lauramdh's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
reflective
sad
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
awebofstories's review against another edition
emotional
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.5
Grade: C+
I am the weird animal who loves Nathaniel Hawthorne's The Scarlet Letter. I may have originally read it in high school, but I have read it countless times for fun sense and every experience has been wonderful. Sadly, I also think this is why Hester didn't work for me.
I did enjoy Albanese's writing style, and I even found myself highlighting certain passages. I also feel that Albanese captured 19th-century Salem, Massachusetts, and showed how the morals of the town's founders have survived.
Unfortunately, there were also issues with this book that I found hard to overcome. The first is that felt like Albanese was attempting to make Nathaniel Hawthorne, a real person, fit this fictional story. At times it felt like she was trying to force a square block through a round hole. I also realized that, for this story to work, I would have to adopt an interpretation of The Scarlet Letter that I not only do not agree with but also find flawed. I also felt that this book was far too "on the nose" with what it was trying to do and I wish Albanese had given the reader more room to develop their own feelings about the events of the novel.
I also felt like Albanese tried to do too much with this book. We have the plot of Isobel and Hawthorne and how that led to The Scarlet Letter, but we also have the societal structure of 19th-century Salem, the dangers of substance abuse, and the plight of freed African Americans in the age of enslavement. It is not that I wasn't interested in any of these threads, it is just that there were far too many of them, and the secondary plots detracted from the main plot.
While I'm disappointed that this book was not a success for me, I'm still open to reading something else by Laurie Lico Albanese. I am curious to see what she comes up with when she isn't trying to tell a story within a pre-existing frame.
I am the weird animal who loves Nathaniel Hawthorne's The Scarlet Letter. I may have originally read it in high school, but I have read it countless times for fun sense and every experience has been wonderful. Sadly, I also think this is why Hester didn't work for me.
I did enjoy Albanese's writing style, and I even found myself highlighting certain passages. I also feel that Albanese captured 19th-century Salem, Massachusetts, and showed how the morals of the town's founders have survived.
Unfortunately, there were also issues with this book that I found hard to overcome. The first is that felt like Albanese was attempting to make Nathaniel Hawthorne, a real person, fit this fictional story. At times it felt like she was trying to force a square block through a round hole. I also realized that, for this story to work, I would have to adopt an interpretation of The Scarlet Letter that I not only do not agree with but also find flawed. I also felt that this book was far too "on the nose" with what it was trying to do and I wish Albanese had given the reader more room to develop their own feelings about the events of the novel.
I also felt like Albanese tried to do too much with this book. We have the plot of Isobel and Hawthorne and how that led to The Scarlet Letter, but we also have the societal structure of 19th-century Salem, the dangers of substance abuse, and the plight of freed African Americans in the age of enslavement. It is not that I wasn't interested in any of these threads, it is just that there were far too many of them, and the secondary plots detracted from the main plot.
While I'm disappointed that this book was not a success for me, I'm still open to reading something else by Laurie Lico Albanese. I am curious to see what she comes up with when she isn't trying to tell a story within a pre-existing frame.
lilamaee's review against another edition
dark
emotional
hopeful
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
magslyt77's review against another edition
3.0
It was ….fine. I really enjoyed the Scarlet Letter in high school so I think I was a bit disappointed by the emo boy version of Hawthorne and the overuse of color in this story.
Would still root for the movie version tho
Would still root for the movie version tho
ledazak's review against another edition
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
5.0
kristy_k's review against another edition
reflective
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
While I thought the writing was great, I did find the story itself slow. I don’t think having Nathaniel Hawthorne be a part of the plot was essential. He could have been any man and Isobel’s story would have been the same.
annsbibliotherapy's review against another edition
4.0
Seeing a whole new aspect of the Salem witch trials and what happened after is what I'd been missing all these years. The idea that all of these families stayed intertwined coming and going from Salem throughout generations makes my skin tingle and my mind spin.
Accusers and descendents find themselves in the same spaces over and over again, history being repeated, families becoming blended and the past never being forgotten all while trying to just survive day to day and some days not knowing how you'll get to the next, who you can trust, or who will betray you in the worst way possible.
With moments that range from dark and dastardly to loving and pure the lives we see our characters living in both times makes them seem human, more than just characters. It made me think about what the next generation or two could have looked like.
Each of our characters has good and bad to them, they're complex and relatable and my very favorite type of character to read, they make you think and wonder and process all while keeping you engrossed in this story that wraps you up in it's pages and won't let you go.
The symbolism in this book is fascinating and beautiful, the way nature is woven into the story, the embroidery Isobel puts into her cloak and everything else she makes tells a story, is created with magic and memories and leaves a legacy for the people she trusts enough to let in.
I found myself rooting for the women in every aspect of this story, I can't imagine living in a time where a man can go from being an apothecary to calling himself a Doctor and just have it accepted, but where women had to have introductions in order to just walk into certain situations.
Through marriage and birth, life and death we see these women who cross worlds and generations learn from one another, teach one another and try and leave the world and their families a little better than they were when they leave it, whether that's by fates hand or the hangman's.
All in all this is a beautiful tale, told with compassion for the characters while giving all of them the strength and determination they needed to survive hopeful and horrendous times. Even knowing some about the Salem and Scottish witch trials the ending of this one gave me goosebumps and made me want to cry.
This is a solid 4.5 star book and I would love to read more by this author.
Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for providing an advance copy of this book, I have voluntarily read and reviewed it and all thoughts and opinions are my own.
Accusers and descendents find themselves in the same spaces over and over again, history being repeated, families becoming blended and the past never being forgotten all while trying to just survive day to day and some days not knowing how you'll get to the next, who you can trust, or who will betray you in the worst way possible.
With moments that range from dark and dastardly to loving and pure the lives we see our characters living in both times makes them seem human, more than just characters. It made me think about what the next generation or two could have looked like.
Each of our characters has good and bad to them, they're complex and relatable and my very favorite type of character to read, they make you think and wonder and process all while keeping you engrossed in this story that wraps you up in it's pages and won't let you go.
The symbolism in this book is fascinating and beautiful, the way nature is woven into the story, the embroidery Isobel puts into her cloak and everything else she makes tells a story, is created with magic and memories and leaves a legacy for the people she trusts enough to let in.
I found myself rooting for the women in every aspect of this story, I can't imagine living in a time where a man can go from being an apothecary to calling himself a Doctor and just have it accepted, but where women had to have introductions in order to just walk into certain situations.
Through marriage and birth, life and death we see these women who cross worlds and generations learn from one another, teach one another and try and leave the world and their families a little better than they were when they leave it, whether that's by fates hand or the hangman's.
All in all this is a beautiful tale, told with compassion for the characters while giving all of them the strength and determination they needed to survive hopeful and horrendous times. Even knowing some about the Salem and Scottish witch trials the ending of this one gave me goosebumps and made me want to cry.
This is a solid 4.5 star book and I would love to read more by this author.
Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for providing an advance copy of this book, I have voluntarily read and reviewed it and all thoughts and opinions are my own.
hannahcg's review against another edition
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.5