Well the author announced that this is getting pulled from publication after everything that has come out about them. So, I’m going to go ahead and not spend my time reading this. Especially since If I Stopped Haunting You was bad…

In light of recent events, I will not be reviewing this title. The allegations against this author are heinous and I am glad it is being pulled from publication.

Thank you net galley for the arc. I will no longer be reviewing this book because of evidence comimg forward about the author lying about her native identity.

Given the recent allegations and subsequent response from Colby Wilkens that this title will no longer be published, I will not be reading and reviewing it. Rating for the sake of not damaging my feedback ratio over a title pulled from the publishing calendar. Should things be resolved in a manor deemed satisfactory by the marginalized community affected, I will revisit in the future.

Because this book's publication has been canceled. I am leaving this review. Choosing the "I will not be giving feedback for this book" option would impact my ratio negatively, which is not fair given the circumstances.

The Tribal Alliance Against Frauds (TAAF) has reportedly looked 10 generations deep into Wilkens' family history and was unable to identify a Native ancestor.

Given the recent allegations and subsequent response from Colby Wilkens that this title will no longer be published, I will not be reading and reviewing it. Rating for the sake of not damaging my feedback ratio over a title pulled from the publishing calendar. Should things be resolved in a manor deemed satisfactory by the marginalized community affected, I will revisit in the future.

In light of the allegations that have come out against Colby Wilkens, including both her indigenous heritage (or lack thereof) and her mistreatment of fellow authors, as well as the announcement that If I Dig You has been pulled from publication, I will no longer be reading or providing a formal review for this title.

Will not be giving feedback after claims made by the authors friends about lying about heritage. I think this is really poor behavior and do not want to be associated with it

I requested this because the idea of a Native Indiana Jones-type protagonist sounded so cool. Plus, that cover is gorgeous! Ultimately, though, I like romantic suspense to be heavier on the suspense and lighter on the steam, and this was definitely a very steamy read.

However, one thing this book did nail was the Indiana Jones/National Treasure vibes. I really enjoyed the treasure-hunting plot, and the discussions of Cherokee history and restoring artifacts to the communities they belonged to. Plus, the friends-to-lovers angst between Isi and Louise was well done.

Definitely recommend for anyone looking for a high-heat treasure-hunting romantic suspense.

**EDIT: Due to the allegations about Colby Wilkens not being Native, especially given the clear statement from the Cherokee Nation, the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians, and the United Keetoowah Band of Cherokee Indians on who is allowed to claim Cherokee identity, I have removed my rating from Goodreads. I do not wish to support white authors who unjustly claim Native heritage. I will leave my original review up for archival purposes.

I will not be reading this book due to the authors unethical and damaging behavior. I hope that they come forward with a sincere apology though I'm not sure based on their choices that they will.

I was so excited to read this book as it sounded just up my alley but it has now came out that this author is falsifying her ethnicity so I will no longer be reading this.

DNF'd

I am off put by the authors refusal to respond to call outs around identity. I was excited as can be to read this and debut book. The premise of both sounded delightful.

Two best friends, Isi & Louise, are both archeologists who are in love with each other but refuse to confess their feelings for fear of ruining their friendship. Isi is also still dealing with the mystery of what happened to her mother when she discovers a breakthrough... and then promptly gets kidnapped with Louise. This leads the two on an actual treasure hunting adventure where the try to figure out what happened to Isi's mother while also bridging the gap from friends to lovers.

This was the perfect balance of romance, mystery, and adventure. Once the story got going it never stopped and very chapter was full of action that kept you interested and wanting to keep reading. The whole book felt like a fun spin on Indiana Jones while also confronting issues of people taking historical artifacts that don't belong to them for "preservation" purposes. While I personally was hoping for a different end result when it came to what happened to Isi's mother, it was probably the most logical. I also think it would have been interesting to get more insight to her mother and maybe have the book flash back and forth between the past when her mother is searching for the treasure, and the present. Overall this was a very enjoyable, well balanced read.

It’s come to my attention that this author has been misidentifying as Cherokee and Choctaw despite not having sufficient claims to those identities. And based on that I will not be reading or reviewing this book.

It has recently come to my attention that this author was misidentifying as Cherokee and Choctaw despite not having sufficient claims to those identities. Based on that, and what I have heard and seen in other reviews about the native representation being inaccurate and even harmful, I will not be reading or reviewing this book, and recommend others to seek out real, authentic native voices as well.

It’s recently come to light that this author has misrepresented herself as Chocktaw and Cherokee and has no connections to the Native community. For that reason, I won’t be reading this book. Appropriating and exploiting an identity that’s not your own for profit is deplorable. It actively does harm to Native authors, especially those writing about their lived experiences. Please seek out books by those authors instead of this garbage.

In light of recent revelations about this author and the Cherokee representation depicted in this book, I cannot in good conscience read and dedicate time to this author's work. I would encourage readers to consider picking up books by other native authors instead and uplifting other Indigenous voices in the book community.

It has recently come out that this author might not have true connections to the Cherokee and Choctaw ancestry she claims. As a Cherokee reader and reviewer, Ive had this book on my radar doe awhile. The entire concept of Cherokee Gold is already a little suspicious, but Im willing to sit for a Cherokee person owning this.

I wish I had good news to report but this book has alarming representation. I would NOT recommend it. It is in dire need of a sensitivity read at the very least, to be completely re-written without the Native plotlines at best.

The problem with Native voices is that there are so few of us, no one knows when the representation is starkly wrong. There are lots of examples in this books I could point to, but Im not here to write an essay. I will linger on one.

This books quotes the, "there are two wolves inside of you, which do you feed?" As if it is an authentic story and not absolute fakelore. A simple Google search will reveal that this not something Cherokee people say it is made up hogwash.

Honestly, talking about it makes my blood boil. This person is appropriating a Cherokee identity and massively profiting off of it. There are people actually praising this rep. That is so painful for a Cherokee person to see.

Publishing needs to do better.

I really enjoyed this book! What a wonderful queer romance + i loved the Indiana Jones vibes! The one problem I had with this book is that it lagged quite a bit at times. I really wanted the main characters to get together and that is what kept me going. This truly felt like an adventure game which I really liked! I also LOVE any good book with a lost treasure/gold plot...but make it queer and SHEBANG I liked it. This was a solid 4 star read- and I would definitely read something else from this author!

If I Dig You is the second book by Colby Wilkens. This story is a f/f treasure hunting adventure romance. Archaeologists Isadora Ross and Louise Morgenstern have been best friends since they were teenagers. Their relationship has been hanging on by a thread since Louise, aka Lou, broke her promise to Isadora, aka Isi, broke off her engagement with Dylan, and moved across the world to Turkey for a once in a lifetime job opportunity. Upon Lou’s return move to the States, she has been trying to rekindle her relationship with Isi but it’s proving harder than she thought it would be. Isi’s mom, also a well-renowned archeologist, went missing mysteriously while on a hike and Isi is determined to learn what happened and what she was looking for. Isi discovers one of her mom’s journals that indicates the possibility of a long-lost Cherokee treasure with a map of unknown symbols. Isi and Lou end up being kidnapped by another treasure hunter and her goons as they are also on the hunt for the long-lost treasure. Being kidnapped was the best thing that could have happened to Lou and Isi as it forced them to traverse their feelings for one another that they have been keeping under lock and key from the moment they met. Lou and Isi must work together to ensure they locate and secure the treasure first to make sure it ends up in the right hands.
This book can be read as a standalone but there is some character overlap from her debut novel, If I Stopped Haunting You, but nothing that would cause the reader to not be able to follow the story. This book was full of adventure but the continual internal declination of feelings towards each of the FMCs gets a little annoying because they both know how the other feels, but they keep denying themselves. I wanted to yell “Get over it already” so many times. I really enjoyed this storyline, the characters, the references to Cherokee culture, and growing spicy tension. While this story is one of fiction, it highlights the wrongs that have historically been done to indigenous groups/cultures. Colby Wilkens has a way of weaving stories of perfection through the inclusion of the LGBTQIA+ population and hot topics that have historically been hidden or made to appear as ok due to “justification”.
I definitely recommend this read to those looking for an adventure filled, friends to lovers, butt kicking FMCs, and f/f tension building to spice explosion read.
Thank you NetGalley, St. Martin’s Press, and Colby Wilkens for the advance readers copy and for allowing me to provide my honest feedback.
Book Publication Date: 3/25/25