A workplace romance, this books follows Ember through lies leading to shenanigans in work and romance.

This book was really sweet, hit all the right buttons for a romcom. Highly recommend.

Ember Lee Cardinal is tired of rejection letters and decides to tweak her résumé—and her racial identity—to land a corporate accounting job in Oklahoma City. Things get even more complicated when she falls for Danuwoa, the charming IT guy at work, all while navigating a strict no-dating policy and a growing web of lies.

This book is both hilarious and heartfelt. Ember's journey is messy, relatable, and filled with moments that will make you laugh and cringe in equal measure. The chemistry between Ember and Danuwoa is electric, and their story unfolds with authenticity and warmth.

This book was written for you if:
1. You're into workplace romances with a twist.
2. You appreciate stories that tackle identity and cultural nuances with humor.
3. You enjoy rooting for a protagonist who's a lovable hot mess.

I'm officially declaring Danica Nava an auto-buy author! As someone whose husband works as an art writer focused on Native American artists, I was immediately drawn to this story when I heard it was the first rom-com by a Native author. I loved the premise too: Ember Lee Cardinal, a Chickasaw woman. tells a "half-lie" about her ethnicity on job applications after facing rejection after rejection.

The way Nava tackles workplace discrimination while keeping the story light and romantic is brilliant. Ember's secret relationship with fellow Native coworker Danuwoa had me completely invested—their chemistry was off the charts. When they get caught and the blackmail plot kicks in, I couldn't put it down. Watching Ember navigate these increasingly complicated lies while falling deeper in love created such wonderful tension.

What really made this special was how it balanced important conversations about identity with genuinely funny moments and swoon-worthy romance. If you're looking for a rom-com with depth, heart, and characters that feel incredibly real, pick this one up immediately. So glad I discovered this author—can't wait to read everything else she writes.

3.75 ⭐

Danica Nava's debut was a treat with a unique storyline. Ember lies on her resume in order to get a better paying job, succeeds in getting the job and keeps running into a stunning man from IT, Danuwoa. The problem is that Ember truly cannot stop lying. Chaos ensues. I loved this book initially, but the amount of extra steps she took to "keep up" her lies stressed me out. GIRL. STOP!!

I loved the workplace romance aspect, despite the fact that there wasn't a ton of yearning throughout. The romance was satisfying and once Ember broke down and finally came clean the two of them truly connected. That final resolution made me kick my feet giggling. I love how their interactions felt so genuine in dealing with finding a meaningful connecting in someone who has a semi-shared background and their love for their families. They both navigate a lot of issues together and end up drawing closer to each other in the end.


✨ Workplace Romance
✨ Friends to Lovers
✨ OwnVoices Native RomCom - Chickasaw rep
✨ Lying as a major plot point

Thank you so much to NetGalley & Berkley Romance for an eARC of The Truth According to Ember by Danica Nava.

Thank you so much to @berkleyromance and @prhaudio for my gifted copies of The Truth According to Ember, by Danica Nava.

This is a very sweet and light toned romance that also covers some very genuine and legitimate topics.

Ember is half Native American (Chickasaw) & half white. She notes a trend that her job applications noting her Native background all get disregarded, and so when applying for an accounting assistant position, she checks off the “white” option only. Ember has also not finished her associates degree to receive the certificate needed for this job, but after compensating for her younger brother’s jail bond (which he skipped out on) Ember is desperate to reclaim what rightfully could be hers one day NOW, and she wants financial independence so badly.

These small lies feel harmless at first, but as most lies do, they snowball for her and leak into every aspect of her life. This becomes especially complicated when she starts falling for an IT specialist at her job, Danuwoa, who is a fellow Native.

I overall enjoyed this read! I thought it did a nice job of tackling both racism and sexism that can unfold in corporate workplaces. It also highlights so many of the natural (and very inequitable) setbacks that folks of Native backgrounds face, including the extra steps and hoops they must jump through both educationally and professionally. Ember’s lies carrying through the majority of the story was STRESSFUL… there were times I wanted to shake her by the shoulders… but the truth is (no pun intended lol), lies like this happen for people, and the way one may get lost in them and allow it to change them did too. The desperation for her to come clean was genuine, and I hated how it seeped into the foundation for her connection with Danuwoa, but I also felt resolution to this storyline was truly satisfying and a release of pent of stress and breath.

One thing about this book is that the chemistry between Ember and Danuwoa could have been stronger for me. I truly liked both MC’s but I felt their connection/chemistry to be a bit lacking, even at their peak. I wish this wasn’t the case because the backgrounds and personalities of the characters were likable — but I wasn’t getting butterflies from them, and I wasn’t yearning for their love to blossom the way I prefer when reading a romance. That being said, I generally did enjoy them together, but I felt the coming-of-age aspects of the story outshined the steam/spice/romance of the story.

Lastly, the author’s note was beautiful, and it helped elevate my connection to the story overall. I loved the personal connection that Danica had in writing Ember’s character, and I love her desire to see Native romance and the rom com genre represented. It felt special to read this for that reason, and I will be excited to try more from her.

Rating: 3.75 ⭐️
Spice: 2.5 🌶️

I enjoyed reading "The Truth According to Ember" by Danica Nava. The romance plot fell a bit short for me because the main female character often lied making it difficult for me to connect with her. But I did enjoy the unique plot, pacing, and office, family and friend dynamics throughout the story. I am looking forward to reading more from this debut author.

It flabbergasts me that it took until 2024 to get a big five published OwnVoices Native rom-com! However, congratulations to Danica Nava for making history with The Truth According To Ember. Friends, I truly enjoy this book. It was a fun romp with delightful characters and a superb romance with some real serious threads too. So, all of the things that instantly appeal to what I like to read. After finishing up this book, I immediately went and added Love Is A War Song to my wishlist — and plan to order it during the next B&N preorder sale.

Danica Nava’s The Truth According To Ember follows Ember Lee Cardinal who is a Chickasaw woman who is working a dead end job at a bowling alley with her best friend. Ember dreams of working in accounting, however, she has not finished college and does not have a degree. Also, Ember keeps checking the box for Native American on her job applications. One day, she decides she is going to check the box for white instead. It turns out, she lands a job interview. While on the way, she meets a very handsome Native man, Danuwoa Colson, whom she expects to never see again. Only, he’s going into the same building as her, and it turns out he works for the company she wants to work for. So, Ember lands the job, but its only after she lies about her ethnicity as well as actually having a degree. But, reflective to real life, she didn’t actually need the degree to do the job, she just needed it for the foot in the door and learns by doing.

Ember lands a sweet promotion because she has grit and is smart and hardworking. However, she’s also still lying about a few things and those lies just may come back to bite her in the ass. And as time goes on in her new job, she has to continue fighting her attraction to Danuwoa — given there’s a rule against fraternization within the company. So, Ember is navigating a whole lot.

I truly ate up The Truth According To Ember. Although Ember has some struggles with honesty, it isn’t from a place of being a deceitful person. It’s because she has some shame and humiliation, initially around some aspects of her life. She’s in poverty. She doesn’t live the middle class lifestyle. She did not graduate college. Ember also has a brother who was recently incarcerated. Her family history is tough too. But, she has some wonderful supports as well — her best friend, her aunt, her community. I very much enjoyed reading about Ember and inhabiting her world for a little bit. Also, Danuwoa is the best. He is for sure a worthy love interest for Ember. Danica Nava’s debut is wonderfully paced, interesting, and has sparkling chemistry between the love interests. I cannot recommend this book highly enough, please add it to your TBR immediately!

I really REALLY really wanted to like this one.

Unfortunately, this just wasn't for me. I even tried listening to audiobook after it was published. It's not you, it's DEFINITELY me.

3 star for representation and synopsis. I didn't make it far (read about 20%) and I know this book will be loved by so many.

I wanted to like this book a lot more than I actually did. Danica Nava's writing was great, but I just couldn't get over all of Ember's ridiculous lies. It made for a tense reading experience, which I didn't love. I also would have liked to see a bit more development in the romance between Ember and Danuwoa. I did, however, enjoy all the insights into Ember's culture. While this book wasn't for me, I'll still pick up the next book Nava writes.

This was a great debut! I am excited to read more from this author. It was really great reading about indigenous experiences. The main character was flawed and her arc grew as the book carried on. I wish we would have seen a but more romance but overall a good read

*3.5 Rounded up to 4 Stars*

THE PLOT
Debut author Danica Nava introduces us to Ember Lee Cardinal, a Chickasaw woman who is down on her luck and feeling like it’s time to do things a little differently. Thirty seven job rejections won’t deter her, she’s on a mission to get out of working at the local bowling alley where everybody knows your name but scrubbing toilets is not endgame. Ember has taken some accounting courses but she hasn’t finished any of them and isn’t certified in the field. This however, doesn’t stop her from applying to her dream accounting job in the Park Avenue area of Oklahoma City. Ember employs some creativity while applying for this position by changing her race, for this job she is white Ember who is further along with her accounting experience and qualifications. Ember’s resumé is selected for an interview and before she knows it, she has snagged a corporate job as an accounting assistant. She decides to go for it and improvise along the way but also continue the lie and then lie some more, she’s actually pretty good at it until she crosses paths with the IT guy Danuwoa Colson. A fellow Native American working for the same company, Danuwoa is beautiful to look at. He isn’t hiding his race but in their flirting he’s kind of letting on that her lies don’t add up, at least not to him but he’s game to play along.

THOUGHTS
Was this a little stressful at times to read? yea just a bit but in a fun and for some may be a bit unrealistic. Although it may not seem like something that happens, Ember’s situation is not at all unheard of. I’ve been on the receiving end of rejection in a room full of white hopeful interviewees while being the only Latinx applicant. To say or think that racism and prejudices don’t rear their ugly heads during the interviewing of applicants is unreal. I found it more unlikely to not have been caught earlier but Ember is quick thinking and resourceful, she was killing it in this new role. Ethically she should’ve completed her courses but I gave her kudos all the way for using what she had learned up until that point and super exceeding expectations. At her new workplace we see Ember navigate microagressions aimed at some of her co-workers from different ethnic backgrounds. She isn’t above checking the higher ups for their racist remarks and for that alone I loved Ember. I rounded up from a 3.5 to 4 stars simply because although I enjoyed my time watching Ember wiggle her way out of tough moments where her lies came dangerously close to being uncovered, it was perhaps too much time. There is a no-dating policy at work but that doesn’t stop them from gravitating towards one another. Dan provided a different perspective by openly embracing his race and not really caring if it made others uncomfortable. I wanted more time spent between Ember and Danuwoa, especially since Dan didn’t judge her for how she got her foot in the door. If anything he seemed entertained by her scheming 😂 which hey! we love a King who loves you for you! I’ll be keeping an eye out for more from Danica Nava 💜

This was a wonderful contemporary romance, where the story centers around FMC Ember, an indigenous woman, who works in publishing.

I thought this was such a great debut, with so many funny moments! I paired the book with the audiobook and loved the narration.

WHAT TO EXPECT
-workplace romance
-romcom
-inner monologue
-Chickasaw representation

*many thanks to Berkley, PRH audio and Netgalley for the gifted copy for review

The Truth According to Ember is the debut from author Danica Nava and is a fun office rom-com. It follows Ember who has been having a hard time getting a job, so after many rejections she decides to embellish her qualifications and checked the box for "white" instead of "Native American". But those little white lies end up snow balling into a whole string of lies. She ends up getting the job of her dreams as an accountant and immediately meets the cute IT guy, Danuwoa. With her job going well and sparks flying with Danuwoa, her life couldn't be better. That is till she gets caught up in her lies and she has to choose between continuing the story she's been spinning to everyone or actually telling the truth and probably loose everything she's been building in the process.

I had a lot of fun reading this book, even if it was hard sometimes to not cringe at Ember's lies. I know that was the point, but dang it was hard at times. I absolutely loved Danuwoa's character and he was one of the big highlights of this book. While there were times the pacing of the book seemed a little off, I still enjoyed reading this book and I'm excited to read more by this author.

This was a good romance with somewhat of a unique storyline. Ember's basically just trying to make a better life for herself with the tools she has and runs into love along the way. I like that the book touches on unjust power dynamics in the workplace.

I liked that the main characters in this book weren't white for once in an office/corporate romance. I found myself really rooting for Ember and Dan. And there was some great spice!

I HATED the miscommunication though. I know it was mostly Ember's personality. But all of the lying and then not just telling the truth felt a little juvenile. She created so many issues for herself over and over again.

Thank you to Netgalley and the Publishing Company for this Advanced Readers Copy of The Truth According to Ember by Danica Nava!

An indigenous story by an indigenous author! This story was real and brutal at times but it beautiful and fun!
Ember is…. Complicated but don’t let that push you away. She is as real as a fictional character can get and yes she lies a bit and might be a tad naive, but I can tell you we’ve all done the same things she has. Struggling through a series of dead end jobs, a degree in the works but no end in sight she does what we all do on our resumes, she fibs. She lands a job and in comes the romance. I’ll end that there, spoiler free but I’ll say this Danica Nava knew what she was doing.
This story while a romance does not shy away from the racism and misogyny that exists in the work place especially for indigenous women.

I love the Native American representation and the rom-com-esque premise, but the romance ultimately didn’t do it for me.

The Truth According to Ember starts out with Ember in desperate need of a better job; she’s so desperate, in fact, that she lies about her experience on her resume and sends it in. Lo and behold, she gets the job. Ember is thrilled but nervous, especially because the job seems to come with very attractive IT guy Danuwoa — who Ember starts to date, even as her lies get murkier and murkier.

The plot is pretty much what you’d expect; from the start you know that it’s a car crash waiting to happen and that all her lies will come back to bite her in the end. I don’t mind this at all, but it’s one of the reasons why the romance didn’t work for me.

Even though Ember’s lies were looming over us, it felt very disconnected from their growing relationship. Danuwoa and Ember’s romance at the start felt, in a way, too easy. They met and liked each other pretty much right away, and then started to date. Character-wise, Danuwoa felt very thin when written from Ember’s perspective; I didn’t feel like I knew him outside of his job, his jokes, and his good looks. I wish Ember was written as a more careful and thoughtful character so there could be more tension in their relationship, and it would’ve progressed more slowly, allowing the relationship to feel more high-stakes, and the ultimate fallout to feel more impactful.

Outside of the romance, I felt like the plots and subplots were a little too on-the-nose sometimes. Bad characters are extremely bad, and they got their comeuppance in a way that was a little bit too dramatic.

Overall, I think this is a fun read but it really felt targeted to a younger audience than me. The writing style is easy to read, but the story and characters didn’t quite click.

I was not the reader for this title, but it is one that I will recommend to romance-loving patrons at the library.

This book was just too stressful for me, I could not enjoy any of it. If the constant lying doesn't bother you than you may like it.