*sigh of contentment*

I wish this happy place could have lasted a bit longer, but once I pick up one of Katherine Center's books, I can't put it down because it is so comfortable and pleasant.

This reminded me a lot of "How to Walk Away," and I mean that in the best sense....in fact there is a link that is a pleasant surprise. Cassie is a kick-ass firefighter and takes pride in being very good at what she does, however the rest of her life is pretty empty. Some unexpected events cause her to make major changes in her life.

There is a great lesson within for everyone having to do with forgiveness and I think I will remember it the next time I need to give or receive some!

Cassie Hanwell was born for emergencies. As one of the only female firefighters in her Texas firehouse, she's seen her fair share of them, and she's excellent at dealing with other people's tragedies. But when her estranged and ailing mother asks her to uproot her life and move to Boston, it's an emergency of a kind Cassie never anticipated.

The tough, old-school Boston firehouse is as different from Cassie's old job as it could possibly be. Hazing, a lack of funding, and poor facilities mean that the firemen aren't exactly thrilled to have a "lady" on the crew, even one as competent and smart as Cassie. Except for the handsome rookie, who doesn't seem to mind having Cassie around. But she can't think about that. Because she doesn't fall in love. And because of the advice her old captain gave her: don't date firefighters. Cassie can feel her resolve slipping...but will she jeopardize her place in a career where she's worked so hard to be taken seriously?

Kristen: Dabney, I didn’t really know what to expect going into this book, besides there was some serious buzz about it. I’ve never read anything by Ms. Center before, but I’m always game for a story of “woman in a man’s world” and Kate Meader and Shannon Stacey have certainly helped me fall for firehouse stories! All that said, I was not quite prepared for the gravity of this book.

Dabney: Maybe it’s a trend. I just read a contemporary romance that was so gravely dark I could barely get through it. This book, even with its serious issues, I was able to read without recoiling from the prose.

I’m going to assume that there were several threads in this book you found grave. Is that right?

Kristen: Great assumption. “Grave” might be a little… I think what I found was a lot of real. The story felt like it could leap off the page at any moment because these things all happen. Grave implies to me that there’s a bit of gothic darkness for the sake of it and that’s not the feeling I got here. Instead, it’s a story about the life that happens when you’re making other plans.

What did you think of this one, overall?

Dabney: I very much enjoyed it. I love--love!--how the characters are all grounded in reality. I especially love that the flawed men, Cassie’s co-workers, are sexist, upon occasion loutish, and routinely stellar human beings. I am not a fan of man-bashing or one note characterizations and there is little of that here.

I also was thrilled to see the characters solving their problems with real world solutions. The love stories here--and there are many encompassing the panoply of love--are built by people taking small steps, stopping and listening, really listening, to those around them, and by asking, awkwardly and often poorly, for help.

Kristen: Hear, hear! I co-sign all of that. When we got the initial description of her new chief, I got nervous. I am exhausted by one dimensional misogynists in fiction and was so grateful to see how Ms. Center crafted the dudes of the firehouse. They are sexist, and ageist, and all sorts of other things that people frequently are, but they are also humans. There are pieces of them that are open to change - which we see evidence of - and others that are calcified. Even when a line of dialogue rankled me, I knew it was because that man would say that and not because he was a plot device being used to make a point.

I also adored - wait, let me emphasize that more - ADORED Cassie’s interior journey. The growth that she opens herself up to, the meditations on forgiveness, how she handles conflict throughout the story… man, I want to take her out for dinner and give her a big hug.

Dabney: Honestly, the true love story in this is that between Cassie and her mom. I can not tell you how much this story moved me. Just thinking about it now makes my heart squeeze. Everything about that relationship is so lovely and powerful. And again, Cassie, her mom (and her dad) all made huge mistakes in the past, moves that pushed them apart and deeply hurt them. The way those relationships are portrayed and how those wounds are healed is utterly and beautifully believable.

Kristen: I wondered if your mother heart would just explode over that, because my daughter one did. My mother is also a reader, so as soon as I finished this I pre-ordered it for her because I want to talk to her about it!

So, for me, this is an A. I recommend it unabashedly for anyone who loves fiction, who believes humans have the capacity to change, and who could use some time in someone else’s life. It’ll be a strong contender for my top ten list for sure.

Dabney: We haven’t talked about it much but I assure romance readers that the romance in this is a good one. Cassie and “the rookie” are a fab couple--they are believable as firefighters, friends, lovers, and co-workers. I don’t want to say too much about the path they forge but it’s a good one full of heat and humor. Which reminds me, this book is funny in all the best ways.

This is an A for me too. Readers who love Kristan Higgins-esque fiction will love this as will, I bet, readers everywhere.

Thank you Netgalley for sending me an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Cassie is badass! I apologise for the bad word but there is really no other word that can describe her. She is a female firefighter who is as tough, as fit and as capable as any other man in her station. But her world collapses when someone from the one night that changed everything comes back into her life.

Forced to move away from her beloved station she finds herself in Maine, in a tiny, very traditional station with a captain who believes the fire service is no place for a woman. And, she's living with her mother who she has not connected with for 10 years but is now forced to care for and who insists on trying to get them reconnected in a way that Cassie doesn't think she can do. Finally, throw in a sexy Rockies and Cassie's life gets super complicated.

I really enjoyed the story and dialogue, I loved the quirky characters who all stood out amongst each other.i would personally cut some of the inner dialogue - I found myself skipping over pages because I didn't feel they were telling me anything new. It was obvious what happened to Cassie on her 16th birthday but still very harrowing to read when she finally unburdened herself.

A light read for a tough subject with a lovely herione.

Things You Save in a Fire is the newest novel from Katherine Center.

The novel revolves around the life of Cassie Hanwell, a hot-shot firefighter in Texas. Cassie is one of the best firefighters in the city, she has the respect of her entire station, her Captain and even the Mayor. But, on a night when she is to receive an award for her heroism, her life seemingly flips upside down. The next thing she knows, she is driving across the country to live with her estranged mother who is recovering from an illness and Cassie is forced to press the restart button.

Cassie becomes the only female firefighter in an old-school station full of men who don’t want her there and don’t believe that she is as capable to do her job. That is except for one, the Rookie, who starts at the station the same day as Cassie. It seems that no matter what Cassie does she is forced to spend her time with the Rookie, teaching him what it means to be both a firefighter and an EMT. However, over time, she begins to have a hard time keeping her feelings hidden and an even harder time keeping the walls that she has so carefully built around her from crumbling.

I was delighted to be given the opportunity to read this novel before it is released in August. Katherine Center knows her way around a firehouse and also, tells a story in such a way that I could see the characters coming to life in front of me. I felt as if I was following Cassie around rooting for her and hoping that she would see that all of the change in her life might not be so bad.

This novel caused me to feel so many different emotions; anger, frustration, envy, fear, sadness and joy. I couldn’t put Things You Save in a Fire down until the last page and even then I was left wanting more. I loved this story and look forward to reading the other works by Katherine Center. I predict great things for this novel when it is released on August 13, 2019.

Thank you to NetGalley, St. Martin’s Press and Katherine Center for my ARC of Things you Save in a Fire!

I loved this book! The Things You Save In A Fire is a wonderfully told story about forgiveness znd so much more. Katherine Center has written a winner. This book will keep you reading and enjoying until you',ve read every word. The characters are so well developed and the storyline is so well written. You should take thus emotional ride that this book offers, you wont be sorry. Thank you to netgalley for the huft of the arc, the review is my own opinion.

Thank you Netgalley and St. Martin's Press for the free digital review copy!

All the stars for Katherine Center's newest novel, Things You Save in a Fire.
Ya'll I literally squeaked in delight when this book was approved to me via netgalley. I loved last year's book, How to Walk Away, and so I had high expectations for Center's newest novel. I genuinely loved this book. I loved Cassie's resilience, strength and vulnerability in this story but I also loved the themes of forgiveness, love and family.

Cassie is quick witted, hard working and extremely good at her job - she's one of the city of Austin's best firefighters. Focused on being taken seriously by the primarily male colleagues around her, she's spent most of her adult life doing whatever necessary to make sure she's top of her game at work. Saving lives is what she's about and that means no time for friendships or relationships. When her estranged mother calls and asks for her to come to Massachusetts, she initial refuses but then finds herself in a situation that requires a transfer.
Lillian FD is a far cry from the progressive Austin fire department she's spent her career in. The building is decrepit, the department lacks funding and most differently of all - it's an all male department and they do not want a woman in their firehouse. But she isn't the only new recruit, Owen Callaghan - the rookie - is kind, friendly, and all to attractive and the only guy who's ever made her question her golden rule - NEVER date another firefighter. Cass's new life in Massachusetts will test her emotionally physically as she comes to terms with her past, reconciling with the mother who left her and showing the guys at Lillian FD that she deserves her spot on the squad.

Sweet and hope-filled, it's a fantastic story of resilience, forgiveness and love. I absolutely loved it.

TW: Rape

Things You Save in a Fire is the 2nd book I’ve read by Katherine Center, and it was amazing! The main character is a tough, independent female who has quite the shell to crack. I actually got a lot out of this book as a reoccurring theme is forgiveness - particularly forgiving oneself. I love when I read a book that has such a strong message that I can apply to my own life. I will be recommending this book!

I'm an emotional wreck. What an overwhelming, but beautiful book - and overwhelming in the best way possible. I was hooked from the very beginning and my interest didn't die down at all!

The author is such an effortless storyteller. She takes the reader through so many events and emotions along the way, but right off the bat they are instantly connected with Cassie, the main character. She fits in with the guys, and not just any guys, but firefighters. I thoroughly enjoyed the banter she had with her co-workers and the toughness needed because she was a woman in a man's world. The author made Cassie the perfect balance of "one of the guys, but still a girl." It definitely could have gone too much towards one way or the other, but I think she was very well rounded and super like-able.

Somehow the author was able to pull at my heartstrings, make me laugh, face-palm, and gasp, from one chapter to the next, and make it all work together. She definitely packed a lot into this book, and even though I was thinking it might end up being too much, she absolutely nailed it when a lot of other authors couldn't have achieved the same cohesive result. She also has some great quotes and vocab that I appreciated, such as using the word gobsmacked in a sentence (I thought it was perfectly fitting).

Overall, the journey from cover to cover is so thought-provoking. And not in the super cheesy kind of way, but in a sincere, life is complicated, sort of way. This quote sums up my feelings as I read, and also is what Cassie herself discovers,"That's just how the heart works, she said -- more in circles than straight lines." You'll start to read this book because you'll think it's about one thing, but then it turns into so much more than that. Even when I thought I had this book pegged for what it was, it kept surprising me.

Very enjoyable read with witty, engrossing dialogue. The story of a female firefighter (culled from the author's personal life as wife of a firefighter) and her life both in a new city and concurrently caring for her ailing mother, with whom she has a troubled relationship. Predictable ending but many twists and turns (involving a sexual assault that overshadows the entire plot) that make it involved and interesting throughout the book.

I loved this book...it's not very often you get a sweet romance with a female firefighter as the main character...add some mystery, complicated relationships, and cancer....an all around story with an ending to make you smile. This is a great book for a light, fun read !

"Love makes people stupid... and I'm not interested in being stupid. It makes them needy and sad and pathetic. And robs them of their independence."

Cassie is clearly not interested in romance. As an honored and award winning young firefighter in Austin, Texas, she is anything but dependent. After being asked by her mother--who left she and her dad ten years prior--to move in with her for a year, Cassie scoffs. However, after a series of events at her Austin station, and a serious guilt trip from her father, she decides to go. What follows is a perspective slant for Cassie. She must learn if she can forgive, if she can prove herself at a new station, and if she can find a way to ever be open to love.

I found this book to be quick, interesting, and very relevant to today's cultural context. (The book opens with Cassie being propositioned by a coworker at an event honoring her bravery, for instance.) There are underlying histories that the reader must wait to learn later on in the plot; naivete is explored and shifted. This book would be perfect for a flight, vacation, or weekend read. What I missed on a personal level was a depth of humanity for Cassie and her mother. I know the book may not have intended to delve that deep into their entanglement, but--as a reader--I felt it was missing.

This was my first Katherine Center book and I could not have loved it more! I will say, at first, it was a little slow. I honestly didn't know if I could get through it, but once I was almost half way through, I COULDN'T put it down! It was SO good. It had everything I love in a story- romance, a little mystery, relationships, and hardships. I loved the main character, Cassie. She was so real and likable and that made the story relatable to me. It was hard for me to read the beginning, I think, because she was so turned off by emotions and love. I kinda wanted to roll my eyes! lol But once it got into the story, I loved it. I also loved the ending because it wrapped everything up and didn't leave anything for the imagination. Could not recommend it more!

I absolutely loved this book! This is one of those that I will want to sit and think about for a couple days before starting something new. It had such an excellent storyline, yet also included bits of wisdom that served as great reminders on life. I'm new to reading Katherine Center and now I can't wait to get my hands on the rest of her books. Fantastic read!

Cassie is a no nonsense firefighter who is at the top of her game living in Austin, Texas. Suddenly her estranged mother contacts her asking her to come spend a year with her in Boston as she recovers from an illness. Cassie at first is completely against the move until circumstances at the firehouse cause her to reconsider. Before moving to Boston she is warned that she will not be welcome in the Firehouse in Boston due to the fact that she is female. She is also told to make sure she does not fall for a fellow firefighter. Piece of cake Cassie thinks or is it?

This was an enjoyable book about letting go of the past, finding love, and learning to forgive. Forgiving family, forgiving the past, and forgiving oneself. 4 out of 5 stars.

A wonderful story of family and forgiveness that weaves the lessons into prose seamlessly. This book had me in tears. I loved the ending but the whole story was a beautiful tale of connection, love, and hope. It took a few chapters to get into the story then I was hooked. I will be recommending this book to friends when it is published this Fall and my next read will be How to Walk Away by Katherine Center as well due to my enjoyment of this book.

5 stars! I loved this book! Could not put it down! This book has literally everything you could want in a book! It’s still early in the year but this will be hard to beat as my favourite book of 2019!

This is a very character driven novel. Not a lot goes on in the plot but you're following Cassie as she is transferred from one firehouse to another so she can live with her ailing mom. Cassie grabbed my attention from the start. I immediately liked her and wanted to see all the good/bad decisions she made along the way. I loved the setting of a fire station. I need more books with fire men and women. I did question her confiding in DeStasio of all people but she even brought that up herself. This is a HEA with a little heartbreak along the way.

I loved this novel - it has absolutely everything a food novel should have- a lovable but flawed heroine, drama, a mystery and just the right smattering of romance.

The story is told in first person by Cassie, our heroine and a first class firefighter/paramedic. Her voice is clear and strong throughout with crisp wittiness and grit. . Little by little more is revealed about Cassie’s life and her past. The more we learn, the more we fall in love with her.

All of the supporting characters are thoroughly believable and most a likable.

One of the best things about this book is the transformation that cassie experiences throughout the story. And another best thing is the wisdom peppered lightly through the pages about forgiveness and letting go of the past.

Highly recommend! This novel manages to be light and deep at the same time.

One more thing this

From the very beginning, this book captivated me. The setup is perfection! I was intrigued by the idea of a female firefighter, but also, Cassie Hanwell is a character for whom I could cheer, who I wanted to see succeed. Her mother left her on her sixteenth birthday, ditching Cassie and her father both for another man. But the book opens with Cassie receiving an award for heroism and virtually destroying her career in the same moment. Then, salvation looms, but it's going to be the classic story structure of the hero's journey into the threatening unknown land. There, she finds love, but it's forbidden territory.

The story's central theme is twofold: forgiveness, and the danger of adopting an erroneous perspective about something in your life. The error can prove to be a waste of a perfectly good life, a theme that plays out in a powerful metaphorical scene. This is empowering, reminding us that we have the power to change our perspective and, as a result, reap the rewards of a more fulfilling life. Courage, risk, and redemption are factors in this story, as well as love, family, and interdependency. As I write this, I'm savoring this book experience all over again. What a talented writer. I thoroughly enjoyed the story and am happy to recommend it.

I liked how this book explored a different variety of relationships and the main theme of forgiveness. Forgiveness in families, friendships, co workers and also of one’s self. It had moments that made me laugh, and cry. I always enjoy a strong female character. She was brave, strong and just one tough “cookie.”I also liked how Cassie was in a typically male dominated profession, and was able to prove that she was worthy to be there. Overall I enjoyed this book and would have loved it even more if there was less language.