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A review by bee_thebibliophile
Grand Lies by J.C. Hawke
3.0
Grand Lies is an intense read - it’s definitely a roller coaster ride of emotions and will keep you guessing about what’s coming next. Nina and Mason’s relationship gets really involved, really fast, upheaving a lot of their daily lives and throwing them into something completely new. While the relationship moves fast, I felt like the plot took a while to really pick up. Once you’re into the thick of things, the pacing is great but the beginning is a little slow.
Nina’s had a rough life since childhood and her actions and behaviors show the defenses she’s developed to avoid being hurt again. She’s worked hard to create a life for herself that she enjoys, teaching dance classes and being in the studio to use dancing as an outlet for her feelings. But Nina is a runner - whenever things get hard or she feels caged in, she runs from it. She portrays herself as a strong, independent, stubborn woman but she seems to cave quickly when confronted with emotions.
Mason (Mase) is a rich businessman who is used to throwing money at his problems to make them go away and showering his female companions with gifts to keep them happy. But Nina doesn’t want that and he’s left wondering what he can do to win her over. He’s fiercely protective and is all in on his relationship with Nina from the very beginning. Typically I’m into the alpha male character and I mostly like what Mase brings to the table, but every once in a while he says something that makes me cringe...to me, there’s a line that shouldn’t be crossed when it comes to possessiveness and Mason definitely steps over that line a few times.
There’s definitely chemistry between Nina and Mase, but I think they both could benefit from working on themselves as individuals before committing to a relationship. And learning to be more open, communicative and trusting, not keeping things bottled up or hidden. They’re both immature in their own ways and it’s really apparent when they’re together since they can call out the other’s shortcomings but don’t recognize their own. They’re frustrating to read at times.
The cliffhanger at the end of this book definitely highlights Nina and Mason’s mutual need to work on their communication as a couple, but also has me wondering where this story is going to go and how they’ll have to work to figure everything out that’s happened between them so far. Overall, I think this is a good debut novel from J.C. Hawke but I’m really hoping for some continued character growth in the second half of this duet!
Nina’s had a rough life since childhood and her actions and behaviors show the defenses she’s developed to avoid being hurt again. She’s worked hard to create a life for herself that she enjoys, teaching dance classes and being in the studio to use dancing as an outlet for her feelings. But Nina is a runner - whenever things get hard or she feels caged in, she runs from it. She portrays herself as a strong, independent, stubborn woman but she seems to cave quickly when confronted with emotions.
Mason (Mase) is a rich businessman who is used to throwing money at his problems to make them go away and showering his female companions with gifts to keep them happy. But Nina doesn’t want that and he’s left wondering what he can do to win her over. He’s fiercely protective and is all in on his relationship with Nina from the very beginning. Typically I’m into the alpha male character and I mostly like what Mase brings to the table, but every once in a while he says something that makes me cringe...to me, there’s a line that shouldn’t be crossed when it comes to possessiveness and Mason definitely steps over that line a few times.
There’s definitely chemistry between Nina and Mase, but I think they both could benefit from working on themselves as individuals before committing to a relationship. And learning to be more open, communicative and trusting, not keeping things bottled up or hidden. They’re both immature in their own ways and it’s really apparent when they’re together since they can call out the other’s shortcomings but don’t recognize their own. They’re frustrating to read at times.
The cliffhanger at the end of this book definitely highlights Nina and Mason’s mutual need to work on their communication as a couple, but also has me wondering where this story is going to go and how they’ll have to work to figure everything out that’s happened between them so far. Overall, I think this is a good debut novel from J.C. Hawke but I’m really hoping for some continued character growth in the second half of this duet!