This work is a wonderful depiction of how powerful forgiveness can be. Cassie started her career as a firefighter in the liberal station of Austin. Before she knows it, she moves back with her estranged mother in Boston. Cassie was fine. She didn't need company. She didn't need love. She just needed her job, the chaos to calm her mind. It was until she mets the rookie that things shift. This book is a fantastic example of how to forgive the seemingly unforgivable, how to open up after trauma, and how to see answers in chaos. This book surprised me, it showed character development, and it would be a book recommendation!

Things You Save in a Fire had all of my favorite things in a story: a fierce and admirable heroine, a love interest, a complex and fast moving plot, and inevitably lovable characters. The exceptional plot of this book allowed for both tears of saddness and compassion to stream down my face and bouts of laughter to come from my deep within my chest. I could not put down Things You Save in a Fire. This is a story that will stick with all readers for a long time.

Despite seeing great, early reviews of this book, the synopsis just did not grab me, so I had no immediate plans to possibly ever read this book. However, when the publisher sent me an ARC, I happened to be on vacation and thought why not...and boy am I so glad that they did! This was such a surprisingly, wonderful book and I'm so glad that I read it. I was all in after just a few pages, and could not put it down from there until the end. I loved it, and will now be seeking out other books by Center.

*Thank you so much to NetGalley for letting me have this one.

A moving, funny, emotional quick read! 100% recommend and will be telling everyone to read this August!

Cassie (a badass female firefighter in progressive Austin, TX) moves up to Massachusetts at the request of her estranged mother who needs her care due to visual impairment. She transfers to a boys club fire station where they don’t take kindly to having a lady roaming around. From there, a complex story involving Cassie, her mother, and the men from the fire station evolves that will leave you smiling and crying at the same time.

Fans of Katherine Center’s How to Walk Away will LOVE this book - this one actually beats out How to Walk Away just by a hair!

Thank you to Katherine Center, NetGalley, & St. Martin’s Press for an advance copy!

A sharp witty look at facing life's challenges with a bit of dignity and self respect. This novel is a great look at how life can change fast when you're busy making plans and avoiding your feelings.

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Janée Blue's review Mar 22, 2019 · edit
really liked it

Things You Save in a Fire by Katherine Center will appeal to fans of romance, humor, and mystery. Center’s novel is well structured containing flashbacks, internal and external conflicts and strong characterization that enable the plot to move quite seamlessly as Cassie the protagonist reveals her journey from bitter teen devastated on her sixteenth birthday to her twenty- six-year old self, still bitter, still pushing down her emotions, and choosing to interact with few except her Texas family and her fellow firefighters in Texas. Romance is the least of her concerns, for she is a goal centered, smart, ultra-fit, and independent woman. Cassie’s well - ordered life is interrupted by her mother and father’s (now divorced) pleas for Cassie to temporarily live in Boston with her ailing, estranged mother. She gets a position as a firefighter in the Boston area, and the conflicts begin as the relationships at the new workplace are the opposites of her former one; plus, she and her mother’s relationship is uncomfortable.
At this point, Cassie steers toward a different life view, for with more personal contacts and socialization, Cassie is forced to adapt, slowly open up, and interact with others. Unaware her mother slyly and lovingly manipulates this reversal, Cassie slowly begins to heal from past wounds, begins to love, but there is also malevolent tension in the background. All conflicts are eventually resolved; however, I feel the ending is too good to be true. Yes, I understand this is fiction but everybody lived too happily ever after, sort of. I expected and wanted a less fairy tale ending, especially in reference to the malevolent tension mentioned above. (I will not reveal spoilers!) This is a “feel good” read and Center’s title is masterful and symbolic! This title will make for great book club discussion. You’ll understand that when you complete reading. Now I’m ready to read more of Katherine Center’s work.

Thank you to St. Martin’s Press and NetGalley for an advanced copy of Things You Save in a Fire, all opinions are my own.

Similar to How to Walk Away, it’s taken me a week to digest Katherine Center’s latest and greatest novel - Things You Save in a Fire. Writing this review will not do the book justice. I would give this book 10 stars if I had the ability to do so.

The story is about a woman firefighter, Cassie - who is forced to move across the country to take care of her estranged mother. Cassie leaves a woman friendly firehouse and enters one where she is looked down upon - regardless of her ridiculous ability to beat half the men at practically everything ever thrown her way - simply because she is a female.

I don’t want to say more about the story, because it is that good - you just need to read it. But make sure you have Kleenex with you - and time to ignore the rest of the world as you will so quickly be absorbed into Cassie’s world.

In the end, the story is one of family, love, and most importantly forgiveness. Kudos to Katherine Center for quickly throwing in a blurb about her heroine from How to Walk Away, and to writing another amazing story which will leave you so satisfied in the end.

Cassie has learned over time to hardened her feelings. She is an excellent firefighter but knows as a women in a man's world she has to be better than them. Her mother left her at 16 and now is asking her to come live with her for a year to help her adjust to eye problems. Cassie gets hired at the new fire station but certainly is not accepted even by her captain. There is a rookie hired at the same time and she is assigned to train him. The training is complicated when she finds she has feelings for him even though she has never even had a boyfriend. She wrestles with trying to be the best, forgiving her mother for leaving her, getting used to her mother's health issues, and ignoring her feelings for the rookie. There is a stalker trying to run Cassie out of the fire station, the truth behind her mother's leaving and her health, and a massive fire that tests Cassie and sets her life in turmoil. This is a really good story but also a lesson on forgiveness. Cassie learns that it is easier to forgive yourself and others if you consider the good things that come out of the bad.

To be honest I wasn’t sure where this book was going in the beginning! Cassie is so complicated and weighed down in that you hope you will see her lighter in the end. Her determination and fight keeps you interested the entire read and seeing her build relationships with her Mom, Josie and the rookie sparks joy.

Things You Save in a Fire is a beautiful story of finding family, love, and forgiveness, even when it feels out of reach. This story has a beautiful lesson about what we gain when we forgive others even when it's painful. Katherine Center is an author whose books I would purchase even without first reading the synopsis.

Finished this ARC in California, and it’s two thumbs up from me! Thank you to NetGalley for my copy! I very much enjoyed the characters and the setting of a fire station/company was something new and interesting for me. Cassie's character was interesting and well-developed. Katherine Center's writing just keeps getting better and better! Coming to a bookstore near you on 8/13/19!

A charming story of Love and forgiveness between parents, colleagues, lovers and those who have committed crimes. Cassie is a firefighter who transfers to help her mother who is losing her sight. What follows is an attraction to the rookie and a chance at trusting others. Center's characters are likable a relatable. You can't help but root for them. Consider me a fan.

Copy provided by the Publisher and NetGalley

Things You Save in a Fire is a story of love and heroes, healing and forgiveness. It is so very beautiful and captivating. Cassie is they type of heroine I want to read about ALL DAY LONG!

Things you Save in A Fire was a great read - I loved reading about Cassie's journey. Will definitely keep an eye out for Center's books in the future!

I devoured this book in one night. It was well written with relatable characters. Cassie was such a refreshing character, a woman in a man's world trying to follow the rules to achieve great things. She's good at her job, not a giggling silly person or a drunk "isn't it so funny I'm a mess" type woman that's been more popular as of late. As the book went on, I dreaded the moment when Cassie would reveal in detail something about her past trauma. And when the moment happened, I was pleasantly surprised that we got the idea of what happened without excruciating details that would push this lovely novel into a trauma-porn category. It was a smart choice by Katherine Center and one that I appreciated. It was a great fast read about love and forgiveness.

This was a cute and at times emotional book with an over-arching theme of forgiveness. I found this title to be a bit slow at first, but towards the end it pickup up and I found myself liking it more. The characters were likeable and overall I enjoyed this book.

Thank you Netgalley for the ARC.

Cassie is a firefighter who has built quite the heroic reputation for herself with her crew and her department in Austin. The fact that she's a woman has never made much of a difference in her career. But then her estranged mom (who abandoned her on her 16th birthday) gets sick and asks her to move from Texas to Massachusetts to help her out for a year. Cassie's new fire department is a total boys' club who can't imagine what she has to offer, despite the fact that she more than proves herself from Day One. The only one who doesn't seem to hate her on sight is the other new guy, a rookie, who actually makes her life harder by being so charming and attractive that she instantly develops a crush on him. But Cassie doesn't do relationships. She doesn't do feelings, she doesn't do forgiveness, and she definitely doesn't do love. Except she has somehow managed to bond with her mom, she can't stop thinking about Owen, and her new crew is starting to feel more and more like family. Maybe all those things she doesn't do are actually things she can't live without.

Katherine Center has written another wonderful book. Her voice is so conversational and chill. It's like a friend is sitting you down over coffee to tell you a story, and you can't help but be swept up in it. Her characters are honest and flawed, and they're vulnerable and afraid but show up anyway. I absolutely loved Cassie and her approach to showing her new crew she can be an asset to their department. Learning parkour because she's not tall enough to reach a lot of the obstacles on their training course? What a total badass! You can't help but fall in love with all of the guys, even the sexist ones who don't think she can do it...because she SHUTS THEM UP and they basically bend the knee to her forever and ever (except one, and even he redeems himself in the end). I love seeing characters admit they're wrong and grow and change, and almost every single one manages to do that in this book.

One of the things that I especially loved was that Cassie refers to a patient in a plane crash as one she has always remembered...and that's the main character from How to Walk Away. I loved the nod to her previous book. And the epilogue was also such a nice finish to the story. It was fun getting to see where the characters ended up a few years down the road.

Center keeps getting better and better. I already can't wait for her next one!

**Thanks to NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for a wonderful read!**

Katherine Center's Things You Save in a Fire is an emotionally charged book about love, forgiveness and courage.
To be honest, I wasn't entirely into this book in the beginning. I wasn't very fond of Cassie and the way she acted, I sometimes found her to be immature and arrogant. But I kept on and soon learned that her behavior was her line of defense for keeping herself from getting hurt. She was safeguarding her heart. This led me to start championing for her and hoping for her happy ending.

Things You Save in a Fire left my heart full and happy. It hit all range of emotions - I was annoyed, angry, somber, cheerful and overjoyed. The writing by Katherine Center is easily engaging, she pulled romance, depth and suspense all together for this very enjoyable read. This is my first novel by Katherine Center but it will not be my last.

Thank you St. Martin's Press and NetGalley for this Advanced Reader's Copy.

Standing Outside the Fire. Wow. This tale about a female firefighter's struggles both personally and professionally was simply amazing. Told almost in memoir format, the tale picks up when our narrator is at an awards gala to receive the highest honor her Department has to offer. When things go a bit awry, she heads thousands of miles away to help her sick mother and hide. Little does she know that in the process of doing both, she will find things are more complicated than she ever dared imagine - and find strength even she never knew she had. Firefighters try to stay outside of fires unless necessary, and tend not to stay in them longer than absolutely necessary to do the job. But this tale gives new life to the old Garth Brooks song, in all the best ways. Again, simply amazing.

Wow. I just finished reading it and it was amazing. I really loved it. It is the quality writing you can expect from Katherine Center and it is filled with life lessons as well. She’s definitely becoming one of my top authors. I can’t wait to see what she comes out with next.