
Hester
A Novel
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Narrated by:
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Saskia Maarleveld
About this listen
"This well-written, well-researched, and masterfully performed novel provides satisfying listening."- AudioFile (Earphones Award Winner)
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.
Who is the real Hester Prynne?
Isobel Gamble is a young seamstress carrying generations of secrets when she sets sail from Scotland in the early 1800s with her husband, Edward. An apothecary who has fallen under the spell of opium, his pile of debts have forced them to flee Edinburgh for a fresh start in the New World. But only days after they've arrived in Salem, Edward abruptly joins a departing ship as a medic—leaving Isobel penniless and alone in a strange country, forced to make her way by any means possible.
When she meets a young Nathaniel Hawthorne, the two are instantly drawn to each other: he is a man haunted by his ancestors, who sent innocent women to the gallows—while she is an unusually gifted needleworker, troubled by her own strange talents. As the weeks pass and Edward's safe return grows increasingly unlikely, Nathaniel and Isobel grow closer and closer. Together, they are a muse and a dark storyteller; the enchanter and the enchanted. But which is which?
In this sensuous and hypnotizing tale, a young immigrant woman grapples with our country's complicated past, and learns that America's ideas of freedom and liberty often fall short of their promise. Interwoven with Isobel and Nathaniel's story is a vivid interrogation of who gets to be a "real" American in the first half of the 19th century, a depiction of the early days of the Underground Railroad in New England, and atmospheric interstitials that capture the long history of "unusual" women being accused of witchcraft. Meticulously researched yet evocatively imagined, Laurie Lico Albanese's Hester is a timeless tale of art, ambition, and desire that examines the roots of female creative power and the men who try to shut it down.
A Macmillan Audio production from St. Martin's Press.
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Critic reviews
"Like the greatest historical fiction, Hester manages to make you believe utterly in its narrator, feel entirely that this story is real, and ground you in the day to day of a bustling 19th century world that promises the freedom of America while exacting its horrific steep price on the Native Americans it destroys, the slaves it brings in chains, and the women it crushes. It's a story about America itself, and the fury, righteousness and mercy in which it was formed." ––Gillian Flynn, #1 New York Times bestselling author
"In Hester, Albanese has masterminded a thoroughly immersive drama and a memorable, spirited heroine for the ages. Albanese's elegant writing captures the dynamic, sensual energy between Isobel and Nat in breathtaking detail. Isobel's appeal crosses cultural and generational borders to embody a timeless existential quest for the freedom to love and live as one pleases." ––Shelf Awareness
"Full of lush and colorful prose, this is a tale of one woman's determination and self-reliance amid the 'new world' of 19th-century Salem, which teems with festering secrets and alluring prospects. A message of resilience, Hester proves that a woman will do whatever she must to prosper, even when she is left with nothing but courage—and a few secrets of her own." ––Sarah Penner, New York Times bestselling author of The Lost Apothecary
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August 1945. As Stefano, an Italian POW, heads toward home across war-ravaged Germany, he encounters a young child beside his dead mother. Unable to leave him to an unknown fate, Stefano takes the boy with him, finding refuge in a seemingly abandoned house in a secluded woodland. But the house is far from vacant. Stefano wakes at the arrival of its owner, Erich, a former German soldier, who invites the travelers to stay until they can find safe passage home. Stefano cautiously agrees, intrigued by the disarming German, his reclusive neighbor Rosalind, and her traumatized husband.
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A German, an Italian and a Russian. . .
- By Liz on 01-11-19
By: Gemma Liviero
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Shell Games
- A Novel
- By: Bonnie Kistler
- Narrated by: Bonnie Kistler, Tavia Gilbert
- Length: 9 hrs and 20 mins
- Unabridged
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Julie’s mother Kate is a force of nature–a glamorous woman of seventy, a self-made real estate developer, a grande dame in Florida society, and a power broker in Florida politics. It wasn’t easy for Julie to grow up in the shadow of such a dynamo, but she loves her mother, and she and her husband Eric are thrilled when Kate marries her long-lost high school sweetheart, a salt-of-the-earth man named Charlie. But their storybook romance ends abruptly.
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Dumb clueless characters
- By Molly on 03-15-25
By: Bonnie Kistler
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Finding Dorothy
- A Novel
- By: Elizabeth Letts
- Narrated by: Ann Marie Lee, Elizabeth Letts
- Length: 13 hrs and 58 mins
- Unabridged
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Hollywood, 1938: As soon as she learns MGM is adapting her late husband’s masterpiece for the screen, 77-year-old Maud Gage Baum sets about trying to finagle her way onto the set. Nineteen years after Frank’s passing, Maud is the only person who can help the producers stay true to the spirit of the book - because she’s the only one left who knows its secrets. But the moment she hears Judy Garland rehearsing the first notes of “Over the Rainbow”, Maud recognizes the yearning that defined her own life story.
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Simple
- By Douglas A. Saunders on 04-02-19
By: Elizabeth Letts
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The Once and Future Witches
- By: Alix E. Harrow
- Narrated by: Gabra Zackman
- Length: 16 hrs and 3 mins
- Unabridged
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In 1893, there's no such thing as witches. There used to be, in the wild, dark days before the burnings began, but now witching is nothing but tidy charms and nursery rhymes. If the modern woman wants any measure of power, she must find it at the ballot box. But when the Eastwood sisters - James Juniper, Agnes Amaranth, and Beatrice Belladonna - join the suffragists of New Salem, they begin to pursue the forgotten words and ways that might turn the women's movement into the witch's movement.
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Almost. Not quite there.
- By LovelyD on 11-29-20
By: Alix E. Harrow
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The Manningtree Witches
- By: A. K. Blakemore
- Narrated by: Sofia Zervudachi
- Length: 12 hrs and 44 mins
- Unabridged
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Rebecca West, fatherless and husbandless, chafes against the drudgery of her days, livened only occasionally by her infatuation with handsome young clerk John Edes. But then a newcomer, who identifies himself as the Witchfinder General, arrives. A mysterious, pious figure dressed from head to toe in black, Matthew Hopkins takes over the Thorn Inn and begins to ask questions about what the women on the margins of this diminished community are up to. Dangerous rumors of covens, pacts, and bodily wants have begun to hang over women like Rebecca—and the future is as frightening as it is thrilling.
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awesome narrator
- By kat on 05-10-22
By: A. K. Blakemore
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The Invisible Hour
- A Novel
- By: Alice Hoffman
- Narrated by: Jessie Mueller
- Length: 7 hrs and 44 mins
- Unabridged
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One June day when Mia Jacob can no longer see a way to survive, the power of words saves her. The Scarlet Letter was written almost two hundred years earlier, but it seems to tell the story of Mia’s mother, Ivy, and their life inside the Community—an oppressive cult in western Massachusetts where contact with the outside world is forbidden. But how could this be? How could Nathaniel Hawthorne have so perfectly captured the pain and loss that Mia carries inside her?
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An exquisite story about love and libraries.
- By Lori A Benson on 09-26-23
By: Alice Hoffman
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Yellow Crocus
- Yellow Crocus, Book 1
- By: Laila Ibrahim
- Narrated by: Bahni Turpin
- Length: 8 hrs and 21 mins
- Unabridged
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Moments after Lisbeth is born, she’s taken from her mother and handed over to an enslaved wet nurse, Mattie, a young mother separated from her own infant son in order to care for her tiny charge. Thus begins an intense relationship that will shape both of their lives for decades to come. Though Lisbeth leads a life of privilege, she finds nothing but loneliness in the company of her overwhelmed mother and her distant, slave-owning father.
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A rare find, a 5 star book!
- By Kathy in CA on 02-22-15
By: Laila Ibrahim
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Honor
- By: Thrity Umrigar
- Narrated by: Sneha Mathan
- Length: 11 hrs and 19 mins
- Unabridged
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Indian American journalist Smita has returned to India to cover a story, but reluctantly: long ago she and her family left the country with no intention of ever coming back. As she follows the case of Meena—a Hindu woman attacked by members of her own village and her own family for marrying a Muslim man—Smita comes face to face with a society where tradition carries more weight than one’s own heart, and a story that threatens to unearth the painful secrets of Smita’s own past.
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Wow.
- By Robert Bryant on 01-19-22
By: Thrity Umrigar
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Shrines of Gaiety
- A Novel
- By: Kate Atkinson
- Narrated by: Jason Watkins
- Length: 15 hrs and 59 mins
- Unabridged
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1926, and in a country still recovering from the Great War, London has become the focus for a delirious new nightlife. In the clubs of Soho, peers of the realm rub shoulders with starlets, foreign dignitaries with gangsters, and girls sell dances for a shilling a time. The notorious queen of this glittering world is Nellie Coker, ruthless but also ambitious to advance her six children, including the enigmatic eldest, Niven, whose character has been forged in the crucible of the Somme. But success breeds enemies, and Nellie’s empire faces threats from without and within.
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Rich characters of all stripes
- By Glorious Lorius on 11-09-22
By: Kate Atkinson
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The Historian
- By: Elizabeth Kostova
- Narrated by: Justine Eyre, Paul Michael
- Length: 26 hrs and 5 mins
- Unabridged
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Late one night, exploring her father's library, a young woman finds an ancient book and a cache of yellowing letters. The letters are all addressed to "My dear and unfortunate successor", and they plunge her into a world she never dreamed of - a labyrinth where the secrets of her father's past and her mother's mysterious fate connect to an inconceivable evil hidden in the depths of history.
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Great buildup to nowhere
- By Nifty Hokie15 on 04-03-18
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The London Seance Society
- By: Sarah Penner
- Narrated by: Lauren Irwin, Alex Wyndham
- Length: 9 hrs and 59 mins
- Unabridged
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1873. At an abandoned château on the outskirts of Paris, a dark séance is about to take place, led by acclaimed spiritualist Vaudeline D’Allaire. Known worldwide for her talent in conjuring the spirits of murder victims to ascertain the identities of the people who killed them, she is highly sought after by widows and investigators alike. Lenna Wickes has come to Paris to find answers about her sister’s death, but to do so, she must embrace the unknown and overcome her own logic-driven bias against the occult.
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Not what you waited for
- By M.J. on 03-18-23
By: Sarah Penner
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What the Wind Knows
- By: Amy Harmon
- Narrated by: Saskia Maarleveld, Will Damron
- Length: 12 hrs and 24 mins
- Unabridged
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Anne Gallagher grew up enchanted by her grandfather’s stories of Ireland. Heartbroken at his death, she travels to his childhood home to spread his ashes. There, overcome with memories of the man she adored and consumed by a history she never knew, she is pulled into another time. The Ireland of 1921, teetering on the edge of war, is a dangerous place in which to awaken. But there Anne finds herself, hurt, disoriented, and under the care of Dr. Thomas Smith, guardian to a young boy who is oddly familiar.
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A Captivating Historical Romance!
- By Melanie on 03-04-19
By: Amy Harmon
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The Amalfi Curse
- By: Sarah Penner
- Narrated by: Saskia Maarleveld, Carlotta Brentan, Chris Andrew Ciulla, and others
- Length: 10 hrs and 1 min
- Unabridged
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Haven Ambrose, a trailblazing nautical archaeologist, has come to the sun-soaked village of Positano to investigate the mysterious shipwrecks along the Amalfi Coast. But Haven is hoping to find more than old artifacts beneath the azure waters; she is secretly on a quest to locate a trove of priceless gemstones her late father spotted on his final dive. Upon Haven’s arrival, strange maelstroms and misfortunes start plaguing the town. Is it nature or something more sinister at work?
By: Sarah Penner
What listeners say about Hester
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- Carmela
- 08-13-23
Fascinating backstory of The Scarlett Letter
I loved everything about this book. The author imagines how Nathaniel Hawthorne came to create Hester Prynne, one of the most famous adultresses in American fiction. Hawthorne is not the good guy in this novel.
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- Alw
- 11-27-22
Really fun listen
Good story. Easy to follow while driving. Really enjoyed this book! It was engaging and fun.
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- Anonymous User
- 01-26-23
Sins of the fathers, and Scarlet Letters
A Scottish woman, new to America, and Nathaniel Hawthorne, author and original Salem family member, live amongst the ghosts of their families' past.
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- Oh nurse 61
- 01-07-23
This book is worthy of your time
Loved the historical overlay. Well researched in regarding time and places. I'll be looking for more of this author's work. Thank you for this lovely piece.
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- Anonymous User
- 01-31-23
Outstanding!
Beautifully crafted and written - a courageous story of survival and the birth of Hawthorne’s famous classic work. Fabulous!
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- christy
- 02-05-23
Interesting and fun!
Listened to this whole painting a bathroom!
This was recommended as a ton 10 of 2022 by audible. Although I agree with the rating, I didn't give it a 5 star rating. I didn't like the ending, felt hanging a bit. Otherwise, it was a good story and interesting concept interwoven into the Salem zeitgeist regarding the historical landscape. I would recommend, great on audible!
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- Bharti
- 02-07-23
Obsessed!
My new favorite book. The narrator did an amazing job too. Loved everything about it.
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- Eva Birgitta
- 02-03-23
Wonderful perspective!
I enjoyed everything about this book. The story and narrator were great.... loved the ' back story' of the Scarlet Letter. I highly recommend this book!
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- V. Temple
- 09-08-23
LOVED THIS BOOK!!
I couldn’t stop listening!! A story of love, betrayal, pain, redemption, survival and strength. This brought me joy, and is a book I will read again. 💕
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- Darin Gregus
- 10-23-23
Loved it
Clever story with true heroines. Enjoyed the complicated love story and survival. I learned a lot about Salem as well. Somewhere I’ve been to many times but wasn’t aware of its secrets. Narrator was excellent.
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