The House of the Seven Gables by Nathaniel Hawthorne

This is such a classic of American literature and yet I couldn't remember if I had ever read it! It's a little bit of a mystery in the gothic style although Hawthorne prefers to call it a romance in that allows him wider powers to indulge in his imagination. The story, of course, centers around the dark, dismal, and decaying ancestral home of the Pyncheons, The House of the Seven Gables. The founder of the family, as we come to find out, has swindled a Matthew Maule out of the property the house was built on and then been instrumental in having Maule sentenced to death for witchcraft. As Maule dies he curses the family and says "God will give him blood to drink!" As we take up the story, the House is occupied by Hepzibeh and her brother Matthew. Both are old before their time and live oppressive restricted lives in the House. There is a tragedy hanging over Matthew that is not fully revealed until the end of the tale. Even though the tale is dark, it has moments of wit and humor and is also lightened with descriptions of everyday life going on around the dreaded House. Enter Phoebe, a young cousin, beautiful, kind, and light-hearted who soon becomes indispensable to the older pair. There is another tenant, a young comely man, who lives in one of the gables and is a daguerreotypist (a portrait artist). Later, we find he is a descendant of Matthew Maule and has the Maule family's gift of mesmerism. Hence, perhaps part of the witchcraft problem the plagued his ancestor. Another important character is Judge Pyncheon, a cousin and contemporary of Hepzibeh and Matthew and whom it turns out has perpetrated a vile crime on Matthew. I won't reveal the whole plot because it is rather interesting and not fully developed until the end of the book. Suffice it to say that in the end justice is served to some degree and the two families are joined together through Phoebe and the daguerreotypist called Holgrave. An interesting aside is that Hawthorne's ancestor John Hathorne was a judge in the Salem with trials of 1692. I enjoyed the book and was surprised at some of the humor and sly asides as well as the accessibility of the writing. It's not as tragic as The Scarlett Letter but deals with some of the same themes, duplicity, guilt, and redemption. I recommend it particularly at this Halloween time.