DESIRE AND OBSESSION

These are really strong, meaty themes in a novel. When you encounter them, it's hard to put your book down, turn off the light and go to sleep.

Here are some unforgettable characters whose lives revolved around one or both of these themes: 

JAY GATSBY

Jay Gatsby's life is ruled by his obsession for Daisy Buchanan, a beautiful but shallow young woman who had a slight flirtation with him several years ago which she promptly forgot. But Gatsby can't forget her and everything he has done - the fortune he's amassed, the huge mansion he has rented on Long Island Sound, his incredible wardrobe of clothes, his possessions, his staff, the parties he throws for hundreds of minor and major celebrities, slight acquaintances and hangers-on - all of these have the sole aim of impressing Daisy when he meets her again. (THE GREAT GATSBY by F Scott Fitzgerald)

THE SECOND WIFE

The shy young second wife of Maxim de Winter is timid, inexperienced, gauche and lacking in confidence and self esteem. After a -whirlwind engagement and marriage she becomes the mistress of Manderley, Maxim's legendary Cornish house. Everywhere at Manderley she finds traces of Rebecca, Maxim's beautiful first wife who died in mysterious circumstances. The second Mrs de Winter, who is never given a name by the author, thus making her even more insignificant, becomes obsessed with Rebecca, comparing herself unfavourably with her predecessor. (REBECCA by Daphne du Maurier)

MRS DANVERS

Mrs Danvers is the housekeeper at Manderley who doted on Rebecca and enshrines her memory. She is resentful of Maxim's new wife, still fiercely loyal to her beloved Rebecca and refuses to let anyone usurp her place, even though she is dead. She keeps Rebecca's bedroom, Rebecca's clothes, even the nightdress she had last worn, exactly as they were, and does her best to destroy Maxim's new marriage. (REBECCA by Daphne du Maurier)

MISS HAVISHAM

Miss Haversham was jilted on her wedding day. On that day her life stopped, and in the decades that follow she has become obsessed with taking revenge on men through the medium of the young Estella. Her obsession has warped and twisted her mentally and physically, so that she has become a cruel and monstrous person. But knowing of the tragedy and humiliation that befell her, the reader can't help but feel sorry for her. On the one hand we see a monster. On the other, we have a vision of an innocent, trusting and happy young girl experiencing a terrible rejection. (GREAT EXPECTATIONS by Charles Dickens)