Two powerful men one at the mercy of Bipolar Disorder, the other facing life imprisonment struggle to regain their freedom.
An ambitious novel that makes no apology in its searing examination of the value of freedom, and the experience of its loss, Betrayal of Love and Freedom takes the reader on a journey through the intertwining lives of Luke Powers and Rick Dellich. As well as painting a vivid picture of a man at the peak of his success facing life imprisonment, the story gives voice to the experience of a psychological breakdown in contemporary society. Blending both truth and fiction, and traversing the genres of drama, thriller, romance and crime, Betrayal of Love and Freedom is a potentially life-changing testament to the human spirit for our time.
From the time of his familys death and his subsequent adolescence spent as an American outsider in an unfamiliar country, the life of Luke Powers has long been punctuated by abrupt changes in fortune. Though nothing could prepare him for the possibility of life imprisonment. Facing charges of murdering the forbidden, great love of his life from thirty years earlier, the influential media mogul is powerless to escape his predicament. Is he a murderer? Even he cannot say for sure.
Entrepreneur and family man, Rick Dellich, finds himself stripped of all his rights as a citizen, the result of a mental breakdown. Separated from those he loves, he faces the prospect of confinement to a chemical straightjacket for the rest of his life. Desperate for a true recovery, he commits himself to a psychiatric clinic.
Through it all, two women, each offering the possibility of the love that seems to have betrayed him all his life, weave their way into Lukes destiny. So, too, does Wong Peng, a ruthless business magnate wielding the dark forces of power and tied to the enigmatic Society. All the while, Rick struggles to put his shattered life back together, but his deepening search for answers leads him to revelations that threaten to turn his world upside down.
Will each man succeed in his quest for love and freedom? Will each man find what he is seeking? Both will face challenges that will destroy or transform them, eventually placing the two on a collision course with one another.
About Paul:
Paul Huljich was born in Auckland, New Zealand. At a very early age, he did everything from caddying at the local golf club to collecting bottles and mowing lawns to laboring at construction sites to earn his own money. As a child, Paul used to ride around Auckland on his bicycle and visualize one day building his dream home on the Auckland harbor water front. Blessed with a happy childhood with wonderful parents and grandparents, Paul developed two burning aspirations in life as a youth: to feed the body and nourish the soul. An early pioneer of organic and natural foods, Paul, along with his brothers, founded Best Corporation in 1985. Paul, serving as Chairman and Joint-CEO guided Best Corporation to unparalleled success. The company was listed on the stock exchange in December 1991 and sold to a multinational food company in 1993.
In 1998, Paul was diagnosed with Bipolar Disorder and experienced a full mental breakdown that year, losing his rights as a New Zealand citizen and being made a ward of the state. Informed that there was no cure, that he would eventually relapse, and that he would be dependent on medication for the rest of his life, he traveled to the world renowned Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minnesota, and then admitted himself to the Menninger Clinic in Topeka, Kansas, to more fully understand and move through his condition.
From a very early age, Paul has wanted to make a difference in the world. He has invested in a diverse range of commercial interests in a number of countries over the past 15 years. In 2009, he founded MWellA (Mind Wellness Awareness). The Mind Wellness Awareness community seeks to build an awareness of ‘mind conditions’ and work with other mind condition organizations with the understanding that prevention is the key, as it is far better than recovery and gives people hope. Inspired by Pauls ultimate purpose in life, MWellA hopes to guide everyone who wishes to seek peace of mind, contentment and happiness through providing them with the resources necessary to rebuild the mind, body and spirit.
Pauls first novel Betrayal of Love and Freedom is a psychological thriller. An experience of awareness, it is a story told through a variety of characters who are challenged with different twists and turns caused by various mind conditions. A true story of awareness based on one mans struggle and triumph over Bipolar Disorder, Betrayal of Love and Freedom spans over five decades and four continents is at its heart a compelling love story with a happy ending.
Since the year 2000, Paul has not taken any psychotropic or psychiatric medication, or any medication related to mental illness, including medications such as sleeping tablets. Nor has he suffered any relapse of depression, or manic depression, or had a consultation with any psychiatrist, therapist, or doctor regarding mental illness. He enjoys many forms of sports and exercise from hiking to boating and water sports, to walking barefoot on Santa Monica Beach, Bondi Beach, or Aucklands majestic waterfront. Paul participates in meditation, yoga, stress reduction techniques, a natural diet including juicing, positive thinking, and restful sleep. Paul presently resides in New York City and has never felt better.
