Have you ever read a romance that leaves you feeling glad all over? Can’t Let Her Go is warm, tenderhearted and cheerful; a great story about friends who figure out how to fall in love without losing the spark of their friendship.

Barber shop owner Patricia – Peaches – Monroe and nail tech and chemistry student Jamie Hunt have been best friends for ages. They and their other buds, Claudia, Taylor and Aiko and Summer (Can’t Resist Her) have been through everything together, and their joint friendship means everything to them. But Peaches and Jamie have always been tempted by one another in the romantic and sexual department.

Deciding to test out how how they might work as lovers and potential mates, Peaches accompanies Jamie on a road trip to Houston, far from their San Antonio neighborhood. While they take their time journeying across Texas, they’re given the opportunity to act on their attraction and also see if they have a forever thing between them. But will family and job pressures tear them apart for good?

I loved this romantic, well-paced swooner of a novel. Peaches is so relatable; stuck being the support figure for her family in the wake of her mother’s death and wanting to fly free, she’s a delight of a woman. Jamie’s asking herself some big questions – does she want to be a nail tech or a chemist? Where does she truly belong? Peaches helps her answer them. The romance between them flows naturally from friendship to lovers, and their connection is lovely and sensual.Their strong friendships with their friends group – which is beautifully varied – absolutely provides another highlight and made me want to reread Can’t Resist Her.

The only thing that keeps this from being a flat-out A is some late-book miscommunication issues. We’ve been there and seen that before, and both characters deserved a more interesting stumbling block for their love. But overall, Can’t Let Her Go is a beautiful romance. And it’s definitely made me look forward to Claudia and Taylor’s book.