We Were Kings by Court Stevens {Book Review}

**I received a complimentary copy for consideration. All thoughts are my own. 

A twenty-year-old crime, an accelerated death penalty, and an elitist family cover-up: Nyla races against the death row clock to save a woman the world is rooting for . . . and against. Which side will you choose?

Twenty years ago, eighteen-year-old Francis Quick was convicted of murdering her best friend, Cora King, and sentenced to death. Now the highly debated Accelerated Death Penalty Act has passed giving Frankie thirty final days to live. Surprising everyone, one of the King family members sets out to challenge the woefully inadequate evidence and potential innocence of Frankie Quick.

The at-first reluctant but soon-fiery Nyla and her unexpected ally—handsome country island boy Sam Stack—bring Frankie’s case to the international stage through her YouTube channel, Death Daze. They step into fame and a hometown battle that someone’s still willing to kill over. But who? The senator? The philanthropist? The pawn shop owner? Nyla’s own mother?

Best advice: Don’t go to family dinner at the Kings’ estate. More people will leave in body bags than on their own two feet. And as for Frankie Quick, she’s a gem . . . even if she’s guilty.

Court Stevens grew up among rivers, cornfields, churches, and gossip in the small-town South. She is a former adjunct professor, youth minister, and Olympic torchbearer. These days she writes coming-of-truth fiction and is the community outreach manager for Warren County Public Library in Kentucky. She has a pet whale named Herman, a bandsaw named Rex, and several novels with her name on the spine: The June Boys, Faking Normal, The Lies About Truth, the e-novella The Blue-Haired Boy, Dress Codes for Small Towns, and Four Three Two One. Find Court online at CourtneyCStevens.com; Instagram: @quartland; Facebook: @CourtneyCStevens; Twitter: @quartland.

While We Were Kings might be listed as a young adult novel, but personally I found that as a 30-something I found myself enjoying it very much. To be honest, I didn't think it read much like a young adult novel at all. The main character was 18, but at times it was certainly easy to forget that as she did seem just a bit older than that. As such, I think this is one story that could definitely appeal to a variety of ages with an intriguing story that draws the reader in right from the beginning. This is a story that is full of secrets and mystery that are coming to light after 20 years, and is full of twists and turns that kept me turning the pages to see what would happen next. I will admit that I saw some of the twists coming, but it didn't change my enjoyment of the story and my interest to see how it would all play out. I found it to be a very quick read, and one that I thoroughly enjoyed. If you enjoy a good mystery with lots of family secrets, this is one not to be missed!