Hester is a "retelling" of the story behind the Scarlet Letter. The main character, Isobel (Hester) is a young seamstress in Scotland who marries and sails over to Salem, MA with her new husband Edward, a pharmacist with an opium problem. When Edward sails off again as a medic, Isobel forms a friendship, then a love affair, with Nat Hawthorne.
The story at its core has undertones of witchcraft, but I'd have to say there was much female friendship and camaraderie in the story as well. I went into this thinking that I would enjoy the book, but it far exceeded my expectations. It was truly a page turner and tough to put down. I'd highly recommend this.
Thank you so much to NetGalley, the author and St Martins Press for this ARC.

Interesting way to bring the Fiction into Historical Fiction.
Having read The Scarlet Letter as a student, I was intrigued by the story of the woman who could have inspired the heroine of the novel. Isobel grows from being an obliging, dutiful daughter and wife to a woman who takes charge of her own life, and even helping others to do the same. Over time as she has to endure several hardships, including the addiction, theft, and abandonment of her husband, but she never gives up on her dream of becoming a successful clothing designer. Isobel’s synesthesia adds a fantastical element to the story, which is well situated in a time when witch trials are still very much on people’s minds. I do think the book tried to take on a bit much with the Underground Railroad storyline, but overall, I enjoyed it very much and would recommend it.

This book is an example of what historical fiction should be. The author took two well known characters from The Scarlet Letter and developed a wonderful story about their relationship. As a result of the beautiful writing, the reader was transported back to life in Salem, Massachusetts in the 1800s and what occurred between Hester Pyrnne and Nat Hawthorne.

Through this book, we witness the beginnings of the Underground Railroad, the importance of the shipping boats at that time, the mores of those who had Puritan ancestors, the lives of immigrants, and commerce at that time.

I enjoyed this book and couldn’t put it down. The author has a beautiful writing style which made it possible for me to picture the lives of those in Salem at this time in history.Now I’ll have to read The Scarlet Letter.

Hester is the fascinating fictional story of how Nathaniel Hawthorne discovered inspiration for his classic The Scarlett Letter. Isobel Gamble is the young woman that beguiles a young Hawthrone. I was particularly intrigued by the use of color in the story of Hester, very well done. I do have to say that this story was quite slow going to me and hard to stick with at times. But the concept was so brilliant, I have to give applause to the author.
Hester is sure to be a title that many readers of Hawthrone's classic will be compelled to read.
Thank you to NetGalley for an advanced reader's copy of this book.

Isabell comes from a long line of seamstresses named Margaret and Isabell. She’s thought they sell at a young age but strongly encourage not to use colors unless instructed by her mother, because in her maternal lineage women have heard and seen color in words and the mother doesn’t want little Isabell to be thought of as a witch. She eventually marries an older man and heads from Scotland to Massachusetts. Her husband has issues of his own in Massachusetts she meets Nathaniel Hawthorne and becomes his muse an inspiration for the scarlet letter, because women Scotland and not able to use color is her mother told her to sew a red A and covered up for no one can see it but she’ll know it’s there. This is what inspires the big red A in the scarlet letter in his book. I found this book hard to follow and with little dialogue in one point of view I can’t say I found it interesting. It would’ve been better in a different format and tall and 1/4 of second person narrative as a post to buy Isabel who told it as it went along in a clunky way. Of course this is just my opinion I look forward to reading this book and it makes me sad that I didn’t like it. I appreciate Saint Martin’s press and the author and that girl Leigh giving me this book in exchange for an honest review and this is my honest opinion. Please forgive any grammatical or punctuation no errors as I am blind and dictate my review but all opinions are my own.

Hester was definitely a page turner for me. I liked the historical fiction/Scarlett Letter AU mashup. Very creative.

"If a man believes there's danger and power in your secrets, a smart woman can turn that into a strength-even a weapon" (all quotes are subject to change before publication)

4/5 Stars: A historical fiction retelling of Hester Prynne, the iconic heroine of the Scarlet Letter by Nathaniel Hawthorne.

Wowza, this book was the most rollercoaster reads of the year so far. First of all, I love the Scarlet Letter. When I first read it in high school, it became and still remains my favorite Classic novel. The way Laurie Lico Albanese was able to communicate the era of Scarlet Letter into Salem, Massachusetts America during the 1800s is truly astonishing and changes the entire nature of the Scarlet Letter for me. Isobel Gowdie is so complex and courageous, and I absolutely am in awe of the parallels Albanese drew between Isobel and Hester. One of my favorite aspects of this novel is that she wrote Nathaniel Hawthorne into the book as the main love interest who is ultimately writing the Scarlet Letter after Isobel's inspiration. Nathaniel Hawthorne was infamously secretive about his life and not much is known about the Scarlet Letter or what inspired him to write it.

This book heavily discusses the caste system of 1800s America, most importantly, the history of immigrants and slave trade throughout the United States. After arriving as a Scottish woman, she immediately notices that even though she is white, she is still considered "other" due to her lack of American bloodline, which is said to Isobel by Mercy, the most integral character in the story that turns everything upside down for Isobel. The discussion of slavery, immigration, and the defamation of character based on differences is a, if not THE, most important part of this book. Another crucial and beautifully written aspect in this story is Isobel's synesthesia, a condition where an individual can see words and phrases in color. Isobel is a master embroider and has an internal conflict brewing inside her on how to make it in Salem without revealing her ancestor's "magic." Albanese used this to incorporate and pivotally reimagine the iconic scarlet "A" from the classic novel.

There are so many parallels and components of this novel that were emotionally hard to read, but the impact overall was so powerful and unique. In the author's acknowledgements, she writes "...understanding of the duality of the needle as both a source of creative and economic strength and of female domestic submission." This feels incredibly relevant to today's climate and stands on a base of feminism I have never considered, because while Isobel embroiders because she loves it and to become her own businesswoman, it is also an activity commonly associated with women, and house making, and all of the stereotypical, misogynistic ideals of the wanted woman. I believe Albanese did a fantastic job turning this on its head and balanced it well so that not only were we experiencing this conflict with Isobel, but we also reflected on how that has changed in today's world, but at the same time commenting that this pillar of famishing still needs to move forward.

I absolutely loved this book and enjoyed it so much! I highly recommend reading The Scarlet Letter before reading this, just because it is more fun and will not make as much sense if you haven't read the classic novel. This book was beautiful and imaginative, and powerfully discussed so many important things that ultimately add to the richness of the original story. I cannot wait to read more from Laurie Lico Albanese. Perfection!

This was a beautiful novel and everything a historical fiction should be.

I feel like I learned a lot in this novel, from the Salem witch trials to the underground railroad to synesthesia. I never read the Scarlet Letter, but I don't feel like that took away from my enjoyment or understanding of the story.

This story moves slowly in places (the middle dragged a little for me) but overall it was an interesting read. I liked Isobel as a character. I thought the plot was really well developed, and the author does a great job at creating a sense of place.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Isobel Gamble is a young girl married to an older man. They leave Edinburgh, Scotland to head to a new life in America, leaving behind failure and embarrassment. While excited to start a new life in Salem, Massachusetts, Isobel is soon left on her own as her husband sets off to sea. Betrayed by her husband and working to build a life for herself, Isobel must learn to learn how different Salem is and how to live a life true to herself.

With a stunning talent with the needle, Isobel finds work as a seamstress and her work is beyond anything the new World has seen. While Isobel sees colors, she uses this talent on her handiwork and manages to keep herself alive. She also finds true love, or so she thinks. When it leaves her with child and the father will not stand beside her, she has more choices to make to save not only herself but her unborn child. Will Isobel’s talents save her or be the end of her? With the right choices and good friends, she hopes to live the life she has always dreamed of.

If you heavier ever wondered how an author comes up with an idea for a story, you’re not the only one. Laure Lico Albanese has taken the same thought and shared her version of Nathaniel Hawthorn was inspired to write “The Scarlet Letter”. This is so well done that I couldn’t put the book down and devoured it in a day. THIS is the type of book that should be listed under Historical Fiction in the dictionary. I look forward to reading more from this author.

I was given a copy of this novel on Netgalley to give my honest review. I rate this book 4.8 stars.

This was an amazing retelling of Hester Prynne. The use of the first-person point of view gives a much more relatable storyline and invokes emotion the classic story lacked. I do love the original but I will pair this text with "The Scarlett Letter" in my classes moving forward. The language used is thought-provoking and the story flows well with the tone and mood Albanese sets from the first chapter on. This book captures a multitude of audiences. So many of my students have struggled with ready "The Scarlett Letter" due to the slow-moving plotline as well as the story being written in a third-person point of view. I think this holds the attention of young readers who are developing a passion for reading classic texts as well as reimagining classic texts. "Hester" is a must-read for teachers and students everywhere!

Nathaniel Hawthorne’s books were based on his life/experiences except (supposedly) the classic, The Scarlet Letter. One has to wonder who was his muse? Who was this woman that inspired him to write the character of Hester Prynne? The author of this novel tries to answer those questions by introducing us to, Isobel Gamble.

Soon after Isobel and her husband Edward immigrate to Salem, MA from Scotland, he takes her money and leaves her. Penniless and lonely, she struggles to survive in a new place, relying on her embroidery skills to make a living. Quickly she meets and falls for Nathaniel “Hathorne” and well, you can figure out the rest.

I struggled to get through this story as the pacing is slow. The descriptions of Isobel’s synesthesia was interesting at first, but it quickly became repetitive. I felt the author tried and failed to make a connection with this affliction and witchcraft.

Overall, this was just an OK story for me.


** ARC courtesy of @NetGalley & @StMartinsPress **

Scotland, 17th century: Isobel Gowdie is four-years-old when her mother teaches her how to make letters with a needle. The letters are supposed to be black, but Isobel sees colors associated with letters, and stitches them according to her vision. When her mother smacks her knuckles, Isobel sees fear in her eyes. Fear, because her mother doesn’t want people to call Isobel crazy. A witch. And here, witches are hanged or burned.

One-hundred-forty-years later, Isobel Gamble, ancestress of Isobel Gowdie, is conscripted to tambour shop by her mother, a place without colors. But Isobel dreams to be a pattern-maker. She is taught to fear anything that hints at witchcraft. When she meets a man that promises her a sewing room of her own, she accepts his proposal. But that is just a promise. His poor decisions lead to the poorhouse, and later see them bound for America.

As they arrive in the New World, Isobel quickly recognizes some opportunities, awakening her dream of embroidery pattern-making. But with each day in Salem, she’s daunted by Salem’s established thinking and expectations.

Yet her path crosses with that of Nathaniel Hawthorne, and they feel an attraction from the first encounter.

Isobel is a captivating character. She lives in a time when she is supposed to depend on a man, but she sees the New World as her opportunity. She learns to be shrewd. Boldness comes easily to her, but she needs to watch for her temper.

This mesmerizing tale is shrouded in mystery, with central theme of guarding one’s extraordinary ability at the time seen as witchcraft. The story explores a spellbinding subject of synesthesia, a unique sensory phenomenon of colors associated with letters. And Nathaniel Hawthorne is haunted by his ancestor’s past, who was a magistrate in the Salem witch trials of 1692, when he meets a young woman, who is an unusually gifted needleworker. It’s a fascinating thread that is woven into this story. Nathaniel Hawthorne craves solitude to commit himself to becoming a writer after his college years, but evidence also shows that he was more of a rule-breaker during his college years. Did the transition happen so suddenly or there was more to it?


Review originally posted at mysteryandsuspense.com

Thank you NetGalley and Laurie Lico Albanese for allowing me to read this book. Hester is the imagining of the source of Nathanial Hawthorne's "The Scarlet Letter". Being a needleworker myself I loved the descriptions of Isobel's works and designs. The writing was very descriptive and I could not seem to read fast enough to get to the next part! The flashbacks to earlier times was helpful and gave insight into the story. Brava!

I received a free e-arc of this book through Netgalley.
The first couple of pages were a bit slow, but then the book pulled me into it's spell so don't give up too early. Is obel sees letters as colors from an early age, but her mother cautions her to hide that ability from the world. She becomes a talented seamstress and journeys through her life. She meets Nat and falls in love for the first time (spoiler: she's already married). Their love affair ends with her pregnancy. This entirely new POV from Hester in The Scarlet Letter is a journey into the power that lies within us as women and mothers.

Thank you to St. Martin's Press and NetGalley for an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review. This book was incredibly enticing and kept me hooked on every page. A work of historical fiction, it tells the story of a woman named Isobel, someone who is constantly fearing that she will be identified as a witch and how that fear is a central driving point of this novel. This is a character-driven story with a full cast of strong-willed women that became the inspiration for the novel The Scarlet Letter. Essentially a fanfiction of the book The Scarlet Letter itself, you can see how Hester was based on it and drew inspiration from it but it is not a retelling. It is so much more than that. Laurie Lico Albanese has a distinctive voice and this story is incredible in many ways. This is genuinely one of the best books I have ever read and I am excitedly awaiting Albanese's next work.

I just reviewed Hester by Laurie Lico Albanese

Isobel Gamble is a young seamstress with flaming red hair, married to the owner of an apothecary with a terrible addiction. After they lose everything in their home of Scotland in the 1800s they try their fortunes in the new world. After the Captain of the boat takes a shine to Isobel, he offers to take her husband on their next crossing as a medic in exchange for 1.5% of the total profits. Edward leaves but not before stealing a few gold coins from Isobel that her father had given her.
Isobel now has to find a way to take care of herself in a place where she knows no one.
She ends up meeting Nathanial Hawthorne, a man troubled by the legacy his family left behind. A legacy of sending innocent women to their deaths during the Salem witch trials. Unbeknown to him, Isobel has some extraordinary abilities that almost had her own ancestor killed. As the 2 are drawn together, something sinister is happening in the town of Salem. This time it’s not witches being persecuted but the now freed people of color. Someone is hunting them to return them to their slave owners.
Her closeness to her neighbor compels Isobel to help in the only way she knows whilst walking away from her love for Nathaniel she becomes the unwitting lead in his published book, The Scarlet Letter.

This reimagining took my breath away. The author took this story and really made it their own. The story they wove had me enthralled from the first sentence and it still hasn’t let me go. They breathed a magic so intoxicating that the words came alive right in front of my very eyes!

I wanted to reach out and hold Isobel’s hand so many times through the book. I loved watching her story unfold and all the colors that exploded from her gift was a treasure I wanted to hold on to. Her life was mixed with such tragedy and wonder that it made you wonder where she found the strength. Not all women were as lucky as her but still the things she was put through and had to get through would break anyone I know. Being a woman was a dangerous time especially without the safety of a husband. Not that her husband was worth the marriage license. I couldn’t stand Edward from the get go. I know addiction is ugly but I just got the creeps from him right from the start. She was worth a million of him. Don’t get me wrong, I didn't like Nathanial either. I felt he was weak and quite disgraceful to do what he did but I also understand that they were in a unique situation.

I don’t usually get crushes on book characters but Captain Darling really exemplified what a man should be and how to treat people in general.

I really felt the character building was top notch and I loved how the author covered how people of color were treated even after it was illegal to keep slaves in the north. It was cleverly done and I really feel that this book has checked every box for me.

If you love your historical fiction with a little magic and a dash of social issues, this is definitely the book for you! 5 stars!!

I absolutely adored this novel! This is not a time period or subject area that is written about often. This author hit it out of the park with this fictionalized depiction of Hawthorne’s muse. I would like to believe that this is exactly how it happened.

I never read the Scarlet Letter (or if I did I blocked it out.), but I have always been fascinated by the Salem Witch Trials and history. I found this book enjoyable, though I never really saw the "chemistry" between Nathaniel and Isobel. After finishing this book, I went back to review the Scarlet Letter (cliff notes version.) I do recommend this book for someone looking for romance, a bit of history and love of things mystical.

An unusual story of a powerful woman trying to exist in a very male dominated era. This story combines real-life people with fiction in a truly believable way. Thank you Laurie Lico Albanese for your researched work and NetGalley for the chance to read it.

Remember reading The Scarlet Letter by Nathanael Hawthorn? Hester by Laurie Loco Albanese will take you back to that high school American English class. Isobel is a name handed down through generations of Scottish women. One was tried as a witch but escaped. Now her granddaughter, Isobel, the protagonist in the story has synesthesia, joined perception where a person experiences multiple sensations when there is usually one sense stimulated. People of that time may think she is also a witch. Isobel is also very talented with a needle.

She and her husband are forced to leave Scotland. On the way to Salem, she saves the ship's Captain's life. her husband sets sail with the Captain almost as soon as they land in Salem, leaving Isobel to fend for herself in a new city. She uses her embroidery and sewing skills to survive. She also fall in love with Nathanael Hawthorne.

Albanese takes the reader from the superstitions of Scotland, to the witch trials of Salem, to the work to help slaves escape, to an unrequited love. Isobel has many challenges in her life and through them all she follows her dad's advice to "trust her needle."