The Scarlet Letter (Aziloth Books)

In 17th century New England an adulterous relation between Hester Prynne and a lover she refuses to name results in the birth of a daughter Pearl. To advertise Hester's sin she is forced to wear a crimson 'A' on her bosom and the cumulative constant disapproval of the tightly-knit Puritan community makes life a daily torture. But worse torments beset the unnamed father torn between love of Hester and his daughter and a desire to maintain his position within the unforgiving Puritan society. Nathaniel Hawthorne's novel is at once a sombre almost gothic romance and a pungent critique of societies that seek to overly restrict human activity. The author mercilessly dissects human relationships examining themes of shame dread and mental anguish in a book that has become an American Classic.