I received this book as an ARC from NetGalley.

Frannie Willets sacrificed herself to save Lexi Maddox from going to jail. A decision was made and now Frannie is going to jail for five years to pay for that crime. Now, Frannie is out of jail and she needs to get the stolen goods back from Lexi. She has not spoken to or seen Lexi since she left her in the motel room to protect her from the law. At their meeting - Lexi agrees to give Frannie all the cash they stole - not 50% as originally agreed. However, Frannie has to stay in town and reconnect with Lexi and her new family for one month. Lexi has already lined up a job and a place for her to stay (so she stays in compliance of her probation) and she will give all the money up.

The longer Frannie stays, she is not sure if she can leave. However, she also feels like she does not deserve this new life. As the story unfolds, back and forth in time to provide the backstory, nothing is as it seems.

A wonderful story of love, friendship, and how to overcome difficulties in life.

This book was absolutely addicting and I literally didn’t want to stop reading! It was a little slow in the beginning but once it picked up I was hooked.

This book straddles a fine line between being a serious approach to trauma and being a book with a growth arc for the characters that leads it to happily-ever-afters.
It felt hard to put it in any particular box. We have two estranged best friends who are back in the same city under duress - at least on Franny's part. When she pled guilty five years ago to having stolen some money and was then sent to jail, she purposefully kept her distance from Lexi.
Lexi might know the secret to the rest of the missing cash, but she wants her friend back first. There is a lot riding on the time that Franny has earmarked to get the money back to the original owner to save everyone and then leave so that she can longer adversely affect the people she cares about.
This situation also has Lexi's current family life, with a stepdaughter who is keeping her at arm's length and two macho men who just want to protect their women!
We get to hear both voices and in between, the story of what happened all those years ago is revealed in bits and pieces. There are things in this book that should have come with a trigger warning. I am not used to providing them for my reviews, so I will leave it at that to not take away from the plot.
I think people who like this particular genre, with some tough characters who struggle to reach their goals, will appreciate this story better than I did.
I received an ARC thanks to Netgalley and the publishers, but the review is entirely based on my own reading experience.

I really enjoyed this authors writing style. The theme of this book is all about friendship. Lots of twists and turns and definately held my interest all the way through.

Best friends forever, or so they hoped as kids. Lexi and Frankie have been best friends since Lexi moved to town, until one fateful night changed everything. Can they get back to where they once were? Do they want to? Such a good read, full of emotion and family drama.

*trigger warning of sexual assault*

I received a complimentary copy of this book. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own. Thank you NetGalley, Nancy Yeager and Red Adept Publishing LLC. for hearing my honest review. Looking forward to reading more with you
#partner

Before I started reading this book I had heard from other readers how they had enjoyed it. So I decided to give it a chance and I’m so glad I did because I loved it. I was hooked!! I couldn’t and didn’t want to put it down until I was at the end of the book.

The tale of just how far you would go to save and protect a friend. Jail. The answer in this case, is, you would go to jail. Frannie did a stint in prison for helping (and covering for) her BFF Lexi in a robbery. Fresh out of "the joint" Frannie needs her half of the heist to start somewhere fresh - far away from everyone. This is a very sweet book - and it's chock full of love, crime, a touch of passion and a nice dose of come uppance. I enjoyed When We Were Friends and was given digital copy of this fabulous book by Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

I liked this book for the most part. Felt sympathy for Frannie a bit, though they all made dumb mistakes. Glad everything resolved in the end.

Best Friends Forever is the main thing that really stands out in this book. I thoroughly enjoyed it. I loved the flashbacks to past events that enriched the story even more. Loved the Epilogue at the end!
This books stays with you after the last word is read and you think about how far would you go to save your Best Friend! Thanks to #Netgalley for the ARC!!!!

This was a good coming of age story, even if delayed by a prison sentence. It really shows how far would you go for a friendship. This was my first book by Nancy Yeager but certainly won’t be my last.

Really interesting deep dive into the nature of friendship, and how its limits can be tested. Having the different perspectives and the flashbacks was useful as I got to know the two protagonists and sought to understand why they did what they did.

Frannie Willets and Lexi Maddox were the best of friends until a criminal act came between them. Frannie has spent the last five years incarcerated due to committing grand larceny. Frannie and Lexi are living vastly different lives as Frannie has been imprisoned and Lexi has a husband and a stepdaughter. Lexi is trying to rekindle the friendship with Frannie as she is a very important component of why the crime was completed. Frannie however, is interested in obtaining the money she’s owed, biding her time on parole until she can leave for a different environment. What was the underlying reason for the crime, why does Lexi feel so guilty and will their friendship survive? These are all questions that plagued me as I read through the story. Never fear, all will be answered. This was an enjoyable, easy to read book about two friends and their trials and tribulations across time. Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for the advance review copy in exchange for my honest review.

What would you do for your best friend? Would you go to prison for her? This is my first book by this author but not the last. It is fast read, with twists and turns and community coming together to protect one another. The author does a great job of character building with both women. You start to see things threw their eyes, and wonder if you would do the same thing for a close friend or sister?

After five years in prison Frannie just wants the money, she is owed and move forward with what's left of her life. However, Lexi her friend went to prison for and also the one holding the money she wants, asks her stay in town where she lives for one month. Lexi only wants to make amends for the friend she misses but fears the only thing her friend wants is the money.

While Frannie is in town, she is forced to face the past that she is desperate to run from. She gets tangled up in in Lexi's new life and sees she is not the only one that suffered. Can she put the pieces back together and move on from the past or can she face it and learn how to be a friend again?

Thank you to NetGalley and Red Adept Publishing for a copy of this book for my honest review.

Thank you so much for the publisher for allowing me to read this book, I thought it was really good! I am excited when this comes out and I can add this to my collection.

Based on the quick look at the summary, I thought this might be more of the thriller/suspense genre. It isn't people!! And my thinking that is all my fault. So while I was annoyed that the suspense part seemed so lowkey, I should have been appreciating the story of Frannie and Lexi's unlikely friendship. Told in two timelines, I liked the way the current timeline moved forward while the timeline in the past moved backward. I thought it provided a sweet look at how these two women came together in their childhood and why they are such strong friends. If you aren't looked for the thriller twist that never comes, you will enjoy this cozy predictable read.

"When We Were Friends" is a book about friendship and who you can trust. I would recommend this to anyone who enjoys easy-to-read books with multiple childhood flashbacks. Thanks to NetGalley for the ARC.

Francine is back in town after serving 5 years for grand larceny, she wants to meet up with Lexi take her half of what Lexi is storing and start her life over. Lexi has other plans, she asks Frannie to stay with her for six weeks, and then she’ll give her all the money and let her go.
Of course, Lexi’s life is not what it appears to be on the outside.

I love this book I loved the different points of views I love the past and present relationship between these women

Original Rating : ⭐⭐⭐.25 / 5.

It started off really well. The first portion was full of mystery, a lot of heartbreaks and redemptions. It mainly takes place in 2016 when Francesca gets out of the prison on parole after serving four long years. She goes to meet Lexi, her childhood best friend who she also protected at the cost of her own life, to collect her due and disappear from the known world for good. But Lexi can't just let her go. She's desperate to rebuild their friendship and bring happiness to Frannie's life. What happens after they both meet changes the direction of their lives forever.


'When We Were Friends' is a pretty good read minus the unrealistic parts. The characters are likable; the storyline intriguing but sometimes their behaviours were too immature and over the top for me to digest. Seth is my most favourite character, only second to Frannie. She knew what she wanted, what she was endangering and yet pursued her plans if it meant keeping her loved ones save. Seth was probably written in a way to make readers fall in love with him and I did. He is cool, calm and collected and I just love how charismatic he is. Rob is nice once you get to know him. He's overprotective but everyone who went through what he did, would be. The only person I didn't like so much was Lexi and with proper reasons.


The timeline changes a couple of times that gives us a basic idea on their past. There were a lot going on and I wish Nancy had focused on the very tragedy and executed that bit with more depth. The ending was unsatisfactory and it took away a lot of good feelings that I had when I first started the book. To sum up, it's a lovely read, especially for people like me who love heartaches but not one I would pick up for a second time.

A couple of friends reunite 5 years after high school where they had promised to be best friends forever. We learn early on why Frannie and Lexi grew apart, and discover along the way what true friendship really is. The only reason that this is not a 5 star review for me is that the childhood flashbacks enter moments of cheesiness. This is the story of the outcast, and becomes an opportunity for reinvention. Thanks to NetGalley for the read.

There was so much more to this book than I realized going into it. This book examined how close friendships are and the trials and tribulations they can go through.

Five years ago Frannie committed a crime to help her friend. While they committed it together, Frannie hid Lexi’s involvement so she could have a normal happy life. After seving 4 years, Frannie is out on parole and she seeks out Lexi. Not to rekindle their friendship, but to reclaim the money that they stole and Lexi stashed. Lexi wants her friend back and strikes a bargain with her, Frannie stays for a month, then she’ll give her the cash. As the story progresses we learn that Lexi’s picture perfect life isn’t exactly that, and Frannie just desperately wants connections. When the month is up, will Frannie stay? Or will she say goodbye once and for all?

The relationship between Frannie and Lexi was beautiful. I was not a fan of the flashbacks at first, and really a few seemed unnecessary, but overall, they really did peel back the layers of how friendship starts and develops. Also, bonus points to Frannie and Lexi striking up conversations and starting their friendship based on their love to read. Loved that! This book was well developed female friendship and thought out and I completely adored it.

Special thanks to @netgally, the publishers Red Adept Publishing, and XPresso Book Tours for gifting me this published e-book in exchange for an honest review. This one is out now so check it out!