Katherine Center writes emotion in a way that is so unique to her that I can’t really explain it. These people seemed real and the struggles were believable. Despite knowing where things were going, Center kept me interested with her quippy dialogue and great character development.

That being said, I wasn’t at all disappointed by how the story developed. I knew who the villain was right off the bat (well, when she actually gets to Lillian) and I’m sure most of us saw the love story coming from a mile away. I’ve got to say, much like How to Walk Away, I did find the plot of this story a little predictable. 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? Except for the handsome rookie, who doesn’t seem to mind having Cassie around. 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. The tough, old-school Boston firehouse is as different from Cassie’s old job as it could possibly be. 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.

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. I knew I needed something to break the reading slump I’ve been in lately, so I was hoping Katherine Center was going to pull through for me… and did she ever!Ĭassie Hanwell was born for emergencies.

I was a little worried going into Things You Save in a Fire (in stores now!), because I had heard nothing but amazing things about it, and I had high expectations after reading How To Walk Away a couple of weeks ago.

Things to save in a fire