The Firefighter's Cinderella by Sonya Weiss is the 3rd book in the Fire and Sparks romantic series, and my first book by this author. I love this genre, there is something so fun watching best friend to ex friends, to falling in love. I love the quirky people and situations in this book, and watching the characters grow. I found this book to be a quick read, and recommend it to all readers who enjoy a sweet romance.

I reviewed a digital arc provided by NetGalley and Entangled Publishing, LLC, Thank you.

A fun fluffy "clean" romance with lots of fun characters. I totally enjoyed the interactions of Harper and Rafferty and everybody trying their best to push them together when they were to stubborn to do so themselves. It's just one of those feel good light reads that one needs as a pick me up.

Disclaimer: I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own. Thank you to Rockstar Book Tours, Netgalley and Entangled Publishing for this free copy. All quotes in this review are taken from the Advanced Reader Copy and may change in final publication.

I’ll be honest and say that I have once romanticized the idea of having a firefighter for a boyfriend or whatever. Why? I’m pretty sure it was because of stuff like this:

**imagine gif of shirtless firefighter being hot here**

Okay maybe not but I mean the idea of having some hot ass dude with muscles to spare, in a uniform, saving cute little kittens from the top of a tree or whatever – NOT what real firefighters do all the time, mind you – is not just in my head. Clearly I’ve seen that idea around somewhere, and quite frankly I was curious to know if this novel was going to do something similar. Maybe I was just sooooooooo wanting to see what Weiss was going to do with that convoluted stereotype about firefighters and see if she was going to give it to us straight that I had to sign up and see if I would get picked.

I got picked.

And I was so impressed with the content that I am going to do my best to not romanticize firefighters anymore. I mean I don’t even do that regularly, but you know what I mean.

Now the reason why the title is about both a firefighter AND a Cinderella is because our main guy is actually a firefighter with his brother, and the main girl has to play Cinderella at her family’s theme park in order to save the park from closing down. So the title is simple but actually makes sense and gives you an idea of what exactly the romance is going to involve. Sure, the title doesn’t tell you the backstory of the two – that they were actually childhood friends and ended their friendship in one of the worst ways – but it’s still one that makes you wonder how the heck Cinderella is going to be involved in this.

At least, that’s what it did for me.

Then there’s this image of firefighters, where they are just the wholesome and loving and caring branch of law enforcement… is that the right term? Emergency response team? Well they are more loved than the police is the vibe I get when I compare what I see between the two. And yes, Weiss totally showed this side with our most eligible bachelor Rafferty and his grandma. It was adorable, honestly, and I was really surprised and happy that I got to see that side of him. It didn’t seem like it was only for show, you know?

Plus look at this:

"Rafferty didn't trust any man who thought screaming at people was an acceptable way to communicate."

Yes, this is basic human decency and shouldn’t be applauded as “being amazing” or whatever, but this was so refreshing to see a main character, a guy no less, know what’s up. So yeah, it’s basic as hell, but I’m still proud of him.

Clearly I was focused more on the firefighter thing of the book than the whole other part of the plot, meaning Harper and Rafferty having to show some sort of on-stage chemistry to make the show a success. That’s my bad. But at least I enjoyed these little aspects of the book enough to keep going, which made me okay with seeing the “friends turned enemies turned on-stage lovers turned whatever they have to be” relationship take place throughout the novel. I think I was too heartbroken that they ended their friendship in such bad terms that I didn’t want to see either of them hurt the other again. It was just too much.

And yes, that is a trope.

I just invented it.

I found myself getting confused throughout this story. Although Harper and Rafferty were friends when they were children, something broke up their friendship. Harper guards her heart following this event (it might have been helpful to understand what actually happened), while Rafferty becomes a player who won’t date more than a few dates. Harper desperately needs a Prince Charming at her family’s theme park, and Rafferty steps up (mainly because of a dare from his fellow firefighters).

I was confused by the back and forth timeline, and I had difficulty connecting with Harper and Rafferty. I also found some things regarding Harper’s mother strange. There were a few chuckles with some banter, but, unfortunately this book was not a winner for me.

I received an ARC of this book courtesy of NetGalley and the publisher. All opinions expressed in this review are my own and given freely.

A little back and forth storyline. Harper and Rafferty were childhood best friends, but something happened that broke their friendship for good. Vowing to never be friends with him again, Harper ends up having to cave when he comes to her rescue as prince charming at her family’s business. While Harper thinks he is turning around and growing up, unbeknownst to her he is committing to the job because of a dare from his fellow firefighters. While Rafferty is attracted to her, he doesn’t understand what happened all those years ago, and throughout the story they are able to discuss and work through what happened. While this was an enjoyable read, it also was a little back and forth for me and I couldn’t really connect with the characters.
I voluntarily read and reviewed an Advance Reader Copy of this book.

First off I just want to say thank you to NetGalley and Entangled Publishing, LLC for giving me a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. This book was a sweet, little real life fairy tale involving a woman playing a princess at her family's amusement park and a firefighter who is far from a Prince Charming looking for a happily ever after.
Rafferty has no intentions of falling in love or settling down but he has no problem playing the part of Prince Charming to win a bet. Rafferty is the last person Harper wants playing as her Prince Charming. His mother and grandmother have spent years trying to get him and Harper together, but Rafferty doesn't do commitment.
In order to make their performance less rigid, Rafferty and Harper have decided to spend more time together and try to rebuild their friendship. This creates a whole new level of tension between them. Harper lives in the comfort of safety and Rafferty lives in the thrill of the unknown. Can they possibly get on the same page and repair their friendship and possibly more?
So I really loved some of the characters of this book (like the matchmaking grandma, Jean), but I felt like other characters were underdeveloped and just thrown in there. I then quickly realized that this book was part of a series . . . This cleared up a lot of the issues that I had with this book and I'm excited to hopefully find the time to read the other books in this series soon.
My biggest and only real complaint is the author spent so much time on making sure her details on the firefighting aspects were correct but didn't think to look at other activities for accurate details. I noticed this the most with the horseback riding chapter. Now if you didn't grow up with horses you probably won't notice, but it drove me crazy. Some terminology was used incorrectly along with things just apparently happening (like no reference to saddling the horse but yet she uses a stirrup to mount). There were a couple other little places where I thought a little more detail was needed but it still didn't take away from the story line.
Overall I really enjoyed this quick, fun read and give it 3.5/5 stars. I think it could be a little higher if I had read the first two books. Happy reading!

It was an ok read for me. Quick sweet romance and if that is what you are looking for then this for you. Rafferty and Harper have been friends since they were kids but something happened to cause them to stop. Years later, she needs a Prince Charming and Rafferty stepped up. Between this and a matchmaking town, they realize that they are made for each other.

I received an ARC of this book from NetGalley and I am voluntarily leaving an honest review.

This was such a great short read! Harper and Rafferty were perfectly suited for the best friends to enemies to lovers arc and they were so enjoyable to read and watch interact. I love a good southern romance and I adore storybook ones as well and this felt like a wonderfully fresh combo of the two. I did find a few instances of what I am guessing was a name change from Haley to Harper (?) as I found a few Haleys through the story. But my only really critique is that I felt like I blinked and the story was over. The climax of Harper finding out Rafferty's real reason for joining the play and then them declaring their love was like wham bam thank you ma'am. Mind you I don't feel like it was missing anything because of the quick ending it still flowed nicely and felt like a fitting conclusion,

It is a really fun read. I enjoyed reading the story and both main characters are amazing. Harper is looking for a happily ever after and refuses to settle for anything less. Rafferty doesn't want to give up his freedom which he thinks will happen if he ever settles down. So, it's obvious that they are not suited for each other. Yet, people in their lives keep telling them that they should date and fall in love. Not that it matters.
But then Rafferty decides to play Prince Charming and help out Harper. Now, he is spending more time with her and both are renewing their friendship. As they get to know each other once again they realize that there is still a spark between them. It doesn't change what they both want from life but it might be worth it to take a leap of faith and see what happens. Now, the question is are they brave enough or not?
It's a well-written story and I loved it. It's romantic and funny. I think that it's a must read for all romance lovers.

Thank you to NetGalley and the Publisher for granting my request for an ARC of this book. The review below is entirely my own opinion.

I've never heard of this author and the blurb sounded cute --- which is why I clicked "request". And the story was indeed cute.

It's the kind of book that you could totally imagine as a Hallmark movie. I found some parts of it worked really well; but some others were also a little too much/too contrived for my taste.

By now, I've read a few of Sonya Weiss books and while they have a certain charm to them, I've come to realize that I like my romances to be a bit steamier. Still, I'm glad we finally got playboy Rafferty's story. If you like sweet small town romances with little swearing and sexual content and a focus on family and the childhood friends to lovers romance trope then this one may be for you!

A sweet and quirky story. Both Rafferty and Harper have been damaged in the quest for love. They both are struggling with their families push to make them a couple. They first have to repair their friendship and see if a lifetime together could work. This story is based in a small town and has all the qualities of its closeness and people running interference in each other’s lives.

3.5 stars

The Firefighter's Cinderella is the sweet friends to more/second chance romance of Rafferty and Harper. They were best friends for years, but everything fell apart after an argument years ago.

I thought the events that forced them to spend time together were fun and provided lots of reasons for them to reconnect. Their renewed friendship and romance grew nicely over the course of the plot without feeling too rushed.

While it started out a bit slow for me, I ended up getting into the story and really enjoying the sweet romance.

This had all the sweetness of a hallmark movie but it had just to much going on in one romance.

Old friends Harper and Rafe had a falling out when they were young and apparently never got over it in this small town Georgia where everyone knows everyone. There was matchmaking grandmas and a job, plus a failing medieval amusement park that needed a Prince Charming for its show.

This was a quick and easy romance that just had to many components which made me unable to fall in love with this cute

I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.
Thank you netgalley and entangled publishing

The Firefighter's Cinderella by Sonya Weiss has all the elements that should make a good romantic comedy; a klutzy heroine, interfering relatives and a handsome commitment phobic fire fighter. I can't pinpoint what made this a miss for me. I considered putting the book down in chapter 5, but decided to keep going as the book had a cute premise. I'm glad that I persevered as the ending was worth the time.
Thanks to #Netgalley for providing me with an advanced copy of this book in return for an honest review.

Pass. See note to publisher. While I did rate it at three stars those were generous. There were too many things that didn't work for me in this book and the editing in the first half of the book sorely lacked. I love Sonya's books, she's a great writer and plenty of talent. This wasn't her finest. I felt like with some attention this book could easily have been so much likable and an easy read. The plot is perfect, however even with the ability to suspend disbelief etc... it didn't work. Right down to Granny's lingo which rang more Texan than someone from rural Georgia.
I would be more than happy to read again, after a little clean up.

thank you for your patience on this one.

As a Georgia girl myself, this book gave me all the homesick feels. In a good way!

I loved this story. Rafferty and Harper were friends since they were kids. Hardships have happened in each of their lives and they fell apart. Some chance things are happening in their small Georgia town and they find themselves together more frequently than they would like. They are enjoying the time together though, a little too much.

Rafferty is a firefighter who seeks thrills. Harper runs an amusement park castle. Fate brings their work today in an odd way and they find theirselves falling.

I would like to note that this was a surprisingly clean love story. I really enjoyed the lack of swearing and overuse of sexual content. Sonya Weiss did a fantastic job of keeping this story well laid out and fun. Thanks for a good read.

Thanks NetGalley and Entangled publishing for this advanced copy. The opinions are solely my own and were influenced by outside sources.

This was a rather silly book. Put together a hero and heroine who have both been burned by love and are reluctant to admit to the attraction that they have for each other. Add in a whole town full of people who are matchmaking to throw them together, including a wise-cracking, matchmaking granny. Then imagine a setting of a small town in Georgia which supports not one, but two amusement parks and you have the ingredients for a thoroughly unbelievable plot. I just didn’t buy one word of it and I couldn’t feel that much for either character.

I voluntarily reviewed an advanced reader copy of this book that I received from Netgalley; however, the opinions are my own and I did not receive any compensation for my review.

Harper needs someone to play Prince Charming in a play to keep her family’s amusement park plus wedding venue business afloat. Rafferty volunteers to play the part, and despite Harpers misgivings, she knows he is the best choice and agrees.
Harper and Rafferty used to be best friends but not anymore. Now they have to play nice to look convincing as Cinderella and Prince Charming in the play, and the match making family members are not helping matters.
I enjoyed reading the firefighters Cinderella. It was a fun read with some humorous scenes. Rafferty's grandmother was hilarious and one of my favorite characters. A sweet read that had potential to be Hot.

Harper and Rafe's love story was fun and entertaining! I loved the setting of an amusement park and I actually wish we would have seen more of what happened there and how it actually worked. The side characters were great and I really loved Rafe's family, especially his grandma.