Robyn Crawford is to publish a memoir about her relationship with the late soul-pop star Whitney Houston.

The book will mark the first time Crawford has spoken publicly about what a press release describes as “the moving and often complicated story of her life and relationship with Whitney” since the star’s death in 2012.

The nature of the bond between the two women, who met as teenagers in the 1980s, has long been the subject of speculation. Two documentaries about Houston’s life affirmed the star’s bisexuality and acknowledged the existence of a romantic relationship between Houston and Crawford.

In Nick Broomfield’s Whitney: Can I Be Me, Houston’s former bodyguard said that Crawford and Houston’s husband, Bobby Brown, would have physical fights over their respective relationships with Houston, resulting in Crawford’s expulsion from Houston’s inner circle.

A Song for You: My Life With Whitney Houston is described by publisher Dutton as “the vital, honest and previously untold story that provides an understanding of the complex life of Whitney Houston”.

Houston was found unconscious at the Beverly Hilton Hotel in Los Angeles, submerged in the bath. The coroner declared Houston’s death an accident, citing death by drowning and the “effects of atherosclerotic heart disease and cocaine use”.

Crawford’s memoir may offer the latest posthumous revelations about Houston’s life. Kevin Macdonald’s documentary, Whitney, alleged that Houston was abused by her cousin Dee Dee Warwick, the late sister of Dionne Warwick. Warwick and Houston’s mother, Cissy Houston, published a joint statement describing the claims as “unfathomable”.

Penguin imprint Dutton will publish A Song for You: My Life With Whitney Houston in November.