Hester
In 1829, 19-year-old Isobel Gamble emigrates from Scotland to Salem, Massachusetts, with a tyrannical husband who’s ruined his apothecary practice through an opium habit. No sooner have the Gambles landed than he signs on as a ship’s doctor, leaving Isobel to fend for herself in a town mistrustful of immigrants. She’s got no resources save her nimble fingers and a needle—and seamstresses are a penny a dozen. One gift she hides is her rare ability, now called synesthesia, to see letters and words as colors. The female ancestor who passed on this trait was accused of witchcraft.
A book titled Hester and set in Salem evokes The Scarlet Letter, so it’s no surprise that Isobel meets Nathaniel Hathorne, or that she sees the letter A as red. His ancestor was a judge at the infamous trials, a legacy that has haunted the up-and-coming writer so deeply he’ll later add a “w” to his name, hoping to differentiate himself. The gloomy Nat, who feels like an outcast, and the desperate, lonely Isobel, who is one, bond right away.
Albanese writes beautifully, and Hester has much to offer, despite certain literary inevitabilities. That’s because Edward’s pending return, Isobel’s ambivalence about it, and the price she’ll pay if anyone discovers her with Hathorne throw fuel on the fire. So do the two principals, who talk past each other, quarrel, and withhold. Two minor characters stand out: a Black neighbor who blows hot and cold, and an employer who pays Isobel a pittance and threatens to ruin her if she tries to hire on elsewhere.
I could have done without the italicized backstory about Isobel’s accused witch ancestor, which adds nothing and belabors the obvious. But Hester’s worth your time, whether or not you’ve read The Scarlet Letter, and I recommend it.
