Hawthorne

by Ruth Wolff

Soon after Keturah came to forbidding Hawthorne as governess to the shy child Adrianne, certain questions haunted her. Why did the regal mistress of Hawthorne become a recluse to care for Adrianne, whom she obviously did not love? Who was Adrianne; to whom did she belong? And what of the grim master of Hawthorne? What was the secret of his strange relationship to the woman and the child?

Keturah's discovery of Hawthorne's dark past changes the course of her life and her love, and make the novel "a warm, intense story with the qualities of Jane Eyre and Rebecca." - Long Island Newsday

Genres: Fiction, Gothic

Mass Market Paperback

First published January 1, 1963

Reviews

[Tina Neyer]

I recently discovered this author due to the fact that I have lived the past 8 years in the home she lived most of her life in. The book was published in 1963, and I found it to be a carefully written story of self-discovery. Written in a non-descript time and geographic place, I have enjoyed knowing that she quite possibly wrote this novel from her own experience. The main character, Keturah, is a servant girl who travels back steps and lives close to a river. The home she ultimately inhabits, first as a servant and then as the mistress of the house, is very much like our home, the author and me. She is an inspiration and the home from which she wrote is as well. I truly enjoyed this book, written in a different time than present day, without cell phones and computers. Ruth Wolff is a very good writer. She completes a story without loose ends.

[Roxanne Loughlin]

I read this book when I was 14, and loved it so much I vowed to name my little girl Keturah if I was ever blessed with a daughter. I was, and I did. My daughter, Keturah Loughlin, was one of the reviewers listed for this book. ( She loves it, too!)

[Caroline]

This is the first book my gramma gave me from her shelves when I was 10, and I felt like I was Grown Up.

[Patty]

A wonderful read for young people who don't think they have a future or anything good will come from their poor lives.
I read this as a teenager and it's still one of my favorite books.

[Kaitlyn]

This book has some quality.. I've read it more than once n I rarely reread books!

[Lois]

I read this years ago (I think I was in high school) and remember really liking it. I still do, very much.

Copyright is early 1960's, so it hardly fits as a modern work, nor is it a classic. The gist is, a girl in an orphanage gets a family. Ruth Wolff's writing is beautiful. I developed instant empathy for the characters, and I loved following Keturah through her life.

This plain cover library book, last shelf in the fiction section, offers a warm story of love, adoption, acceptance and worthiness. Recommended to anyone who likes fiction.

[Sally Shelton]

I read this book as a young girl, and I've always liked it, maybe because I went to boarding school for a number of years and so found it easy to identify with the heroine who for most of her childhood lived in an orphanage. When I want to relax, I will sometimes pick it up again for another fun and easy read. I'm not sure exactly why I enjoy it so much, but in part it's because it's about a girl who had virtually nothing going for her except that she worked hard and cared about people

[Adrian Griffiths]

A young woman who has grown up in an orphanage finds work in a big gloomy mansion, as governess to the fragile child of a surly, widowed man who barely speaks. No prizes for guessing that she finds love.

Praised as "a modern Jane Eyre" on the cover, this is really just 80% of the exact same story, and I can't really condone such an obvious retread of a book that has already been written. But at least it's entertaining. One highlight was the bizarre "orphan auction" where children are lined up in the town square for selection by local people who need a free slave.

The book is dressed up as a gothic by a retitling and dramatic new cover design on the Paperback Library edition, which really over-sold it as a much darker drama than it is. There isn't really any peril or menace in the story, the heroine simply goes through her life surrounded by a family with secrets but everyone is pretty nice to her. Her slides into romance is pain-free and blatantly inevitable. I enjoyed it but as already mentioned, it's copied wholesale from a very obvious and well-known template.

[Jeanette Jarrel]

I was given this book as present from my Mum, I was 12 when I read it the first time; it left a very deep and indelible mark on my heart; my Mum chose it based solely on the brief synopsis on the cover but knew I would enjoy it... and how right she was. Not only is it beautifully written, being so descriptive and flowing easily, particularly for a young reader, but it draws the reader into an expanding world through the eyes of Keturah, making it a perfect read for a young person. I have just re-read it 50 years on and despite all the traumas I've faced in my life and how hardened and cynical I may have become, it still managed to reduce me to tears in places and the writing still held me and even took me back to my 12 year old self. Just beautiful xxxx

[Claudia Cheyne]

This book has been in my collection for at least 30 years. I have loaned it out but thankfully it keeps coming back. Keturah lived in an orphanage until her 16th birthday when she was sent out to the country on a train to a small town where people could offer to take the children in for the summer - labor in exchange for meals and a place to sleep. Keturah went home to Mr. and Mrs. Denny's farm where she learned that a whole new way of life existed beyond the orphanage walls.
This is such a wonderful, beautifully written story I plan to see if I can request more Ruth Wolff books from my library.

[Paula Girard]

My mother bought me this book when I was a junior in high school. She was an avid reader. Me not so much. Not then anyway. I have kept the book all these years and just reread it. I loved it. It is a beautifully written story of an orphans journey. Very touching.

[Sally]

This is a very good story but most dear to me is remembering my mom reading this book soon after it was published in 1963.

[Margaret C. Argo]

A book I read in jr high however it is a feel good story and well written!