April 28-May 14, 2020
Looking for a page-turner while you’re stuck inside? Our Driftwood staff passes on some of their favorite light reading picks to pass the time while cooped up at home.
Things You Save in a Fire
by Katherine Center
Cassie Hanwell is an elite college athlete-turned-firefighter in Austin, Texas. Despite being one of the only women in her department, she fits in well, getting along with her coworkers and pulling more than her weight on the job. But at a reception honoring community leaders, the man presenting her with an award turns out to be the same guy who assaulted her a few months prior, and Cassie does the only thing she can think of—she punches him in the face. Not wanting to fire her, her chief transfers her to a Boston firehouse.
The all-male firefighting squad she meets there is decidedly old-school sexist, and they don’t take too kindly to having a woman in their midst, even one as competent as Cassie. Due to department budget cuts, the squad is told they’re going to lose one of their members, and all eyes are on Cassie—and a rookie named Owen Callahan. She’ll have to be better, faster, and smarter than Owen in a big way if she wants to keep the job she loves. While she capably knocks down every challenge her colleagues set before her, she also finds herself falling for Owen.
But her firehouse forbids their personnel from dating. Plus, if she beats him, she knows from experience that anything between them will be over and done. She’s not about to sacrifice her career and her principles for a guy. But she might just end up sacrificing her heart.
Things You Save in a Fire meets my usual rom-com requirements of being both deeply emotional and laugh-out-loud funny, but where it really stands out is in the brilliant characterization and can’t-put-it-down plot. It’s a perfect feel-good read for relaxing after finals.
—Tracy Fernandez Rysavy, Driftwood Advisor