of the relationships seem rather surface level.

Who Should Read It: People who love a historical reimaging mixed with retelling.

Summary: A story of a young woman with a secret seeking to establish herself in Salem.

I ADORED this book, and that's saying something considered how much I disliked _The Scarlet Letter_ in high school. I found Hawthorne's work to be dry and slow moving. Laurie Lico Albanese's retelling had me convinced that this is why Hawthorne wrote his novel. Albanese nailed every element, whether it was historical, racial, social, or anything else. My only regret about this novel is that it took me so long to finish it. I would definitely read more by Laurie Lico Albanese!

I feel like this book had a lot of potential. The premise of the story is initially what drew me in. I have heard a lot about The Scarlet Letter and so I thought it would be a fun and interesting read. It was definitely interesting, but it was not exactly fun.

I felt like the dual timeline was unnecessary. If the story is meant to focus on the inspiration for Hester, then it should focus on the inspiration for Hester. The plot felt too jumbled to just fit perfectly at the end, there definitely should have been more connections throughout that tied the different plot points together. I also felt that Isobel experiencing synesthesia, although an interesting element to include, felt somewhat overdone.

Isobel Gamble is a young seamstress in Scotland who has been warned not to tell anyone that she can see colors when people speak. She marries an Apothecary who is addicted to opium and they are forced to leave Scotland for the New World.

They arrive is Salem, know for their witch trials. Edward, Isobel’s husband, decides to go out on a ship as the medic leaving Isobel alone without and money. She takes up work as a seamstress and meets a man named Nathaniel Hawthorne.

Nathaniel is haunted by his family’s past and their part in the witch trials. Isobel is haunted by her strange talents.

With Edward being out on the ship and likely not to come back, Isobel and Nathaniel become very close. Together they try to navigate living in the New World while dealing with their pasts.

This was just an okay read for me. The characters were fine. I’m sure a lot of work went into researching this subject and timeframe. The story just didn’t grab me like I thought it would.

I'm so angry for waiting so long to read this one. If you are fascinated by the Salem Witch trials and 19th century American lit, this one is for you. I'm still thinking about this one. What a fantastic take on Hawthorne's inspiration for his classic tale.

This was such a well written and interesting take on the origins of The Scarlet Letter and now I wish I knew how to sew well.

Isobel thought all people spoke in color. It was only as a young girl when she told her mother about the colors that she was told never to speak of it again. It was only when she got older did she hear of her ancestor, Isobel Gowdie, (her name sake) who was tried as a Witch for talking about the colors.
After her Mother’s death Isobel’s Father remarried and promised her to an older man who was going to take her to America. After her long journey Isobel learned that her husband,Edward was not the man who her Father thought he was. After landing in Salem the Captain of the ship took her husband on his next voyage and Isobel was able make a life of her own. Isobel met Nathaniel, a writer, who helped her show everyone her wonderful needle work. They soon become close friends with much of the same passions. She was soon embellishing gloves and making wonderful dresses for the richest woman in town.
Isobel really wants to help all of the people in Salem who are suffering discrimination. Her neighbor Mercy becomes a trusted friend.
This is a new spin on the Scarlet Letter. It is very intriguing and captivating.

Loved loved loved this book. At first i thought i picked up the wrong book. I didn’t see the connection to the scarlet letter. I kept reading and it didn’t disappoint. I loved the use of colors and imagery the author used. It was a beautiful story and can’t speak enough about how good it was!

I was once forced to read The Scarlet Letter and it is a core memory for me in the sense that I experienced so much pain and anguish that I could barely stomach the name Nathaniel Hawthorne. When I got to college we were tasked with reading Young Goodman Brown and my stomach puckered. However, I went on to adore that story and my large trigger warning for Nathaniel Hawthorne turned into a smaller trigger warning...that name still sends shivers up my spine.

Let me tell you...all of that was worth it for this novel. Like, I would experience the anguish of that book again to get the pure prose of this work of art. One of my favorite novels of 2022. One of my best of the best. Just wonderful storytelling. Show-not-tell imagery. Female prowess in a time of subjection and cruelty for all women. On spot characterization and plotting. Just a beautifully written novel.

As a high school student I read The Scarlet Letter and loved it. Hester is the perfect read for Nathaniel Hawthorne fans! I loved the idea of where Hawthorne derived the Hester character. What I loved more was Isobel’s strength and determination. Great book!

I was expecting this to be a retelling of the Scarlet Letter, but it was not--it was so much better. There are customs that came from the time of Hawthorne' book and of course "Nat" Hawthorne is a major character in the book, but Isabel is no Hester Prynne. This book has many more modern themes--the woman's place in society in historic Salem and the horrors of slavery, but also the backbone of Isabel and the help of fellow "outside" women when she wants to give up. An interesting read about an interesting time in an interesting place..

While I was initially skeptical going into this because I did not enjoy The Scarlet Letter, I was pleasantly surprised at the fresh take on the infamous classic. The writing is lyrical, the story is compelling, and I liked the format of a past timeline and the present day story. ‘Hester’ takes what is most interesting and thought provoking from the source material (i.e. Hester Prynne’s character arc, what it means to be a woman, what is freedom) and presents it through a more modern, and more readable, lens. I did think there were a lot ideas here, some better fleshed out than others, and sometimes it made the pacing feel off.

Thanks for the review copy. It might be because I’m not a big fan of The Scarlet Letter but I didn’t enjoy this book, either. I’m sure fans of Hawthorne will like it more than I did.

This was an incredible reimagining of Nathaniel Hawthorne's Hester Prynne. The Scarlett Letter is a favorite of mine and I was beyond excited to get my hands on Hester by Laurie Lico Albanese. This book definitely did not disappoint. It is mostly a slow rolling, character driven novel, but the writing was so amazing that I couldn't put it down. The story transported me to the exact place and time as our characters and I thoroughly enjoyed uncovering the possibility of how Hester came to exist.

This novel is a fictional account of the story behind Nathaniel Hawthorne's The Scarlet Letter. I have read the novel as well as seen a couple screen adaptations. I have always been fascinated with the Scarlet Letter so I was very eager to read Hester. I was not disappointed.

The story is about a woman named Isobel, a young seamstress abandoned by her husband in the new world penniless. Isobel is the inspiration for Hester Prynne after she meets young Nathaniel Hawthorne. Hester takes place during the Salem witch trials.

This is a beautifully written story with a rich detailed history and dramatic backdrop. The author has written an extraordinary account of life in the 1800s and life for Isobel and Nathaniel in the new world where freedom is sometimes an illusion rather than a promise. If you are a fan of The Scarlett Letter, this story makes a great companion novel. I definitely recommend this book.

"The Scarlett Letter" is my favorite classic. When I saw "Hester", I was so excited to start it. This tale is shrouded in mystery with a central; theme of guardinf one's extraordinary ability which was witch craft. The story explores synesthesia, a uniquw phenomenom of colors assosicated wtith letters. The plot and chracters were absolutley magical.
'Hester" is told with dual storylines and it works. In this book, we follow Isobel. She was a fully fleshed out chrachter and I was drawn to her immediately. She was independent but knew her limitations as a woman in that time period. She palys a dangerous gamr of befriecning a single man Nathaniel Hawthorne while her husband was away.

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The story switches from the 19th centtrury story about Isobel to teh 17th century story about her first ancestor in scotland and then the salem wirch trials. I cannot express how much I loved this book.

I truly enjoyed this book! Hester, reminiscent of a classic, took me on a magical ride through history.
Isobel is special, her mother warns her to watch herself. Accusations arise, love trials and starting over….. that’s a small taste of this bewitching tale. Enough drama to keep me interested and the story interesting. If I could ask for one thing it would be a bit more of a magical atmosphere but I thought this was a great read none the less! Definitely recommend it!

This beautifully written historically fictionalized relationship between Isobel and Nathaniel Hawthorne is sure to be one of my top picks of the year. I loved this story and I felt Albanese did a superb job in portraying the starkness of Salem and women's roles in the 1800's. I couldn't help but cheer for Isobel as she used her intelligence, strength, and talents to make a life for herself. Highly recommended! Thank you for my review copy!

I absolutely love this fictional account of a potential origin story about Nathaniel Hawthorne’s seminal Salem witchcraft novel on adultery, “The Scarlet Letter.” Also, the use of synesthesia—seeing words as colors—for his embroidery/seamstress lover is fabulous!

TheBookMaven graciously thanks NetGalley, Author Laura Lico Albanese, and Publisher St. Martin’s Press for this Advanced Reader’s Copy (ARC) for review.

This was such an incredibly written book. I loved this take on the Scarlet Letter which has also been one of my favorite books.