THE TRUTH ACCORDING TO EMBER

A Chickasaw woman fudges the truth on a job application and soon finds herself unable to keep up with her lies.

Ember Lee Cardinal is unhappily working at a bowling alley, stuck plunging toilets when she knows she’s capable of more. She desperately wants to be an accountant, but she doesn’t have the money to finish her degree. After yet another job application is rejected, she has an idea—what if she tells a few little white lies on her application? She exaggerates her qualifications, saying she has a degree when she really just took a couple of classes, and lists her race as white instead of Native American. And it works—she gets the job. Ember finds out that it’s actually possible to learn these accounting skills on the job, and soon she’s so successful at work that she earns a promotion. But it’s not all number crunching and spreadsheets; Ember also can’t help but notice Danuwoa Colson, the company’s Native American IT guy. The two of them get closer, and Ember realizes that he’s everything she’s been looking for in a man, but their company explicitly forbids interoffice dating. Also, Danuwoa doesn’t know she lied about some major parts of her application, and soon Ember finds herself lying even more. As their feelings get stronger, Danuwoa becomes impossible to resist…but Ember will need to be honest, with the people around her and herself, if their relationship has any chance of working. As an enrolled citizen of the Chickasaw Nation, Nava brings a sense of realism and heart to her debut. Ember’s journey is about her career and her romantic life but it’s just as much about accepting her family, her history, and the help of everyone around her. Nava blends deeper themes, like Ember’s fraught relationship with her brother and father as well as the racism she experiences at work, with fun and always welcome rom-com tropes like “just one bed.” Ember and Danuwoa’s intense sexual tension leads to plenty of steamy scenes and a relationship that’s both enjoyable and satisfying to read.

A captivating romance that effortlessly balances laugh-out-loud scenes and heartwarming family moments.