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“Then I detached. I floated above myself, spiriting away from the pain that rippled through me. It stunned me and paralyzed me. Faintly, I could hear the roar of the crowd in my ears, and the rubber smell of the basketball filled my nostrils.”

What happens when lies and the truth start blending together? Will the fear of the consequences outweigh what is morally right and justified? Do you begin to consider the ramifications of every action you make from this point forward and its effect on not just yourself but on others as well? How do you move forward when you have been violated (body, heart, and soul) by the one person you should be able to trust? Nets and Lies is a journey of two girls, who could not be any more different from each other, and how their lives have become impacted by tragedy and the actions of jealousy.

“I choked off a sob. He wasn’t even sorry that’d he…raped me.”

Melanie and Jordan’s journey was emotional and intense. Melanie had it all. She was “Miss Perfect” and Jordan, well Jordan, was broken in all senses of the word. Sex was her form of love. Our girl from the “wrong side of the tracks” was as far from being “Miss Perfect” as you could get. Each girl had her struggle and her own reason for the lie that was told. One out of jealousy, the other out of fear for the lives it would destroy around her. Both however, told them out of protection. There was a strong need to protect the heart, to protect those you love and even to protect the one who wrecked your world.

Melanie finally breaks under the pressure of trying to hide the vileness that happened to her. The lies she told for protection began to surface resulting in the truth being revealed. Mel can no longer go on pretending the violation never happened while also justifying her reasons for protecting her assailant. Her body and mind were no longer able to hold themselves together. Melanie struggled with pretend strength and courage, convincing herself she was doing the right thing. All of this turmoil and angst ends up pulling her under and causing a mental break down. My heart broke even more for her as I watched Melanie's struggle to grip her reality in a new light. Her life and her relationships are no longer the same. Katie grabbed my heart and held on tight through Melanie’s recovery. I could barely read the words through my tears.

Jordan spoke to me. I was not as emotional over her, well I guess I cannot really say that because I was, just not in the same sense. She hit to close to home for me. Her character became a personal reflection. I immediately connected with her. When a person comes from a broken home you tend to understand the characters who appear broken or feel as though they are not worthy of anyone's love and attention. Their behaviors and actions while to others may seem extremely stupid or just plain morally wrong always have some underlying meaning behind them. These characters grip me the most. Their struggles and their success mean more. It is not an easy road to travel when you have lived a life like this. Your journey is harder and longer. The circle is even harder to break, and when you do, your success becomes that much more meaningful. I empathized with Jordan allowing me to connect on a deeper level with her character, while I was only able to sympathize with Melanie.

"Sometimes the shit we go through does have a purpose. If we're truly honest with ourselves, we can use that purpose to change our life for the better, not the worse."

The ending was written to perfection, in my humble opinion. I could not have been any happier with the way things came together for these our heroines. I adored seeing Melanie and Jordan learn to understand and show compassion towards each other and their choices. No grudges held, even the possibilities of a friendship. In the end, they stood together and made the right decisions. Katie also gave a great sense of completion and happiness within the characters and their relationships that formed throughout the book. The story is heart wrenching, it is emotionally intense, and it can be an uncomfortable read at some parts. With that being said, it is totally worth it.

Katie Ashley is a FREAKING GENIUS! I have been in an awful book funk and this book blew my socks off with its angst and its emotional intensity. I devoured every single word as though it was the last. Katie showed me with Net & Lies, she not only can write fun, steamy, romances but also books with deep emotional tough topics. I was able to feel a wide range of emotions, some even pushed me a bit out of my comfort zone. I stayed connected and invested through the entire story. 

Thank you so much Katie for the opportunity to experience Melanie and Jordan. I was given this book by the author for an honest review.


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Katie Ashley is the New York Times Best-Selling author of The Proposition. She lives outside of Atlanta, Georgia with her two very spoiled dogs and one outnumbered cat. She has a slight obsession with Pinterest, The Golden Girls, Shakespeare, Supernatural, Veronica Mars, Designing Women, and Scooby-Doo.With a BA in English, a BS in Secondary English Education, and a Masters in Adolescent English Education, she has spent the last eleven years teaching both middle and high school English.

As of January 2013, she is a full-time writer. She also writes Young Adult under her real name, Krista Ashe

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