The Truth According to Ember by Danica Nava is an entertaining contemporary romance that I truly enjoyed.

I really liked this contemporary romcom from this debut author. What a talent she has!

I loved that this was presented from the MC that is Native American. I honestly am not sure if I have ever read a book that was a romance involving characters that were NA. Ms. Nava is tapping into such an underrepresented population full of history, culture, and beauty.

Mistaken identity, comedy, romance, passion, figuring out how to grow up…all of those concepts are present within this novel.

I look forward to more from this author in the future.

4/5 stars

Thank you NG and Berkley Publishing Group for this wonderful arc and in return I am submitting my unbiased and voluntary review and opinion.

I am posting this review to my GR and Bookbub accounts immediately and will post it to my Amazon, Instagram, and B&N accounts upon publication on 8/6/24.

Thank you for the opportunity to read and review this book before publication! The review will be live on my blog on 7/25/24. I will also feature the review on Instagram that same day and post my review to Goodreads, The Storygraph, Fable, and retail sites.

Review:

Okay, all you rom-com lovers, I have a book recommendation for you! Get ready to dive into the hilarious, touching, and sometimes steamy world of Ember, a Native American woman so desperate to land her dream career that she pushes her little white lie game a tad too far.

The story follows Ember Lee Cardinal, a Chickasaw woman who really wants a career in accounting. She was taking classes toward an accounting degree, but thanks to her younger brother landing himself in jail, her tuition money went out the window. She's confident that if she could manage to land an entry-level job, she could get plenty of on-the-job experience and a nice salary to help pay for her education. Faced with rejection after rejection, Ember decides to get a little creative with her resumé. She also decides not to select Native American as her race and instead picks Caucasian (not a total lie - her dad was White), and before she knows it, she has landed a dream accounting job - albeit under a false pretense. As Ember tries to navigate her new life as a corporate accountant, she also finds herself falling for Danuwoa Colson, the sexy, charming IT guy who also just happens to be Native American.

The chemistry between Ember and Danuwoa is electric, and their secret office romance adds a juicy layer of drama to the story. But when Ember's lies start to catch up with her, she must choose between keeping up the facade or coming clean, risking everything she has worked so hard for. As the stakes get higher and the tension rises, Ember finds herself unable to dig her way out of a pile of white lies, forcing her to face the consequences of her actions.

Nava's writing is a breath of fresh air, brimming with humor and heart. The author's talent for fashioning characters you can't help but connect with and crafting clever dialogue that will have you chuckling one moment and cringing the next really make the book shine. Ember, with all her flaws, is a protagonist you'll find yourself rooting for, even when she's making questionable choices. The diverse supporting cast - from the charming and sexy Danuwoa to Ember's privileged and racist colleagues, her larger-than-life best friend, and her supportive family - all contribute to the story's depth and authenticity, making it a truly engaging read.

While the tropes are predictable, it was refreshing to see Native American characters take the lead for once. The struggles Ember faces at work and the casual racism thrown at both Ember and Danuowa are sickening but, sadly, all too real in a world built and run by privileged old white men. That said, the struggles Ember and Dan faced made their victories along the way all the more sweet.

Overall, I found this to be a fun and easy read. If you're in the mood for a feel-good rom-com that will make you laugh and swoon in equal measure, then this is the perfect book for you. Danica Nava has crafted a gem of a novel full of characters that will work their way into your heart. If you are a rom-com lover, then trust me when I say you won't want to miss out on this one!

I really did enjoy this rom-com. The main character was believable and well thought out. I do wish we could have gotten the POV of the MMC. I would definitely read more from this author.

Thank you NetGalley and Berkley for this ARC.

I really enjoyed this funny, sexy, sad and sweet story from Danica Nava. As it is a debut, I'm looking forward to a lot more stories to come from Nava.

Ember is doing all she can to get her foot in the door to a better life. So maybe she tells a few lies on her resume, who hasn't? But when Dan, the hot IT guy in her office, starts to get closer, she starts to wonder if the lying is going to keep her from having the relationship of her dreams. Although Ember may tell a few fibs but it's clear her heart is in the right place. Dan is an open book, so it's no wonder he struggles with her once the funny lies turn more serious. When Ember gets stuck in a bad work situation, she thinks she is doing what she has to. For the record, Kyle is an asshole.

After some hard days at work, I knew I had this book to relax and escape into at night before bed and it made the week better. I laughed. I rooted for the underdog. I had my eyes opened to some Native language and lifestyle. And, I fell for the romance.

I received an ARC from the publisher via NetGalley and am voluntarily posting a review. All opinions are my own.
I highly anticipated The Truth According to Ember because it’s apparently the first romance from a big publisher written by a Native American author, which is saying a lot, given how Indigenous people were often the source of racist fetishization in books from some of these same publishers a few decades ago. With this in mind, I very much want this book to succeed, and hopefully pave the way for other books by Indigenous authors in the mainstream. However, I also feel like that makes this book’s rather tepid story (on the romance front, anyway) even more of a disappointment.
That said, Ember as a character and her struggles with anti-Indigenous racism were well done. While the lies do get out of hand and some are a tad ridiculous, I can understand her initial motivations when she chooses to check off “White” on job applications, and the struggle to keep all the lies straight is pure chaos. She’s a great example of a well-intentioned protagonist who has her heart in the right place, but doesn’t go about things in the right way.
But given that work is such a large part of her narrative, it really dominates over other elements. The corporate issues were incredibly overbearing, and while some that were relevant to the overall message intrigued me, others bogged down the story and contributed to my general disinterest, prompting me to start skimming.
And unfortunately, this is yet another “romance” that suffers from not fleshing out the love interest. Danuwoa is sweet, and I understand why Ember likes him, but their relationship development is often swept to the side in favor of either Ember’s personal arc or the aforementioned corporate stuff.
While this book let me down, I’m mostly not surprised, as this style of contemporary “romcom” is very hit-or-miss for me (not to mention I’ve been in the most bizarre reading mood lately). I am interested in following Danica Nava to see what she might write next, however, and would still encourage anyone interested in this book because of the Native rep to give it a shot, especially if you enjoy a single POV tradpub “romcom.”

I loved the characters and set up of this book and the issues Nava is exploring within and around the romance. The writing is a little clunky. But this book reminded me of early Kate Clayborn novels -- good bones and talent to be developed. I'll read more.

I loved the representation and concept for this Native romance, while the plot was a little over the top, I think it had good bones.

Ember was a bit of a firecracker, she was driven and took a chance to get a job she wasn’t exactly qualified for. Danuwoa was sweet and charming, okay and maybe a little hot! Their meet-cute and banter was enjoyable, but the forbidden romance theme got tiresome too quickly.

There were a few scenes between Ember and her family that were heartwarming and real. I appreciated their history and various financial and emotional struggles. Similarly, her connection to Danuwoa was instant and they had good chemistry.

What I struggled with were all of Ember’s lies. Little lies, stuff that seemed silly to lie about. Like having severe allergies to cats? I felt that was very irresponsible. She was very naive and gullible at times and it just annoyed me to bits. Do not expect anything but corporate office work for the first 60% of the book. That’s where the subplot and romance pick up, so I understand if that might not work for everyone. The climax of the story was underwhelming, happening without too much fanfare. Overall I liked the idea, the characters, and the very minor low stakes romance, but it might be a little forgettable.

Thanks to Berkley for the giveaway ARC to review.

Soooooo......many thoughts on this:
1. As a visual minority myself, I find it ridiculous that Ember has to lie about being white. She clearly looks white and no one will no she's indigenous unless she proclaims it. So this entire setup felt hokey and tells me this author has no idea what it means to be singled out unfairly as a minority.
2. Danuwoa was just not developed at all. He felt more like a prop - hello, cue in the in the second minority character. If she's all about pretending to be white, why not date a WHITE guy.
3. Danuwoa and Ember had zero chemistry. Unless Ember tells us there is chemistry, there wasn't actually any on the page.
4. Ember's lies were completely unnecessary - so it felt ridiculous that she kept up the false pretense after a while. Like, no one even cared so why did she.
5. The racist points were a little heavy handed and totally unbelievable.
But overall, I was super disappointed that this book did so much pandering to be a racist exposure book and not only did it fail in proving that but it also fell flat as a romance on its own.

The first thing that caught my eye about this book was its cover - I love it! The next thing was the description and the author. I can be bad at reading diverse books, but I love rom-coms and was a perfect way for me to read a more diverse book.

It was a really cute story. I really liked Danuwoa's character, though Ember made me groan with all her lies. Overall, a 4 star book for me and I'm excited to see what this author does next!

The Truth According to Ember is a workplace romance about imposter syndrome, nepotism, and finding your place in life and family. I loved that this is the first Native American romance written by a Native American author that is traditionally published. Set in Oklahoma City, our couple, Danuwoa and Ember, work in the same office, but Ember is not always honest about her thoughts or life. This is one to pick up if you like romance, and it is a fantastic debut novel for Danica Nava

The Truth According to Ember by Danica Nava is a delightful read filled with heartwarming moments and hilarious mishaps. The story follows a charming and endearing heroine who captured my attention from the very first page.

RATING: 4/5 STARS

The truth (according to me) is that this book was a fantastic debut by Danica Nava! This is the first romcom I read with indigenous rep, and I thought it did a great job of navigating serious discussions around race and diversity in a lighter fictional setting. Danuwoa was a solid, warm, and swoony lead and I enjoyed the development of his relationship with Ember.

Absolutely loved this. I loved how Ember was represented, the push and pull between her identity and what the working world expected of her. The challenge of having to represent herself in a way that meant bending the truth to be able to get ahead. The challenges of balancing family life and expectations with what she wanted to achieve. All of it. LOVED!

This book was fantastic! This is the first Native American romance by a Native American woman that’s being published by a big publishing kiss and I quite honestly can’t wait for it to be everywhere! I love an office romance SO MUCH! Everything was so high stakes so the tension was good! The story was really about Ember finding herself and trying so hard to fight a system that works against her.

I did love Ember though, so much. She’s just the girl who is stable!! She’s gonna fix the problem!! But she also is struggling! And it wasn’t easy but her story arc was so good!! The end was absolutely perfect!

I LOVED Ember and Danuwoa!! The way he was NOT MESSING AROUND. He was such a freaking sweetheart!! I loved how they were fast friends!! I did really appreciate that he could for the most part see through her little white lies and then eventually really called her out on it. Besides all the work drama, that was her wake up call and she desperately needed it.

I will be so honest the lying was making me so NERVOUS! The whole time!! And it shooed throughout the whole book! They just kept piling up!! The less serious ones did leave room for some comedy which was much needed. But I was stressed.

Thanks so much to Berkley for this ARC in exchange for an honest review!!

I love that this is an indigenous romance written by an indigenous author! I don't think we have enough of those in the romance world and I'm so glad that this was written. It just wasn't my cup of tea, unfortunately.

This was fine for me. All of Ember's lying stressed me out and brought me out of the story a lot. I feel like I didn't see a lot of her personality because she was so concerned about being caught in her lies.

What a fun, sweet book! It does such a good job of making Ember sympathetic despite all her lies. Her love interest is wonderful and her family feels real. There are a few awkward or embarrassing moments, but nothing that crosses the secondhand embarrassment line into book-ending. The workplace dynamics are a realistic combination of awful and amazing, like everywhere I've worked, which gives everything that happens real weight. Going to recommend this one a lot.

3.5 stars

Unusual rom-com featuring Native American lead characters. This isn't necessarily the focus but we get a few unpleasant glimpses of the constant racism that still exists.

I had a little trouble with the two main characters. Danuwoa is almost too perfect: gorgeous, ripped, patient, pleasant, smart, funny, etc. etc. He literally seems to have no faults. Ember, on the other hand, has many admirable qualities but is also a hot mess. She is determined, and smart, and hard-working. But -- every time she opens her mouth a lie falls out. Obvious lies, unnecessary lies, stupid lies, embarrassing lies. But she can't seem to stop. And at times she exhibits stunningly clueless bad judgment -- a head-scratcher because she is very bright.

She tells herself several times that Dan deserves better than her and I had to agree. Of course, everything gets worked out in the end. I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.

Choosing to read this book, I was looking forward to a romantic comedy featuring Indigenous characters. This book had this and more! I truly laughed out loud at multiple points, but Ember's story also had serious issues she faces with finding an office job and the pressure to be someone she isn't. I found myself rooting for Ember and feeling the highs and lows of her story. I really enjoyed this book and I am so excited to read more from Danica Nava!

This was a good romance read. I liked the way the relationship between the MC and the love interest developed. It grew genuinely and their dialogue was great. I really enjoyed learning more about Native culture and hearing it all through Ember’s voice.

All her lies made me so nervous. I knew it was all going to blow up in her face, but what a bummer. Excellent happy ending, though!

Thank you for the opportunity to read and review this title. I’ll definitely be recommending it to romance readers.

First I want to thank Berkley for the eARC! I LOVED this book! This maybe my favorite romcom that I have ever read and that's because it was so much more than that. The main character, Ember was so funny and charming, despite her constant lies (I cannot even count how many times I shook my head and whispered to myself, "Ember, what are you doing?"). If it wasnt for Danuwoa not putting up with her bs, I don't think I could've tolerated it. He was perfection and their chemistry was through the roof (they banter was top tier in my book!) I loved seeing Ember's character arc evolve while she navigated the mess she made with her lies (big and small) and just the way she had to navigate through the workspace microaggressions, sexism, and racism. This book was so much more that just an office rom com and I would love to read more native stories by natives like this. I am so looking forward to reading more from Danica Nava!