Isobel lives in Scotland - a descendant of her namesake living in 1662 and who was labeled a witch.

Isobel sees colors which is called synesthesia, and her mother tells her she must see everything in black and white or they will label her a witch like her grandmother.

Isobel is an excellent seamstress and stitches beautiful scenes on clothing. She marries an apothecary, but he gets into trouble, and they sail to America.

She arrives in Salem determined to use her skill to become independent because her husband took a job on the very boat they came over on. She will live alone in a remote cottage.

While her husband is away, she meets none other than Nathaniel Hawthorn. Yes. The author of THE SCARLET LETTER.

Since her marriage is not filled with love, when she sees Nathaniel she gets an instant feeling that they will become friends.

Do they become friends or lovers?

She is married, and he is not.

Will one of the hidden A’s she sews into her clothing be something she will have to prominently display?

HESTER is a beautifully written book focusing on women’s strengths and a take on The Scarlet Letter.

Seamstresses, fans of The Scarlet Letter, historical fiction fans, and fans of this time period will enjoy this book despite some of the odd chapters about witches. 4/5

This book was given to me by the publisher via NetGalley for an honest review.

This retelling of The Scarlett Letter is one of the few books this year that I couldn’t put down. The author gives life to “Hester” (a character inspired by Isobel) and Nathaniel Hawthorne prior to the publishing of his novel The Scarlett Letter. The chapters alternate between two timelines so that you hear the story of Isobel’s ancestors and get a richer sense of the history of the Salem witch trials.

The way that Albanese takes themes and plot lines from the original book and transforms them is magic itself. Isobel feels so much shame from failed relationships and a forbidden pregnancy yet her strength is in her ability to persevere and create a new life for herself in Salem. Isobel has synesthesia, a condition that weaves its way into her work. While she initially tries to hide her colors in shame, she comes to realize the power that they hold. Unlike in The Scarlett Letter, you see more of a passionate love story unfold. I was particularly struck by some of the female friendships, especially Isobel’s friendship with Mercy. The way the two women support and empower each other in the story gives hope for the future.

The writing in Hester is absolutely captivating. If you’re a fan of classic literature, historical fiction, and feminism, please pick up this book this Fall!

I just reviewed Hester by Laurie Lico Albanese. #NetGalley

A wonderfully written story that intertwines lives of those who lived during the Salem Witch Trials and the lives of the families after. It's a story packed full of those searching for a better tomorrow and seeking their own form of freedoms which takes many of them on different paths or brings them full circle back to where they least expect it. Its about families and the secrets they hold that can either set you free or keep you from the happiness you deserve.
It's a story full or color and intrigue and that art can be found in the most hidden places.
I fell in love with Isobel and her grit and determination to make a better life for herself where ever that may lead her. Along with her talent for sewing and seeing colors in her surroundings, Isobel is a woman who is creative, who has a huge heart who loves deeply and trusts openly. She gives her heart to a man who's past haunts him and he does what he can to make a better name for himself and the legacy his family left behind.
Hester gives you a glimpse of life post Salem Witch Trials and how even though those days are past, they are still very much present.

I loved the reimagination idea of this story better than the execution. The beginning was quite slow and hard to get through, but then it did get better about 30% of the way through.

The Scarlet Letter was one of those books that a vast majority of American high school students were forced to read. I don’t remember it fondly. But I was drawn to the idea of the woman who inspired Nathaniel Hawthorne to write it.
This is my first book by Albanese but it won’t be the last. It’s beautifully written, scenes so detailed they’re easy to imagine.
Isobel has been blessed or cursed, depending on your viewpoint, with synesthesia or multiple sensory experiences. She sees words as colors. It’s the early 19th century and not long since women viewed as different were burned as witches. One of those earlier women was her ancestor. As a young girl, she marries an apothecary. But his addiction to opium lands them in the poorhouse and then on a boat to America. She’s gifted with the needle and uses it to support herself once he takes off again on a boat as a medic.
Isobel was fully fleshed out and I was immediately drawn to her. She’s independent and knows her own mind, but she’s still constrained by the limits society places on women. She plays a dangerous game by befriending a single man, Nathaniel Hathorne (he later added the w to distinguish himself from his ancestors) while her husband is away.
So often, dual storylines don’t work. But here it does. There’s the 17th century story about first Isobel’s ancestor in Scotland and then the Salem witchcraft trials (Hawthorne’s great-grandfather was a judge). And then the 19th century story is about Isobel. In both instances, women who are seen as different face persecution.
As with The Scarlet Letter, the story has a lot to say about morals, religion, freedom and societal mores. How men take what they want from women and then blame them for “enchantment”. The ending was superb.
I both listened and read this book, which worked beautifully. Saskia Maarleveld did a superb job as the narrator. But I was so glad to have the e-book as once again the audio publisher has done the reader a disservice by neglecting to include the Author’s Notes. This is so important in historical fiction and I wish more audio publishers understood that.
My thanks to Netgalley and Macmillan Audio/St. Martin’s Press for an advance copy of this book.

Hester is a reimagining of the woman who inspired Hester Prynne from Nathaniel Hawthorne's The Scarlet Letter.

Isobel Gamble, a seamstress set sail from Scotland in the early 1800s with her husband, Edward. Her husband's addiction to opium had incurred a mountain of debt, and they had to leave Edinburgh for the New World with hopes of a new life and brighter future. But after days after arriving in Salem, MA, Edward joins a departing ship as a medic, leaving Isobel with no money and having to scramble to support herself.

When Isobel meets a young Nathaniel Hawthorne, she feels an attraction and with Edward still gone, the two grow closer...

This book also touches on the Salem witch trials and the underground railroad. I had both the book and audiobook of Hester and found myself mainly listening to the audiobook.

Like many have mentioned, The Scarlett Letter was required reading in High School. I loved the book and have several copies of it that I have found in antique book shops, so this book was right up my alley. I enjoyed how Isobel was a strong character who was self-sufficient and a survivor.

Well written and gripping!

Stunning! Beautifully Written. This is the Best Book I have Read in 2022. This is the one to Recommend. If you love Historical Fiction, you will love this book. I definitely did.

The book starts in Abington, Scotland where Isabel’s mother is dying. She has always known Isobel has a special way of seeing. When she sees people or hears words, she envisions that as a color. This is actually something called Synesthesia, but at the time the book takes place this was unknown. Isobel has always been creative and talented with the needle, meaning she has learned to do beautiful embroidery. Then the colors just flow freely for her. However, her mother is afraid if others find out it will be seen as she is either insane or practices witchcraft.

We come to learn that Isobel was named after her ancestor, Isobel Gowdie, thought of as Queen of the Witches and was actually arrested at the Salem Witch Trials. Another Aunt was sent to an Asylum. Since this happened, the caution is understandable. Yet, the colors are where Isobel finds all her talent.

Isobel marries Edward and due to some dire circumstances, they must leave Edinburgh and set sail to the United States. Captain Darling runs the ship and looks after Isobel until they get to Salem, Massachusetts. Isobel is naive and does not know the history of the US. Her husband leaves her in Salem by herself. She is incredibly resourceful. I admired her tenacity so much. She knows she is talented with her needle. She is willing to do what she needs to do to survive. People do not trust newcomers from Scotland and it is difficult for Isobel to get by.

She meets Nationiel Hathorne. She is just 19 and he is 24. There is an instant attraction and connection. This is a retelling by the author as she imagines how Nationiel lived prior to publishing The Scarlet Letter. Isobel finds he has a dark past that both are tied to. Isobel has always been scared of her colors since it is tied to the Salem Witch Trials and she finds Nationiel is tormented since his Ancestor was part of sentencing the women as witches. So, he sees Isobel as his vision for his book, yet she of course is a real person, with deep feelings.

This is where Isabel’s strength comes through. She must make many very troublesome decisions. She knows of the past and it is not just about witches, but also how Salem is attached to making money off slavery. She connects with other strong people and this is the true beauty of this book. At some point, you need to either live in the horror of the past or chose to find love and hope in the future even when you know all the cruelty and evil that is in the world. She knows she has power if she believes she has power and others will see it that way too. She has the ability to stitch her own story, thread by thread. That is how she is going to not only survive, but thrive joyfully.

This is a story of hope, beauty, love, pain, disappointment and strength. It is about taking the magic each of us has and that creates passion and then using it to make the world a bit more beautiful then when you started.

Thank you NetGalley, Laurie Lico Albanese, and St. Martin’s Press for a copy of this book. I am always happy to leave a review.

This is historical fiction, I think loosely based on Hester Prynne and Nathaniel Hawthorne. Several generations of women, in Europe and "the new world", are characters. Isobel comes from Scotland to Salem MA, in the early 1800's, and quickly has to find her own way as her husband becomes an addict. She uses her sewing skills to make a living. There is interesting history here, especially about the Underground Railroad. Three and a half stars for this one. #hester #laurielicoalbanese #bookstagram #booklover #readersofinstagram #reader #bookblog #bookreview #bookrecommendations #takeapagefrommybook #historicalfiction #netgalley

The setting: "Isobel Gamble is a young seamstress carrying generations of secrets when she sets sail from Scotland in the early 1800s with her husband, Edward." He's an apothecary addicted to opium--whose "... debts have forced them to flee Edinburgh for a fresh start in the New World." Shortly after arriving in Massachusetts he sets sail on a ship as a medic. Left alone in Salem, Isobel meets and is immediately attracted to Nathaniel Hathorne [the "w" was not part of the name--then] -- a man haunted by his ancestors. Isobel is a talented needleworker who see words as colors [synesthesia--which I found entrancing]. "Meticulously researched yet evocatively imagined, Hester is a timeless tale of art, ambition ... a vivid reimagining of the woman who inspired Hester Prynne, the tragic heroine of Nathaniel Hawthorne's The Scarlet Letter, and a journey into the enduring legacy of New England's witchcraft trials."

Sign me up. There is magic, herbal remedies, witchcraft, slavery, life in a port town, society vs. have nots, women's rights [basically none], immigrants [Scots, Irish--not welcome] and most importantly--needlecraft into which Isobel weaves stories and hidden meanings and earns her living.

I loved Isobel but also enjoyed the other characters--Mercy, Zeke, and Nell, in particular, as well as the widow Higgins. There also were other minor characters, all well-drawn.

Isobel's 1820s story is interspersed with [italicized] late 17th century [1670s-90s] letters from her ancestor--Isobel Gowdie.

Captured from the start, this novel kept me turning pages--wanting to see how it would turn out. I was enchanted [no pun intended].

This was an original, imaginative take on The Scarlet Letter and Hester Prynne and I enjoyed every moment. The characters were very real as were the insights into life in the colony.

There were a few instances where I wondered if the book would spiral down [for me], but thankfully, they did not. And two SLIGHT disconnects that I thought an editor should have caught--both towards the end of the book -- and both a cart before the horse issue/moment.

4.5, not rounding up.

Highly recommend.

Hester is a absolute beautifully written historical novel. A great “retelling” of the story behind the Scarlet Letter. Such a treasure to read. This will make a great book for book club discussions. The cover is beautiful and draws you in. I’m fascinated with Laurie Lico Albanese’s writing style and highly recommend this book to anyone who loves historical fiction.
Thank you Netgalley and St. Martins Press for providing me with a arc in exchange for my own honest review.

Hester by Laurie Lico Albanese

Hester is a retelling of the book The Scarlett Letter. This book takes place in the 17th century Scotland. Isobel is four and her mother is teaching her how to sew letters with a needle. Isobel sees colors when she is sewing and wants to do her letters in color not follow the norm of doing them in black. This is what she sees in her visions that it needs to be color. Isobel's mother smacks her daughters knuckles to stop her from sewing in colors. Her mom doesn't want people to think she is crazy or worse a witch. This is a period of time that witches are burned and hung.

I really enjoyed the retelling in how Isobel wanted to bring light to her stitching and how it was perceived as wrong. Being naive at that age and not understanding consequences. Isobel meets Edward Gamble who is an apothecary they eventually marry and head to America. They arrive in Salem. Edward has an issue with opium and leaves for gathering ingredients for his potions.

Isobel meets Nathaniel Hawthorne during the time Edward is gone and the two develop a connection with each other. This story is complex and drawas out many things that occurred during that time period the Salem witch trials, the slave ships. This was a well written retelling that allows the reader to follow along the depth of the experience through Isobel's eyes. Which opens the reader to many things of the time period.

This was a five star read for me. I recommend this book to anyone who likes retelling of classic stories. This is the second retelling I read that was new this year and both have been five stars for me. I think Mrs. Albanese did a great job in story telling with Isobel being the driving force to make this a great retelling.

Thank you to Netgalley and St. Martin's Press for a free copy of this book for an honest review. All opinions expressed are my own.

The cover of this book already had me intrigued, but then when I realized it was an imagining of the muse for the heroine in the Scarlet Letter I was sold. And it did not disappoint!

It’s a beautifully told story of Isobel Gamble - descendent of a woman accused of witchcraft in Scotland - and her journey to self discovery. In this novel you’ll find love, lust, family secrets, guilt, courage, magic, friendship, and more. Highly recommend!

4.5 stars - only because it seemed to drag a bit in the middle - but overall I really enjoyed the character development and story!

Thanks to NetGalley for this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Pub date: 10/4/22
Genre: historical fiction, literary fiction, feminist retelling
In one sentence: Scottish seamstress Isobel finds herself drawn to Nathaniel Hawthorne in early 1800s Salem - will their romance be her downfall?

I didn't have to read The Scarlet Letter in school, but everyone is familiar with that scarlet A. Laurie Lico Albanese does a wonderful job telling the story of Isobel, the inspiration for Hester Prynne, showing her magic in the form of beautiful needlework and vibrant colors that only she can see (she experiences multiple forms of synesthesia). I loved the flashbacks to Isobel's ancestors and how their magic affected their lives. Isobel's struggles in Salem were instructive as to the immigrant experience - the question of "who gets to be a real American?" is still so relevant today. I loved the early Underground Railroad subplot as well.

I read this book in two days because I was so engaged in the story. Both text and audio are beautifully done, as master of accents Saskia Maarleveld lends a lovely Scottish brogue to Isobel. I preferred the text because I could read more quickly, but if you love accents in your audiobooks, this is a great choice for listening!

I recommend this one to historical fiction readers, as well as to readers who love feminist retellings. It reminded me a bit of The Change, and I know it's going to be a hit this fall!

Thanks @stmartinspress for my ARC and @macmillan.audio for my ALC!

Rounded to 4.5 stars.

CONTENT WARNING: torture, blood, death of a parent, grief, addiction, racism, misogyny, xenophobia, violence, slavery

I had to read The Scarlet Letter in school, but I don’t remember much about it. This book, however, makes much more of an impression. I’m loving the trend towards feminist retellings of classic stories, and rounding out the stories with a more emotional component to them. The marginalized voices of history are given more weight, and I find that I am drawn to these stories much more than the original versions.

In this book, we get to know the woman behind the inspiration for Hester Prynne, and it flips the entire story upside down. Isobel is an immigrant from Scotland, and she has no shortage of history, hopes, and dreams. She’s a tough, smart, talented woman who has been through her share of hardship, and she’s made some poor choices in the past. But they led her to America, which had historically been viewed as a beacon of hope—a country full of opportunity and a way to start over. But when she arrives, she realizes that it’s simply another set of constraints.

Arriving in Salem, she’s faced with some new challenges. Salem is a town founded on Puritan ideals, and they don’t take kindly to “her kind,” meaning people from Scotland. She manages to make some friends from various social classes, and her path crosses with Nat Hathorne, an aspiring writer. And with her husband away, potentially lost for good, she falls prey to temptation.

I loved getting inside Isobel’s head. She’s open-minded, and isn’t afraid to learn about the things she doesn’t know. She forges relationships, even with people who are different from her, and gets to know her Black neighbors, and their struggles, which are unique from her own, yet she manages to find common ground with them in some ways. She forms her own opinions about topics that she doesn’t agree with, even when her opinions aren’t widely accepted at the time, yet holds true to her values.

“‘Sometimes you got to act like you are nothing—so long as you remember that it’s a lie. So long as you remember you’re as strong as you believe you are.’”

One aspect that was really intriguing was the portrayal of synesthesia. Isobel has it, and is forced to walk a fine line, since it wasn’t well-understood until more recently, and at those times, it was viewed as something suspicious. It was seen as a sign of a witch, or of madness, at varying times, and both of those were threats to Isobel in her time. And while it was something that Isobel had to keep secret, it was also portrayed as a strength, as far as her creativity. She turned what was viewed as a negative characteristic at the time into a positive, since it helped her create ever more beautiful artwork in her needlework.

Ultimately, this is an overwhelmingly feminist retelling, where people who are pushed down in society work to take back their power in the best ways that they can. The women, the Black people, and the people on the outer edges of society claim their own power, and I was here for it! It was beautiful watching Isobel learn how to harness her strengths, even as she’s questioning what it really means to be an American, in a society that consistently deems her to be an outsider. The story talks about the intersection of gender, class, race, and nationality, as well as the way that women were controlled through the fear of being labeled a witch. The writing itself was beautiful and transported me through time to the earlier days of our country, and it made me realize not only the ways it has changed, but more importantly, the ways it hasn’t. And overall, this was an incredible book.

In Hester, Laurie Lico Albanese creates a hypnotic world where we're invited to consider contrasting themes of past and present, desire and pain, hope and disappointment, freedom and constraint. It's also a story of creator and muse, as Albanese imagines what might have been the inspiration behind Nathaniel Hawthorne's Scarlet Letter and its heroine Hester Prynne.

As that inspiration, Isobel is a character I found easy to care about. She is warm, intelligent, and talented. But she also makes mistakes, sees her own weaknesses, and changes in response to lessons learned. I appreciate her emotional journey in this book. There is a strong feminist current throughout the book as Isobel comes to better understand herself and her place in the world.

I also appreciated becoming more familiar with synesthesia (which Isobel experiences) and the intricacies of embroidery and dressmaking through her character.

Hawthorne - Hathorne, or "Nat" - actually became a distraction for me in this book. He is so brooding and melodramatic. It's easy to see how Isobel mistakes his charm for depth, but that quickly unravels as his cowardice and selfishness are exposed. Even though he's the one who achieves fame in the real world, here he feels like a caricature and plot device, serving only to get Isobel where she needs to be in her own story. [Which might just be the author's intention.]

Some reviewers have complained that there is "too much" happening in this book, especially with the author's choice to touch on the Underground Railroad in Salem. For me, it fits nicely into the book's themes of "otherness" (Isobel comes from Scotland to America), strength, resilience, found community, and the things we need to wisely hide in order to persevere.

There are also implications of witchcraft and witchery woven throughout the book, which may or may not have been necessary, but maybe felt like a given with Salem as its main setting. It just added to the enchantment for me, so I didn't mind at all.

It's clear that Albanese did a lot of historical research for this book, and I appreciated joining her on an imaginative "what if" in a very real past. Hester was an enjoyable, thoughtful book I would be glad to recommend.

Thanks to NetGalley and St Martin's Press for sending this book for review consideration. All opinions are my own.

Hester is a reimagining of Nathaniel Hawthorne’s book The Scarlet Letter. In this story our main character, Isobel Gamble is a gifted embroiderer who can also see colors in letters and words. She arrives in Salem after the witch trials have occurred but they are still very much remembered and feared. Isobel is left on her own when her husband goes off to sea and she must try to survive without his help. The story is vivid and rich in details and the characters were well developed.

I was given an advanced ebook from @netgalley and @stmartinspress (thank you!) and I devoured it! I highly recommend picking this book up- perhaps in the fall with a roaring fire and a mug of hot cider. Hester will be published October 4th just in time for some pre-Halloween reading!

I’m including some photos from my own visit to Salem several years ago. It’s quite an interesting place.

This is a sort or prequel to The Scarlet Letter and Hester Prynne. Fantastic imagery - I felt like I was in the story. This is a historical fiction which interweaves Salem/Underground Railroad.

I enjoyed the two time periods presented – Isobel’s during 1829, and her grandmother’s during 1662 – and the parallels between both women’s stories of persecution. Even Nathaniel Hawthorne’s story and Isobel’s are intertwined through the historic lens of “accuser and accused.” Fable and story are impressively infused in this work as well.


Definitely recommend!

This one totally surprised me! I started it as it was a reimagination of the woman who could have inspired Hester and how Nathaniel Hawthorne might have conceived the main character of his famous book and I absolutely enjoyed the love story of Isobel, her heartbreak and her life afterwards. Isobel, who is descended from someone accused of witchcraft has her own magic with colors and words and when she sets sail to New England, her life takes a turn totally unexpected. Now she is all alone making ends meet and forming connections with people as new immigrants.

The readers don't need to have read 'The Scarlet letter' but having read it made it more enchanting and made me appreciate it more. It is an absolutely wonderful read and highly recommended!

Very imaginative storyline that reveals its connections with the scarlet letter slowly throughout the book and I found to be much more interesting than the actual scarlet letter book. Did start off a little slow for me but glad i stuck this one through. Beautifully written tale about slight magic, love, loss, crimes of the era, hope and learning about life.

I enjoyed this story. If I have read the Scarlet Letter, I don’t remember it, but after reading this I may pick it up. This is not a happy go lucky read, I listened with Kindle VoiceView and I needed to pay attention so I didn’t get lost.
The research was excellent, the writing was done well, and the storyline was heartfelt and interesting. I felt that I learned quite a bit on how lonely and difficult it would be to immigrate from another country and then to be left on your own, no friends and all your family is left behind.
Received an ARC from St. Martin’s Press and NetGalley for my unbiased review – For me, this one comes in with 5 stars.