An Analytical Study of Character Psyche in Melissa Payne’s The Secrets of Lost Stones

Abstract

Melissa Payne’s The Secrets of Lost Stones presents a psychological portrait of grief, trauma and emotional recovery through the life of its protagonist. This paper offers a psychoanalytic interpretation of the novel, applying Sigmund Freud’s concepts of the unconscious, repression, guilt and defense mechanisms to explore the deep psychological conflicts within the central character. The analysis demonstrates how Payne constructs a narrative in which buried emotions and psychological repression manifest through both the protagonist’s behavior and the novel’s supernatural motifs. The study illustrates how Payne throws light upon the psychoanalytic ideas into a journey of transformation, wherein catharsis is achieved not by forgetting trauma but by confronting and integrating it into one’s identity.