OBSESSION: The bestselling psychological thriller with a shocking ending

Product Information

Dr Faraday has been fascinated by the prestigious Ayre family since he was the young son of a humble maid. Now, time has whittled away the Ayres’ fortune, and Faraday is nearly on an equal financial footing with the once-lofty clan. When opportunity presents itself, he throws himself into the role of family physician and then adviser. Even as their lifestyle falls into ruins, the Ayres still symbolise a world of unachievable privilege and pedigree. As the novel progresses, it is difficult to say whether Faraday is engaging in social climbing or out for a darker revenge.

The Obsession was a suspense novel, and following the authors formula it guaranteed that someone was going after the books heroine, Naomi Bowes. Naomi Bowes was only eleven years old when she followed her father out into the woods on a rainy night and discovered the terrible secret he was concealing in the root cellar. After she rescues Ashley, preventing her from becoming the next in a long line of victims, her life is upended. As always, Nora Roberts does a fabulous job examining the psychological impact on the family. What would it be like to live knowing you had a relative who has done unspeakable things? Some relatives react by pulling together. Others fall apart. This was my favorite section of the novel. The story is presented from each of the four character's P.O.V. The chapters are short, but the book is long. Get ready to go in deep. Scandalous, frightening innermost thoughts are revealed and it's not pretty. Downright uncomfortable. I find it so fascinating to compare a person's thoughts with their contrasting behavior. Anyway, however much I enjoyed this book, I had to drop my rating down to 4 stars due to my problem with the romance part. Not that it wasn’t sensual enough or anything, but somehow Naomi managed to ruin it for me. As you may know, one of my pet peeves is the heroine with commitment issues. So, I must admit that Naomi sort of rubbed me the wrong way every time she tried to push Xander away. That was quite annoying. Seriously? He was such an endearing guy! He was really into her and he cared about her. How can one say no to this man?!

How to Vote

I hated pretty much everyone. I can handle an unlikeable character but Jenni was just vile in every way.

The drama between these two couples: Carly and Rob, and Jenni and Craig, is absolutely ridiculous. I understand that Carly has been made to have depression and paranoia, but I'm curious as to why Jenni was never diagnosed with anything. These women were pretty ruthless towards one another, and their husbands were complete idiots. I pretty much hated every single character in this book, with the exception of the children. They didn't do anything. Once again, only the children are innocent in a book like this. Frat parties are basically a cesspool of horny guys drunk on privilege and booze trying to get girls dead-drunk so they can take advantage of them. I mean, sure, that’s a stereotype, and I’m sure some frat parties are nice and some frat guys respect women or whatever, but this guy is asking a high school girl to come on her own to a place where she’ll be completely surrounded by his friends. I don’t think you should go. Not without a shitload of pepper spray and a couple of Tasers.” I think this book was a 3 star read for me up until the end with the dog in the hospital. I actually yelled "YOU'VE GOT TO BE KIDDING ME!" as I listened to that part and decided to deduct another star! Yes, sir. My daddy hurt Ashley. He tied her up down in that old cellar in the woods by this burned-out cabin place. He hurt her really bad, and he hurt other people, too. There were pictures of them down there. I don't know why he did those things. I don't know why anybody would do what he did." The very first paragraph of Nabokov’s controversial novel revels in the narrator’s all-consuming obsession: Humbert Humbert rhapsodises about Lolita’s name, each syllable as meaningful and intricate as a poem. The fact that Lolita is a 12-year-old is disturbing, and yet Humbert’s liveliness pulls the reader in, making you feel uncomfortably complicit. Lolita herself is nearly unknowable, totally warped by the lens of Humbert’s obsession.Fast forward and Naomi has never been able to truly settle and hides who she is and the atrocities her father committed still continue to haunt her. Yet for some reason a dilapidated house that's truly a money pit calls to her artistic nature. It's a huge decision for this nomad but one she hopes will work out. Quiet town , no close neighbours and best of all her true identity is unknown. Naomi initially trusts and befriends her contractor and then of course there's his wife. It would look odd not to engage with locals and the last thing Naomi wants is to inspire curiosity . Then of course there's the mighty fine mechanic / musician Xander. Dreamy , yes but not on Naomi's list of projects to do but that guy certainly is persistent ! Somehow Naomi parts company with her quiet life with even a dog in the house! Then things start going pear shaped as young women turn up dead and somehow it all seems scarily familiar ! A gripping blend of memoir, investigation and expert analysis, Obsession takes a deep dive into the disturbing phenomenon of stalking. I don’t want to say too much, because I think this should be read mostly blind. Read the blurb, and then dive in. The ride is much more enjoyable that way. I’ll say if you like morally gray characters, and plots that slowly unveil surprising things, then you will love this read. It’s entertaining, unexpected, and I think there are many more great reads to come from this author.