The riveting new novel from the #1 New York Times bestselling author of The Liar.
Naomi Bowes lost her innocence the night she followed her father into the
woods. In freeing the girl trapped in the root cellar, Naomi revealed the
horrible extent of her father’s crimes and made him infamous.
Now a successful photographer living under the name Naomi Carson, she has found
a place that calls to her, thousands of miles away from everything she’s ever
known. Naomi wants to embrace the solitude, but the residents of Sunrise Cove
keep forcing her to open up—especially the determined Xander Keaton.
Naomi can feel her defenses failing, and knows that the connection her new life
offers is something she’s always secretly craved. But as she’s learned time and
again, her past is never more than a nightmare away.
WOW! Such a wonderful story!
Needless to say I am a big Nora Roberts fan
and honored that I have the opportunity to receive an ARC of hers to review.
The Obsession is one of those books that pulls the reader into the
story from start. It is beautifully
written and moving. The tale starts by
dropping the reader right in the middle of the worse nightmare any child could
have. It doesn’t give any clues as to
how the story will evolve but I have to follow regardless of where it goes.
I love the plot, the storylines and the
characters. The Obsession gives the
reader a different look at the effect of a serial killer—the killer’s family. Naomi is a child when she finds and saves a
victim of her father, who turns out to be a long time serial killer with many
victims. The publicity for the family is
overwhelming and there is no escape for Naomi, her mother, and brother. She does everything she can to separate from
her past but every time she thinks she can put it behind her something happens
to bring all the news and headlines to the forefront again.
The writing is flawless. There are moments that shivers run up my
spine. I feel Naomi’s fear, devastation, and pain with her. After everything she goes through she also
becomes the adult where her mother is concerned. Sometimes Naomi’s pain and fear of the future
is tangible and jump right off the page into my soul.
The story isn’t all dark however, there are
moments of joy and anticipation and there are beautiful moments of love both
familial and romantic. I love the
progression as Naomi moves from being a wanderer to wanting and needing to settle
down and finally have a life with roots.
This isn’t an easy decision for
her but the house she finds in Washington State calls to her artistic
side.
The characters have many layers and peeling
away those layers are an adventure for the reader. Naomi, the heroine, knows that people aren’t
always what they appear and, therefore she doesn’t trust or make friends
easily. For most of her life the only
people she lets in are her brother and uncles then she finds this run-down
house in a small town in Washington State and her outlook changes. She needs help with renovations, landscaping,
and decorating. Each one of these jobs
brings new people into her life who offer her a sense of belonging that she
never allowed in the past.
Enter Xander Keaton… On the surface he is
the local mechanic but he is so much more.
He owns Keaton’s Garage and Body Works and happens upon Naomi one night
with a flat tire. Naomi, weary of strangers, tries her best to
turn down his offer to help but Xander won’t have it. From their first meeting he is intrigued and works
his way into her life and tears down her walls and worm his way into her
heart. I will admit it didn’t take much
to get my heart.
I’m a mechanic. I didn’t call a mechanic. Aren’t you lucky one just came along? And I’d appreciate the hell out of it if you
didn’t smack me with that tire iron.”
After that initial meeting it is fun
watching Xander move slow and steady into Naomi’s life and heart. He is a surprise.
I absolutely love the support
characters. Her uncles are loving and
supportive and give her what her parents never did—a sense of self-worth and
direction. Jenny and Kevin Banner are
the kind of friends everyone needs.
Jenny Banner is the perfect female friend for Naomi. She has her own business too and supports
Naomi’s photography business. Their
interactions are exactly what the situation requires.
It isn’t hard to understand why Naomi is
cautious about sharing her past with anyone but eventually she does open up
with Xander and the Banners. Of course
there is more angst because a serial killer is out there---again. Is it her father? Is it a copycat? Is her father directing this killer? Is he after Naomi?
Nora Roberts is a clever story teller. She builds the suspense and
anxiety as the story progresses. Ms.
Roberts’ poetic prose is gut-wrenchingly realistic. The book sucked me in from the start and the
action at the end keeps me on the edge of my seat. If you are ready for a thriller with a
beautiful romance, you must read The Obsession. I highly recommend it.
5 STAMPS
Nora Roberts was born in Silver
Spring, Maryland, the youngest of five children. After a school career that
included some time in Catholic school and the discipline of nuns, she married
young and settled in Keedysville, Maryland.
She worked briefly as a legal
secretary. “I could type fast but couldn’t spell, I was the worst legal
secretary ever,” she says now. After her sons were born she stayed home and
tried every craft that came along. A blizzard in February 1979 forced her hand
to try another creative outlet. She was snowed in with a three and six year old
with no kindergarten respite in sight and a dwindling supply of chocolate.
Born into a family of readers, Nora
had never known a time that she wasn’t reading or making up stories. During the
now-famous blizzard, she pulled out a pencil and notebook and began to write
down one of those stories. It was there that a career was born. Several
manuscripts and rejections later, her first book, Irish Thoroughbred,
was published by Silhouette in 1981.
Nora met her second husband, Bruce
Wilder, when she hired him to build bookshelves. They were married in July
1985. Since that time, they’ve expanded their home, traveled the world and
opened a bookstore together.
Through the years, Nora has always
been surrounded by men. Not only was she the youngest in her family, but she was
also the only girl. She has raised two sons. Having spent her life surrounded
by men, Ms. Roberts has a fairly good view of the workings of the male mind,
which is a constant delight to her readers. It was, she’s been quoted as
saying, a choice between figuring men out or running away screaming.
Nora is a member of several writers’
groups and has won countless awards from her colleagues and the publishing
industry. Recently The New Yorker called her “America’s
favorite novelist.”
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