This review is going to be a little choppy because I’m so excited about this book that I need time to carefully write out my thoughts.

Initial thoughts after devouring this book in one day:

This is one of the best “romance” books I’ve ever read. I absolutely loved the firefighter theme, it felt very unique and fun. The main character’s trust and love issues left you wondering what could possibly have happened in her past. Throughout the story there are trickles of truth that surface, and there is such an amazing lesson of forgiveness in the end.

I really admired Cassie’s toughness and strength. The jokes and banter between her and the firemen she works with was entertaining. The pacing of the story was perfect and I loved the way Center writes. There was such excellent character development throughout. I can’t say one negative thing about this book. I highly recommend!

I love Katherine Center, she writes believable characters with real situations and problems, and adds a romance you root for all the way through!

I LOVED this book! Cassie was wonderful. She has flaws and she knew it yet she was strong. She had a rough childhood believing her mother abandoned her and her father at the age of 16 and on her 16th birthday no less. With the love of her father and pure will she grew into an amazing adult. One who wanted to protect and save others. She broke into an industry that is mostly men and she was damn good at it. Always wanting to be treated as one of the guys. I don't know much about the firefighter industry however I feel this was a good portrayal of it. She also found love, love for her mother and love for a man. This had me laugh at times and had me cry other times. I can't recommend this book enough!


Thank You NetGalley and St. Martins Press for giving me this ARC in return for my honest review.

Cassie Hanwell has it all together -- she's an exceptional firefighter, dedicated to her career. But on the night she's receiving an award for valour, she ends up clocking her presenter on stage and ends up almost losing her hard-fought position as a firefighter. She had good reason to do what she did, and it's not hard to figure out what it is, but the reader doesn't get all the details until later on in the story. At first I was a little ticked off it wasn't revealed earlier, but it all makes sense by the end.

After the incident on stage, Cassie ends up transferring from Texas to a new firehouse in the northeast and helping her estranged mother after an illness. Starting over means trying to fit into a new firefighting crew that isn't all that thrilled to have a female on the team. The good news is that she's not the only newbie at the station -- there's a rookie starting along side her.

Owen Callaghan makes her feel things she shouldn't feel toward a co-worker, and Cassie's life suddenly takes a turn she hadn't expected. It's all very complicated for her. I loved Owen (he's a sweetheart) and what I liked even more was that their romance wasn't the focal point of the story. Even though Owen had a bit of his own story, the focal point is all about Cassie and her personal growth as things around her shift and change.

I loved the theme of forgiveness in Things You Save in a Fire. It was such an integral part of Cassie's next step in her life, and she learns with grace and dignity about the power of love and forgiveness. The firefighting aspect was absolutely well-done and Cassie was just so good at it -- it was easy to see her dedication was part of her soul.

I liked everything about this -- the characters, the story, the pacing and especially the action that had me gasping and furiously reading and reading to find out what was going to happen. Things You Save in a Fire had absolutely everything I want in a story. It will be on my favorites of 2019 list for sure!

An ARC was provided for review.

Cassie has her life figured out. She knows what she wants and is on track to get it all. Then suddenly, her past makes an appearance in more ways than one and her life is shifted far from where she wants to go. I loved seeing Cassie's growth throughout the story and it made me root for her as she navigates a male dominate profession and comes face to face with her past. Coming to terms with all if it and finding forgiveness lets her have a future she didn't even know she wanted. This is one of my favorite books of the year.

I received a free digital copy of this book. All thoughts above are my own.

Katherine Center is very quickly becoming an author on my auto-read list. How to Walk Away is one of the best novels I’ve read, and Things You Save in a Fire is right up there with it. This book shys away from the typical romance read and features a strong female character with a secondary plot that includes a love interest. Cassie definitely had her guard up throughout the book but she was extremely well written. Center absolutely has the touch for writing flawed, likeable characters.

I received an advance copy. All thoughts are my own.

3.5 Stars. Content warning: rape, illness in a parent

Things You Save in a Fire is a tough book for me to review. This book has been so hyped up and while it didn't end up wowing me, it also didn't necessarily disappoint. I appreciated that it was fast-paced and I did not want to put it down, but there were just some things that did not sit right with me.

First of all, I wish that this had gone either fully women's fiction (hate that term) or romance since it felt like it tried to be both at the cost of being as strong of a narrative as it could have been. This point may be mainly personal preference too, but I don't think that Cassie's story would've developed without the romance and the romance was too Insta-love for me. It also bothered me that the hero was referred to as Rookie almost the entire book so I wasn't able to connect to the romance as much as I wanted to.

Secondly, the character development felt inconsistent. I couldn't understand how it was so easy for someone like Cassie who has built up so many walls and worked so hard for something to crack so easily and jeopardize everything she has spent her life working for. I would've liked to see a lot more internal conflict around this that I don't think the book allowed for because it was so short. I also don't like how Cassie's back story was revealed. Up until the point that she told it to the most unworthy character in the book, she would say how people "just knew." I don't like none of the characters made her actually face what had happened to her and talk about how it affected her instead of apparently "just knowing" how it had. I understand how the late reveal was for the benefit of the reader, but it didn't feel right. Lastly, the character who ended up being the main villain had this complicated backstory that was completely unbelievable.

I did really love the story line of a female firefighter and Cassie not only having to stand out in a male-dominated profession, but transferring from Austin to Boston and the differences in funding and progressive vs. conservative work environments. In fact, her captain's advice about being the only woman in a firehouse was my favorite part of the book and I want to make everyone read that part.

Overall, I felt like this book had a great concept, but lacked enough depth for me.

Thank you so much to St. Martin's Press for both the Netgalley and physical ARC in exchange for my honest review.

Audiobook note: I loved the that the narrator incorporated both Texas and Boston accents.

I fell in love with this novel. The characters were relate-able and the plot was complex and believable, even when it lead in far-fetched directions. This story seized my consciousness and I'm so glad it didn't let go until the last page. There were times when plot twists felt over-the-top but maybe that's what makes a story memorable because this one will certainly stick with me for a long time.

I instantly liked Cassie, I mean, right from the beginning of the book. Cassie found that she was made and wired to be an exceptional firefighter. Cassie had it all together as she was about to receive a coveted award and possible promotion. Ah, but that all changed as her hardened, protective, inner shell cracked. This fracture led to an unplanned and unwanted major plot twist in Cassie’s life.

Fractures, if given the opportunity to heal, can actually become and grow stronger than the original part that had been broken. Cassie was known for being resourceful and adventurous, in an orderly, controlled sort of way. Could an unexpected move, a new roommate and a job transfer provide a chance to begin some much needed healing? Change could be the catalyst needed for Cassie to allow reconciliation, forgiveness, personal connections and even fun back into her overly, organized life.

I so enjoyed the experience of spending time with a tight crew of firefighters who battled fires together and lived life together. They shared fierce bonds of loyalty.

This book is filled with wonderful storytelling, immersive writing, likable and even lovable characters. Be prepared to laugh aloud many times as this book will tickle your funny bone. Also be prepared to shed some tears as this book will warm your heart, break your heart, and then repair your heart. Forgiveness is always better than revenge.

I received a complimentary copy of this book from St. Martin’s Press through NetGalley. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.

Cassie's whole life revolves around being an EMT and a firefighter, now she has caused a scandal and she has to start over in a small town. Everything she believed about her life is going to be changed and she is going to have to learn to forgive the past and start life over.


** I received a copy of this book from Netgalley in exchange for a honest review**

Loved this book so much! The main character of the novel, Cassie, is a female firefighter who reluctantly transfers from her firehouse in Texas to a small firehouse in Massachusetts that has never had a female firefighter before, to help her somewhat estranged mother through her health difficulties. For reasons that we find out as the book unfolds, when the book starts Cassie is very closed off emotionally, when it comes to family, love, friends, and more. It's not like the themes of family, love, work, and closed off characters learning to open up are things that have never been done before, but Katherine Center just handles them so beautifully. I cried sad tears, I cried happy tears, I even cried a few tears just at passages of writing that explored themes of forgiveness and love so beautifully.

For a longer review, see my blog here: https://electricbookaloo.blogspot.com/2019/08/5-star-review-things-you-save-in-fire.html

A highly readable and compelling story with a happy ending. While the main character was angry and unlikable at first, she grew and changed through her experiences, which I loved. I’d recommend this book!

I really enjoyed this book. Was not what I was expecting. I loved the story within the story, about love and forgiveness. Great book! Very honored to have been granted an arc for review.

I fell in love with Katherine Center's writing when I read "How to Walk Away" last year, and this book did not disappoint. Cassie is one of the only female firefighters in her Texas firehouse, and she's a strong & awesome lady. She loves and thrives off of emergencies & her work, but doesn't know how to deal with real life, especially when her estranged mother asks her to drop everything & uproot her life to Boston. When Cassie arrives and finds out that she is now the sole woman in a very old school firehouse, she realizes quickly that things are going to be vastly different for her. On her first day, she meets the rookie (who is adorable and kind) … but Cassie can't think about that. She's a firefighter. Her rule is to never date firefighters. As they train together, Cassie starts to realize that some rules may need to be broken, and what she expected & planned for her life may be vastly different than what will actually happen.
I absolutely loved Cassie as a character. She was amazing & so strong, and it was really interesting to read through her story & watch her learn how to open herself up and be vulnerable. All of the characters throughout this book were great & written so well (even if they were the ones we were supposed to hate). I loved the story throughout this book, and absolutely fell in love as I read. I also definitely teared at multiple points. If you haven't read a book yet by Katherine Center, it's TIME! Go do it now!

I am so glad I pick up this book. This story is full of struggle and heartache. A real picture of what true life can be. It doesn't beat around the bush about how women are treated in a man's world, or how some people can fall off their rockers.

I loved how the writer told the story. Her writing style is smooth and so easy to read. The characters were really colorful, a wonderful cast. The feelings this book gives is amazing.

A wonderful read for anyone.

Received an advance reader copy in exchange for a fair review.

Things You Save in a Fire is an emotion filled forbidden love/family saga type of story about a female firefighter, the struggles she goes through both professionally and personally, and the rookie she bends the rules to fall for.

Cassie is a self-assured strong character who knows what she wants in life and goes for it. She had a couple of things in her life that inspired her to push past the negativity and become a powerhouse, and throughout this book she will confront both of those issues and reflect back on her life while forging through the new situation she finds herself in.

Owen becomes Cassie's only ally in her new firehouse, and shows her the powerful support a man can bring to her life if she lets her walls down enough to let him in. He's definitely a joy of a character.

I recommend this book to anyone looking for a strong female heroine with an emotional story line with a bit of suspense, a bit of romance and a whole lot of heart. The plot was very interesting, and the way we are given bits of her life here and there keeps you reading to find out more. It was a bit slow moving in places, but overall a really solid story.

Katherine Center says that she writes about "the ways we all get tangled up -- and what we do about it." She has followed up her 2018 bestseller, How to Walk Away, with Things We Save in a Fire. And the story is exactly what you might expect. It is about the myriad ways in which Cassie Hanwell has gotten tangled up -- and what she does about it.

Twenty-six-year-old Cassie Hanwell loves being a firefighter, even though it's a career she stumbled into through circumstances and opportunity. She is completely devoted to her career and has excelled in her profession. While other people panic and run, wild-eyes, from an emergency situation, Cassie remains calm and springs into action, at very best when things are at their very worst.

Perhaps that's because Cassie suffered two life-changing events on her sixteenth birthday, both of which affected her deeply and informed the trajectory of her life to date. She shut down emotionally, and focused solely on her career. She hasn't even been on a date since that night.

As the story opens, she is about to receive a prestigious award for bravery in the line of duty which she believes will be presented to her by the Mayor of Austin. Instead, she is horrified when she realizes -- at the award ceremony -- that she will have to accept the award from one of the people who subjected her to a life-altering trauma all those years ago. Her reaction is visceral and swift -- as is her employer's.

However, her mother, Diana, from whom she has been estranged since that impactful night so many years ago, calls and asks her to come live with her in Massachusetts.

And so Cassie transfers to a small firehouse that has never before employed a woman. In the wake of the MeToo movement, one might think that the days of a Captain calling his staff together by announcing over the public address system that there is a stripper in the firehouse kitchen are over. Or that the firefighters would not need to relocate their stash of porn in order to make a place for the new female firefighter to sleep. But apparently not. When Cassie and the rookie -- charming, handsome and fit Owen Callaghan -- report for duty on the same day, they are both subjected to hazing and practical jokes. But Cassie's male counterparts insist upon treating her like a "lady." She reacts by challenging the stereotypes to which they subscribe, as well as their pride by proving that she is strong, competitive, knowledgeable, and able to serve as their equal.

Center's dialogue is fresh, witty, believable, and often hilarious. She surrounds Cassie with an eclectic and believable group of supporting characters, all of whom she brings to life her reader's mind because of her colorful descriptions of them and their interactions with Cassie. Predictably, Cassie's defenses are worn down as her attraction to the rookie grows stronger, and she gets reacquainted with and better understands her mother's motivations, choices, and vulnerability. Even so, Cassie does not settle easily into her new circumstances, and remains resolved not to walk away, even while an unidentified stalker's actions grow increasingly dangerous and she is wrongly accused of misconduct.

Things You Save in a Fire is dedicated to Center's husband, Gordon, a volunteer firefighter who clearly provided sound advice because the story is absolutely believable and rings true, even while it is disarmingly charming.

Center delivers an emotional punch through the challenges Cassie faces and her realizations about how destructive it is to refuse to experience and deal with one's emotions. Center skillfully and empathetically illustrates the numerous ways and reasons why the structure of Cassie's life changes, how she reacts and copes, and her resultant growth. At a critical juncture in her journey to adulthood, Cassie was abandoned -- physically and emotionally -- and had to rescue herself. Ten years later, she has to learn to forgive and make decisions about her future -- and whether it will include love and the willingness to be vulnerable again.

Things You Save in a Fire is simultaneously entertaining, deeply thought-provoking, and emotionally satisfying -- an engrossing look at endearing characters who deserve the happy ending Center gives them.

Wow!! Katherine Center has done it again!! Her books are so hard to put down and this one surpassed my every expectation!! Katherine is so great at telling a story within a story. And... you learn so much about whatever topic she has decided to write about. Her research is amazing and of course the book covers are the best!!

Center surpasses previous (successful) efforts to creat a relatable, endearing and honest story about women, relationships and strength. The buzz, the hype... all worth its weight in hashtags!

I really enjoyed her first book so I was happy to read her next story as an advance reader copy from NetGalley.

Cassie is a firefighter who loves her job and has been chosen for special heroism recognition. Lo and behold, the surprise presenter played a very large role in her teens and she lets him know it during the presentation. While you want to cheer for her actions, her job is now at stake. A side story is how her mom deserted her and her dad many years before and now wants her to come care for her. Cassie chooses her mom as the job really didn't give her any other choice.

Settling in as the "new person" at work is made more difficult when the other new person is the first many to make her sit up and take notice in a long, long time. That is a problem as no romances at work will be tolerated. Of course that means they are attracted to each other, Murphy's Law, right?

thanks NetGalley, I really enjoyed this one.