Across books · Theme
Love and Obsession
Romantic and possessive love drives many characters, especially Lupin's intense, conflicted feelings for Dolores Kesselbach, which lead to jealousy, violence, and ultimately tragedy, showing how love can become a destructive force.
Love and Obsession appears as a literary theme in 28 works in the BetterReads curated set. Each book develops the idea in its own plot, voice, and historical moment — the links below open the book-scoped theme guide beside the text.
Romantic and possessive love drives many characters, especially Lupin's intense, conflicted feelings for Dolores Kesselbach, which lead to jealousy, violence, and ultimately tragedy, showing how love can become a destructive force.
Romantic love is portrayed as a powerful, often destructive force, driving characters to extreme devotion, secrecy, and manipulation, as seen in the intense attachments and rivalries that shape the plot.
Helena's love for Bertram is portrayed as an all-consuming, almost idolatrous passion that drives her to extreme measures, blurring the line between genuine affection and obsessive pursuit.
Germinie's love for Jupillon is portrayed as a destructive, obsessive passion that degrades her, leading to jealousy, self-loathing, and a willingness to endure humiliation and abuse for the sake of attachment.
Romantic attachment becomes intertwined with obsession and control, as seen in Mr. Orcutt's consuming passion for Imogene and the destructive effects of his devotion on his judgment and actions.
Peregrine's intense infatuation with Dörtje Elverdink (Gamaheh) and Master Flea's past passion for the princess illustrate how love can become an all-consuming, irrational force that leads to suffering and loss of reason.
In each book
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Romantic and possessive love drives many characters, especially Lupin's intense, conflicted feelings for Dolores Kesselbach, which lead to jealousy, violence, and ultimately tragedy, showing how love can become a destruc
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Albert Savarus
Romantic love is portrayed as a powerful, often destructive force, driving characters to extreme devotion, secrecy, and manipulation, as seen in the intense attachments and rivalries that shape the plot.
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All’s Well That Ends Well
Helena's love for Bertram is portrayed as an all-consuming, almost idolatrous passion that drives her to extreme measures, blurring the line between genuine affection and obsessive pursuit.
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Germinie Lacerteux
Germinie's love for Jupillon is portrayed as a destructive, obsessive passion that degrades her, leading to jealousy, self-loathing, and a willingness to endure humiliation and abuse for the sake of attachment.
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Hand and Ring
Romantic attachment becomes intertwined with obsession and control, as seen in Mr. Orcutt's consuming passion for Imogene and the destructive effects of his devotion on his judgment and actions.
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Master Flea
Peregrine's intense infatuation with Dörtje Elverdink (Gamaheh) and Master Flea's past passion for the princess illustrate how love can become an all-consuming, irrational force that leads to suffering and loss of reason
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Memoirs of a Midget
The narrative explores intense, often destructive attachments—particularly the narrator's consuming, jealous love for Fanny and the tragic jealousy at Wanderslore—showing how love can become a fever that parches and blin
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Memoirs of Arsène Lupin
The narrative explores love as a destructive, possessive force, particularly through Ralph's obsessive pursuit of Josephine Balsamo and her jealous, vengeful love for him, which drives much of the plot's conflict and vio
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Of Human Bondage
Philip's destructive, masochistic obsession with Mildred Rogers dominates much of the narrative, illustrating how irrational desire can enslave a person and override reason and self-respect.
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Point Counter Point
The book explores love as a destructive, obsessive force, as seen in Walter's agonizing infatuation with Lucy Tantamount despite his guilt toward Marjorie, and Everard Webley's possessive passion for Elinor, which he com
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Saïd the Fisherman
Saïd's obsessive desire for a Christian girl drives him to reckless actions, while his relationship with his wife Hasneh shows a more patient, enduring form of love that he neglects.
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Salammbô
Matho's consuming desire for Salammbô drives him to steal the sacred veil and lead the rebellion, while Salammbô herself is tormented by mystical longings and a conflicted attraction to the priest Schahabarim.
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She
Love is portrayed as an all-consuming, often destructive force, driving Ayesha to murder, jealousy, and centuries of waiting for her reincarnated lover Kallikrates, while also consuming the narrator Holly and the native
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Short Fiction
Romantic desire often becomes a destructive obsession, driving characters to madness or doom, as with Amra's pursuit of the taunting snow-woman, A-æa's adoration of Ga-nor, and Costigan's love for Zuleika amid danger.
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Sinister Street
The theme of romantic and idealized love is central, particularly Michael's obsessive, almost quixotic pursuit of Lily, which blends genuine affection with a desire to rescue her and a struggle with his own fantasies and
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Tarzan and the Jewels of Opar
La, the High Priestess of Opar, experiences a consuming, unrequited love for Tarzan that transforms into a vengeful obsession, driving her to pursue him across the jungle and threaten his life when her affections are spu
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Terror Keep
Romantic and obsessive relationships drive character actions, including Reeder's unspoken affection for Margaret Belman, Ravini's predatory pursuit of her, and Olga's conflicted loyalty to her father, blending personal e
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The Arrow of Gold
The narrative centers on the intense, consuming passion between George and Doña Rita, exploring the fine line between devotion and obsession, and the pain of unfulfilled or impossible love.
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The Beetle
Romantic love is portrayed as both a source of strength and vulnerability, with characters like Paul Lessingham and Marjorie Lindon facing danger due to their attachment, while Sydney Atherton's unrequited love fuels riv
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The Great Roxhythe
Romantic and platonic attachments drive much of the action, including Christopher's consuming love for Roxhythe, the jealousies of Lady Castlemaine and Lady Crewe, and the fraught relationships between spouses.
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The Moon and Sixpence
The book contrasts conventional love and marriage with destructive passion, as seen in Strickland's coldness toward his family, his affair with Blanche Stroeve, and his ultimate devotion to art over human connection.
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The Nature of a Crime
The narrator's intense, unfulfilled love for the woman he writes to drives the entire narrative, manifesting as obsession, longing, and a desire for union that transcends life itself.
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The Room in the Dragon Volant
The protagonist's immediate, intense infatuation with the Countess drives him into a reckless and dangerous adventure, illustrating how romantic obsession can cloud judgment and lead to vulnerability.
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The Story of Ivy
Roger Gretorex's intense, self-sacrificing love for Ivy contrasts with her cold calculation, while Miles Rushworth's romantic idealism is tested by Ivy's true nature, illustrating love as both a destructive and redeeming
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The Teeth of the Tiger
Love drives many characters, from Don Luis's passionate devotion to Florence Levasseur to the villain's monstrous love that leads to murder and torture, showing how love can be both redemptive and destructive.
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Thuvia, Maid of Mars
The book explores both noble love and destructive obsession, as seen in Carthoris's devoted love for Thuvia contrasted with Astok's possessive and violent pursuit of her, which leads to abduction and attempted murder.
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With Fire and Sword
Romantic love is depicted as a destructive force, particularly through Bogun's obsessive, possessive love for Helena, which drives him to violence, betrayal, and self-destruction, contrasting with Skshetuski's more honor
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Zuleika Dobson
The book explores the destructive power of obsessive love, as the Duke of Dorset and the entire undergraduate population of Oxford become hopelessly enamored with Zuleika, leading to mass suicide.
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