Karin,
First and foremost, I love the title of your book and looking forward to reading it.

Some will say you cannot be both a boss and a friend, but I will disagree with that statement. I have an imperfect boss, but I want to acknowledge him as one of the most awesome managers I have worked for during my career.

My manager and I have worked together for more than 17 years and I consider him one of my closest friends, and I know he feels the same for me.  Would he terminate me if warranted?  In a heart beat!  He has never mixed our friendship with work, but I know he has my back 100% - as I do his.

There is something to say about relationships like ours.  Along with two other managers, we collectively run an IT Department that is consistently recognized in various media outlets as a leader in the industry with hardly any staff turnover.