After Obsession is set where all the best
horror/possession/ghost stories come from – a small town in Maine, New
England. As in many other such
stories, there’s a Native American element., and stupid white colonists who
just wouldn’t listen.
Alan is the new boy in town, come, with his single mother,
to live with his aunt and cousin, Courtney. He’s fairly certain that his
father, whom he has never met, was Navajo, but he has had to research his
heritage on-line. Somehow he has managed to arrange his own vision quest and
find a totem animal, which has been advising him in visions.
Aimee, whose mother died several years before, has inherited
her healing powers, which also make her vulnerable, as do her true dreams.
Now the two must join forces to fight something nasty that has been
possessing Courtney and bringing out the worst in the townsfolk. If they don’t
stop it, the thing trapped in the river will escape and overwhelm a lot more
than the twon.
Aimee and Alan are such kind and decent kids! They treat everyone well, love their families
and each other. Alan respects Aimee’s abilities as well as loving her. They
both have their own troubles that they must overcome to fight the evil spirit.
I liked the notion that the “sweet librarian lady” at their
school has so much information that they can use; there is only so far the
Internet can go, but in the end, you can’t beat a good librarian and her
archives!
Because the story is told in alternating voices – Aimee’s
and Alan’s – it avoids many of the clichés of standard YA paranormal fiction
with its damsel in distress heroine.
Still – it’s basically a girls’ book and should suit girls
from abut 14 upwards.
I think I'd really enjoy this book. My tastes are pretty much the same as a 14 year old girls! You def can't beat the knowledgeable librarian when it comes to information. Always reminds me of Giles from Buffy.
ReplyDeleteWell, it's going in my library, so we'll see what the students have to say. :-) Ah, Giles... I think we all loved him because he was so good-looking and had that lovely voice. if I tried to keep all but my book club out of the library the way Giles does, I'd be out of a job in no time! ;-) And Willow does most of the real research anyway.
ReplyDeleteBut yes, he had the archives.
I must go to Maine and New England one day and see exactly what it is about them that makes them such fetile ground for such goings on!
ReplyDeleteMe too. Maybe it's the cold climate? :-) Although a friend of mine who lives in New England (Mass.) says they have the same saying we do in Melbourne - "If you don't like the weather, wait a minute."
ReplyDelete