Again, I didn’t read the synopsis and was rewarded. When I started this book I had no idea what ‘Hester’ represented. As I neared the end of the book, I actually started to get annoyed Hester wasn’t showing up. I was delightfully surprised when I found the true meaning of Hester. If you are a naive as me, I will not give it away here. 

This was a wonderful book that reaches back in the day of a colorful retelling of a classic. I love going back in time with authors that really care about the details. I loved imagining the hard times, especially hard for women. Hester did that beautifully. I was intrigued right from the start. The author mentions creative people seeing colors when they work. I’m slightly skeptical on that front, but either way, enjoyable just the same.
     There were a few moments I felt annoyed with the plot. The decisions that Isobel makes made me feel confused and not like her character. Or at least not like the strong, smart woman the reader should believe she is. I believe the author could have made her less ‘la-la’ and more ‘bam-bam’. It felt like there could have been more to the past Isobel than the author let on. For example, Isobel mentions how she can’t get distracted by a man and then let’s herself get completely distracted by a man… Which, in a book about powerful women, can get a little ‘eye rolling’. 
     The future/present Isobel was a nice add on, although not fully necessary. It didn’t add to the story at all other than to break up the telling of the main timeline. 

I enjoyed this book to the fullest. Don’t take this retelling so seriously. I personally, don’t think the author herself was trying to stake any claims here, at least that was not my impression. If she is, woof. Instead I’m enjoying the story for the story. An entertaining read that I would recommend to anyone who loves reading. I give this 4.5 stars rounded up to 5.