Synopsis
“One brilliant 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 and books are considered evil. But how could this be? How could Nathaniel Hawthorne have so perfectly captured the pain and loss that Mia carries inside her?
Through a journey of heartbreak, love, and time, Mia must abandon the rules she was raised with in the Community. As she does, she realizes that reading can transport you to other worlds or bring them to you, and that readers and writers affect one another in mysterious ways. She learns that time is more fluid than she can imagine and that love is stronger than any chains that bind you.
As a girl, Mia fell in love with a book. Now, as a young woman, she falls in love with a brilliant writer as she makes her way back in time. But what if Nathaniel Hawthorne never wrote The Scarlet Letter? And what if Mia Jacob never found it on the day she planned to die?
Nathaniel Hawthorne wrote, “A single dream is more powerful than a thousand realities.” This is the story of one woman’s dream. For a little while it came true.”
-Synopsis from inside front cover
Review
The Invisible Hour by Alice Hoffman was one of my most highly anticipated reads of last year and it blew me away. In fact, it was one of my top five reads from my 2023 Reading Year in Review.
When I first heard about it and that it would be based on both The Scarlet Letter by Nathaniel Hawthorne, and The Red Garden by Alice Hoffman, I made a point to read both of those so I would be prepared. While I don’t think it was absolutely necessary to read those books, it added a lot more depth to this story to have that background as a foundation. Not surprisingly, I loved both The Scarlet Letter and The Red Garden which was a good preview of what was to come.
The Invisible Hour takes place in Blackwell, Massachusetts which is the setting for The Red Garden. It is a town with a rich history going back hundreds of years and now it is home to the Community where Mia lives. The Community is a cult of sorts and Mia understandably feels trapped by it, and by the man in charge. When she stumbles across a library, and one book in particular, everything changes and Mia discovers she is not bound to the Community as she has been led to believe.
Mia attempts to forge her own path in life but finds that her past is not so easy to escape. I won’t reveal too much of the plot because there are a lot of twists and turns I don’t want to spoil for anyone. This book is a celebration of the power of books and reading, and the very real truth that a single book can change a person’s life.
Mia discovers the ability to travel back in time and with that gift comesthe fact that if she isn’t careful, the book that saved her life may never exist when she goes back. The only way I can describe this story is that it was spellbinding.
I also just really love this quote from the synopsis:
“Nathaniel Hawthorne wrote, “A single dream is more powerful than a thousand realities.” This is the story of one woman’s dream. For a little while it came true.”
-from The Invisible Hour
How lovely is that? If you’ve read and enjoyed any of Alice Hoffman’s books, you will love this. If you enjoyed The Scarlett Letter by Nathaniel Hawthorne I think you’ll also enjoy it.
Lastly, happy birthday to Alice Hoffman! Our birthday are just a few days apart 🙂
Hannah's Library 