Soccer Stories Book Bash with Kallie Emblidge and Anna McCallie

Join us for a celebration of two unforgettable debut romances that prove football and falling in love are equally high stakes. Kallie Emblidge and Anna McCallie will be in conversation about writing slow-burn chemistry, messy feelings, second chances, and the irresistible tension of teammates, coworkers, and almost definitely crossing the line.

From the pressure cooker of the Premier League in , where a guarded football star finds himself falling for the talented young midfielder threatening his place on the roster, to the swoony Liverpool setting of , where a freshly heartbroken American starts over abroad and discovers unexpected sparks with a famous footballer roommate, these novels deliver banter, longing, emotional vulnerability, and plenty of romantic tension. After the discussion, stick around for a meet and greet and signing with both authors as we celebrate the release of these charming, football-filled love stories.

Both titles are available to purchase along with your ticket at Eventbrite checkout. If you wish to purchase both books, be sure to select the ticket option featuring both titles.

EVENT DETAILS

• 5:30 PM: Doors Open – Settle in, grab a drink from the George Howell Coffee & Wine Bar, and get ready for a great discussion!
• 6:00 PM: Discussion Begins – Kallie and Anna and will dive into Two Left Feet and Abby Offsides.
• 6:45 PM: Q&A Session – Your chance to ask the author anything!
• 7:00 PM: Signatures, Snapping Pics, and Salutations – Meet the author, get your book signed, and snap a photo.
• 7:30 PM: Last call - Grab your final pour from the wine bar.
• 8:00 PM: Event Wraps Up – Thanks for joining us!

Tickets are limited, so grab yours soon! If the event sells out, you can join the Eventbrite waitlist by selecting “Reserve a spot” followed by “Join Waitlist”. Should any spots open up, you’ll have 24 hours to register before we offer it to the next person.

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ACCESSIBILITY

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ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Kallie Emblidge works for The Washington Post and is a co-chair of the paper's union. She lives and writes in New York City. Two Left Feet is her first novel, but she's been a football fan forever. 

ABOUT TWO LEFT FEET

"A Premier League football star must defend his roster spot—and his heart—when a threateningly talented and handsome midfielder joins his team in this utterly charming debut romance, a profound love letter to the world’s most popular sport.

Oliver Harris is football royalty in London. Ordinarily the star of the Camden Roses is calm, cool, and collected, keeping his club relevant with his prowess in the midfield and his mighty left foot. But this season, the threats abound: There’s Camden’s management to contend with—complete with a prickly new Dutch coach, eager for better results—and a midseason injury, which sidelines him when his team needs him most. When a recruit is called up to fill in, Oliver fears he’ll be replaced. If he can mentor this younger talent, then they might just have a chance at winning, together.

After a string of lackluster performances in his native Spain, Leonardo Davies-Villanueva is looking for one last shot with the club he always dreamed of, where he once played in the youth academy. Oliver immediately finds confident, eager Leo irritating. He can barely go through the motions, let alone coach him, without outright hostility. When he comes to admire Leo’s skill and warms to his humor and energy, though, he begins to see Leo as a friend—and then, to his mounting horror, as something more.

Leo craves Oliver’s attention and partnership; Oliver can’t afford to fall in love with his teammate. He’s always kept a tight lid on his sexuality in a league that’s never had a player come out. As the season heats up, a lot more than football hangs in the balance. Can Oliver—and Leo—win when it counts most?

“An exuberant heart-squeeze of a book . . . Two Left Feet is the kind of joyful, hopeful story the romance genre was made for.”—Rachel Lynn Solomon, author of What Happens in Amsterdam

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Anna McCallie was born in Boston and moved to the small town of Stilwell, Kansas, as a child. She has a B.A. in Arabic from Harvard University and an M.A. in international environmental policy from the Fletcher School, yet has never managed to have a job related to either of those subjects. She lives in London, and when she’s not writing, she can be found solving crossword puzzles, badgering her friends to go to pub quizzes, and watching a tremendous amount of football. Abby Offsides is her first novel.

ABOUT ABBY OFFSIDE

In this witty and heartfelt debut, a woman's impulsive journey across the pond after a broken engagement leads her to a new love—and a new version of herself.

Seeking a fresh start after leaving her cheating fiancé, Abby McIntyre makes a series of spontaneous decisions: She quits her job. She books a one-way flight to the UK. She even gets bangs!

Newly arrived in Liverpool, she lands a job with the Mersey Football Club and meets Lachlan Ramsay, the recently recruited Scottish star midfielder. Both lonely in a new city, the pair bond quickly, and Abby finds it nearly impossible to deny their chemistry—despite the nagging guilt she feels about Lachlan’s mysterious wife who didn’t relocate with her husband.

When Abby’s housing falls through, Lachlan insists she move into his massive penthouse. As they spend almost every waking moment together, Abby wonders if it’s possible that the world-famous footballer could be falling for her, too. But with her job and his marriage dependent on them staying firmly in the friend zone, can Abby risk being caught offside?

Crackling with witty banter and palpable sexual tension, Abby Offsides is at once a smoldering, slow-burn romance and a nuanced exploration of one woman’s journey to reclaim her own dreams and desires after years of living life on autopilot.

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