Stockholm Syndrome Explored in Latest Novel

May 3, 2012 - PRLog -- (Rhemalda Publishing, Moses Lake, WA) - What would a teenage girl do if taken captive by nice criminals? Is there such a thing? In The Breakaway, a young adult novel by Michelle Davidson Argyle, the thieves who kidnap Naomi Jensen commit their crimes for reasons you wouldn’t expect, and they are forced to take Naomi to keep their crimes a secret. But they don’t want to hurt her—at least not physically. Instead, they go about things in a different way, focusing on Naomi’s dependence on others and gradually letting her grow attached to them so she won’t ever have a desire to try and escape.

But would you fall for such a thing? Naomi suspects what is happening, but she also suspects something like Stockholm Syndrome isn’t something anyone can fight for too long, even if they’re aware it’s happening. This is what frightens her the most. How does one fight a silent, psychological threat? One that might change the very essence of who you are?

Stockholm Syndrome is named after a bank robbery in Stockholm Sweden. Bank employees were held hostage from August 23 to August 28, 1973. After those six days, when the hostages were let go, they were empathetic toward their captives, and even tried to defend them. This behavior was coined “Stockholm Syndrome” by psychologist and criminologist Nils Belerot, and it is certainly a fascinating behavior to study.

In The Breakaway, Naomi plans to try and escape her captors by convincing them that she is under their spell and falling in love with one of them. But the plan works too well when she does fall in love. She also finds herself dealing with sympathetic emotions for the other captors, as well. How does one break such a bond? And is it possible?

Michelle Davidson Argyle lives and writes in Utah, surrounded by the Rocky Mountains. She loves the seasons, but late summer and early fall are her favorites. She adores chocolate, sushi, and lots of ethnic food, and loves to read and write books in whatever time she can grab between her sword-wielding husband and energetic daughter. She believes a simple life is the best life. You can find Michelle at her web site http://www.michelledavidsonargyle.com.

The Breakaway ISBN 978-1-936850-61-7
http://shop.rhemalda.com/product/the-breakaway.html

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