Sparkles and Lightning

***FINAL RATING: 3.35 STARS***CATCHALLThe Breakaway was a haunting–and yet compelling–read. It's the kind of book that creeps up on you months after you turn the last page. It definitely deals with some tough, unconventional stuff, but everything is handled so well. I really did like it, despite its flaws and the fact that it gave me the creeps.THE HEROINENAOMINaomi isn't a very strong character, and she's extremely difficult to relate to. She's lulled into a new life so easily with her kidnappers, and she believes her parents don't love her, much like any teenager. She has extremely questionable decision-making skills. I just couldn't connect to her or her voice. Her thought processes also didn't make much sense to me and she was kind of annoying.THE LOVE INTERESTJESSEI don't like Jesse. I don't care that he's not really a bad guy, he's still a freaking kidnapper. He also kind of just goes along with everything for the longest time, making him kind of a pushover. He didn't appeal to me as a character at all, and while I think he's redeemable I don't think he redeemed himself. He made a lot of bad choices and while I think he can make them up it's going to take a lot more than what he did.THE OTHER KIDNAPPERSI did leave out Steve because there's really not much to say about himERICI truly, truly do not understand how Naomi can care for Eric. Yeah, Stockholm can be strong stuff, I'm sure. But he threatened to kill her. And he got out a gun, and he was going to, and she still cares for him. As far as I'm concerned he's a sociopath and should be locked up for life.EVELYNEvelyn was sweet and genuinely caring, but she was also a major pushover. She got caught up in Eric's messes but instead of leaving him to it she decided to just go along with it. I think she might be redeemable too, but that's not a story for us to know.THE PLOTIt starts right off with the action, launching straight into the kidnapping itself. But especially in the beginning, there are tons of flashbacks. And Naomi starts to wonder which life is better. The one in which she lives now, kidnapped, or the one before? That seems like an easy question. But Naomi feels like she has nothing to return to.Naomi's kidnappers want to make her feel at home so that she doesn't want to leave. And eventually, it begins to work. There's irony in the way it all ends, and the story certainly took directions that I didn't expect multiple times.The Breakaway was a bit predictable, but not so much that it got overly frustrating. I knew how it was going to ultimately end, but the path it took to get there is not one I expected. I was pleased by the way everything turned out and though Naomi did a lot of things that were really dumb I tried not to pass too much judgment.This is very different from things I've read before. Kidnapping is not a common theme in my favorite books, but I really enjoyed this book and want to read more like it now.THE ROMANCEI'm not there's any way to not find this romance rather disturbing. It's classic Stockholm syndrome, and Naomi certainly has that. She finds herself feeling connected to Jesse even as she knows how wrong it is. And I can't say I blame her. I also hesitate to call it love. I think she might be in love with the idea of him, a savior. And I think he truly cares about her. But it's just not enough.THE WRITINGI really like this writing style, but Naomi's voice is so weak that I really couldn't enjoy it the way I wanted to. Michelle's writing is simple, and it tells things as they are. It worked for the story, but there were way too many times where Naomi thinks to herself and it just really got on my nerves. Even so, I love the way she describes things in such vivid detail.THE ENDINGThe Breakaway ended on a very open note, leaving the reader not sure what was going to happen next but without being an actual cliffhanger. Naomi is going to have a lot of developing to do as a person, and her kidnappers are going to have to face the consequences of their actions. All in all, it was a satisfying ending.WRAPUPThe Breakaway was a very heavy read, but it was very enjoyable. I really, really liked it and am definitely going to read Bonded at some point, since it looks similar but I hear that it's even better. I would recommend this to most readers. It's not light reading material by any means, but sometimes you need something with substance.FINE.Find more of my reviews on Sparkles and Lightning!