What would you take? Things You Save in a Fire (Center)

I truly enjoyed this author’s novel, How to Walk Away, so immediately requested this e galley when I saw it on NetGalley.  I had a bit of a wait before I was approved but luckily I was!

This book is about Cassie, a seemingly tough, no nonsense, keep all emotion at bay firefighter.  Cassie has been hurt and traumatized in the past.  Her mother left the family on Cassie’s 16th birthday, a high school boy violated her; she does not believe that she wants more than work and routine.

The plot takes Cassie from Texas to Rockport, MA where she agrees to help her ill mother, but only for a year.  Cassie vows not to get close.  She gets a job in a new firehouse.  The antics within in terms of initiations are vividly described.  The author credits her husband, a volunteer firefighter for their authenticity.

Cassie joins the fire station on the same day as “the rookie.”  Their relationship forms the core of the novel, along with Cassie’s evolving relationship with her mother.

The book is a good, quick read.  There is some philosophizing by Cassie’s mother that adds dimension to the novel.  If you are a reader of this author’s novels or enjoy women’s fiction,  give this one a try.  Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the book in exchange for my honest review.