Young Giovanni arrives in Padua to discover a lush and mysterious garden on the estate of the mysterious Doctor Rappaccini. Amidst the verdant and exotic foliage, Giovanni finds love in the form of Beatrice - the Doctor's daughter. What deadly secret does the young girl and her father keep hidden?

Published in 1844, Rappaccini's Daughter, is one of Hawthorne's most well known works. And, when one reviews the plot, the story can be considered an early example of modern science fiction. Later works, like Mary Shelley's Frankenstein, and other more contemporary pieces, come back to consider what Hawthorne explored in these pages - does man have the right to shape nature to his own will?