The Marble Faun, The Romance of Monte Beni was the last of the four major romances by Nathaniel Hawthorne. It was written on the eve of the American Civil War and set in a fantastical Italy and tells about three Americans encountering evil in Rome. Nathaniel Hawthorne was an American novelist writing centers on New England, many featuring moral allegories with a Puritan inspiration and centering on the inherent evil and sin of humanity.