First published 2016
Young Goodman Brown ventures into Salem's dark woods one night, leaving his wife Faith behind. He encounters strange figures who reveal the hidden sins of his Puritan neighbors. In another tale, scientist Aylmer obsesses over removing a small birthmark from his beautiful wife Georgiana's cheek. Dr. Rappaccini tends his poisonous garden while his daughter Beatrice becomes toxic to human touch. Minister Hooper dons a black veil that he refuses to remove, disturbing his congregation. These stories explore the shadows beneath New England's moral surface. Hawthorne examines how guilt, obsession, and hidden darkness consume his characters. The collection spans tales of scientific hubris, religious hypocrisy, and moral isolation in Puritan America.
Genres: literary-fiction, american-fiction, historical-fiction, american, 19th-century, gothic
Vibes: dark, emotional, intimate, thought-provoking
Tropes: moral-ambiguity, unreliable-narrator
Setting: New England, Salem
Period: Puritan America
368 pages · Paperback · Createspace Independent Publishing Platform
Content warnings: death, mental-illness