{Review} THE BREAKAWAY by Michelle Davidson Argyle

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Check out today's excerpt of PIECES, 
the sequel to THE BREAKAWAY!

O P E N I N G   H O O K:

THE KIDNAPPER LOOKING DOWN AT NAOMI held a book of poetry to his chest.  She didn't know what he was doing with the poetry, but it was the first thing that fueled her hope of staying alive.

(Page 13, US e-book edition)

Michelle Davidson Argyle has previously stopped by A Backwards Story for a guest post on BONDED, which compiles together three of her fairy tale retellings.  She's also shared a guest post on her version of Cinderella, CINDERS.  Don't forget to check out my review of both CINDERS and BONDED!

Everyone's worst nightmare is being kidnapped and left for dead...or worse.  Naomi is lucky because, on the night she's kidnapped, one of her kidnappers spares her life despite the fact that another wants her dead.  They fear she's witnessed a crime and must do something before she spills everything to the police.  Naomi is brought to live amongst her captors, who force her into submission until she no longer wants to run and learns to care for the men and woman who keep her hidden.  These people care more about her and her well-being than her own parents ever did.  Despite this, Naomi still longs for freedom, especially after finding out that her parents might care more than she thinks.  At the same time, she finds herself caring for the new people in her life, especially Jesse, for whom she's developed feelings despite all her attempts not to...

Michelle Davidson Argyle finds a way to make readers care about all the characters in THE BREAKAWAY, not just Naomi.  You grow to learn more about her four captors and their lives and thoughts.  While things are never told from their POVs, readers still learn so much about them based on their actions.  It's also easy to feel for Naomi, who is very mixed up and forced into a horrible situation.  Her parents are both workaholics who spend too little time with her and she had a crappy boyfriend, so when her kidnappers are kind or care in ways no one else ever did, it's easy to see why Naomi attaches to them.  Stockholm Syndrome, yes, but in a way, it's not that black and white.  There's a lot of gray as characters genuinely come to care for one another in the year after Naomi's kidnapping.  It is all too easy to see how a captive girl can come to emotionally care for the ones around her in such an extreme situation, and Davidson Argyle handles the subject matter deftly.

The situations in THE BREAKAWAY are intense and, sometimes, extreme, like something that could have been ripped from the headlines.  Naomi is lucky enough to have caring captors, which many in similar situations do not.  She's never outwardly abused, though there's a lot to be said about the nuances of emotional abuse.  The book crosses boundaries, and could sit on either YA or Adult Fiction shelves because the characters all range in age.  At eighteen, Naomi is the youngest.  The sequel, PIECES, just released, and picks up two years later.  I'm looking forward to seeing what has become of Naomi and what decisions she'll ultimately choose as she picks up the pieces of her life.

~*~

C O V E R   D E S I G N:

This cover screams "vulnerability" to me.  The model looks so lost and abandoned, like she needs a hug.  She's cowering, and in the background, if you look closely, the shadow on the wall behind her reveals a man with a gun.  This cover screams action and horror, hinting at one's worst nightmare.

Even though Naomi wears a lot of pink in THE BREAKAWAY, I love the way the blue in the title is pulled from the blue of the girl's shirt.  Even her socks complement this color scheme!

   ~*~

O F F I C I A L   I N F O:

Title:  THE BREAKAWAY

Author: Michelle Davidson Argyle

Release Date: May 1, 2012
Publisher: Rhemalda Publishing
Received: For Review

SUMMARY:

When Naomi Jensen is kidnapped, it takes her parents two days to realize she's missing. Escape isn't high on her list of priorities when all she has to return to is an abusive boyfriend and parents who never paid much attention to her. For the first time in her life she's part of a family-even if it is a family of criminals. But she's still a captive. In a desperate attempt to regain some control in her life, Naomi embarks on a dangerous plan to make one of her kidnappers think she's falling in love with him. The plan works too well, and when faced with the chance to escape, Naomi isn't sure she wants to take it.

ON TOUR WITH...

February 18

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February 19
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February 20
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February 21
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February 22
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