In If Tomorrow Never Comes, author Allison Ashley sets up a really tangled ethical dilemma for her main characters and then lets them loose to see if they can work it out. Spoiler alert – it’s a romance so they do, but the dilemma is real, the threads are complicated and there’s a lot for them to navigate.

Elliot and Jamie meet in a bar and share a connection far stronger than either of them have ever experienced. After spending one memorable evening together (with all the emotions and one delicious kiss), Elliot – our heroine – disappears on Jamie. The following day she has a stem cell transplant in her treatment for leukaemia. Cut to twelve months later and Elliot finds out that her donor, Carly, is Jamie’s girlfriend. This isn’t all though; Jamie has family baggage around loyalty and monogamy, and of course for Elliot, her transplant, while cause for optimism, is an uncertain cure.

Alongside the exploration of all their guilt, the additions of their becoming neighbours, the wonderful Hank the Labrador, a delicious bakery, secondary characters including Jamie’s older sister, small town Nebraska and lots of detail, this is a vivid and humorous read. Even though it’s fade to black, we are in no doubt about Jamie and Elliot’s chemistry and their emotional connection. Still, the challenges for these two are complicated and real – they both feel loyal to Carly and the longer they hide their feelings, the worse it gets.

Elliot is, quite simply, amazing. She navigates her need to work, to build a normal life, to be more than just a cancer-patient, to not be suffocated by her well-meaning family and to have a fulfilling romantic life. Jamie is a bit of an emotional numpty and a sadsack, but it’s understandable, given his backstory (which gradually unfolds). Jamie is the weakest link in the book and is what has stopped me giving it an A.

This romance works because the author is so adept at letting the characters drive the plot. Her books are often set in the medical world and she knows her stuff. Elliot’s cancer is obviously a key part of the story, but it doesn’t overshadow everything else. it’s angsty, but not miserable.

If you like Abby Jimenez and Katherine Center, Allison Ashley’s romances are just as deft and heartfelt. Recommended!