About this Event
Join debut author Kathleen Reidy for a conversation about !
Set against the heady world of the 2000 dot-com boom, this sharp, romantic debut follows Chelsea Lefevre as she leaves behind a “safe” marriage, escapes the misogyny of her old career in software engineering, and discovers she has a knack for predicting the next big thing in tech. Then she meets Seth Murphy, a magnetic sales executive who is very much off-limits, and a casual fling turns into a secret affair with real stakes for her career, independence, and heart.
Come hear Kathleen chat with Meredith Goldstein, longtime Boston Globe writer and the voice behind the beloved Love Letters advice column and podcast, about ambition, reinvention, risky chemistry, and figuring out when “good enough” is nowhere near enough.
Following the conversation, stick around to meet Kathleen! The author will sign and personalize Engineering a Love Story.
Event Details
- 6:30 PM: Doors Open – Grab a drink from the Lovestruck Bar & Cafe, settle in, and get ready for a great discussion!
- 7:00 PM: Discussion Begins – Kathleen and Meredith will dive into Engineering a Love Story!
- 7:45 PM: Q&A Session – Your chance to ask the author about their writing process!
- 8:00 PM: Signatures, Snapping Pics, and Salutations – Meet the author, and get your book personalized.
- 8:30 PM: Last call - Grab your final pour from the wine bar and head to the register for any book purchases.
- 09:00 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.
Accessibility
Check-in will take place at our front entrance on Brattle Street. If you have any accessibility needs, you're welcome to use our side entrance (located on the right side of the building), which is wheelchair accessible and has a ramp.
Guests who would benefit from priority seating or any additional assistance are encouraged to reach out in advance — just email us at [email protected]. We're more than happy to make arrangements to ensure you feel comfortable and supported.
We’re always learning and looking for ways to make our events more accessible. If you have suggestions or feedback, we’d love to hear from you!
Book Pickup Policy
If you purchased a book with your event ticket but can’t make it to the event—and don’t request a refund—we’ll happily hold your book for pickup for up to 30 days after the event date.
We’ll be in touch via the email you provided at checkout to help coordinate pickup. After 30 days, if we haven’t heard from you or made other arrangements, we’ll consider the book abandoned property and may donate it or return it to inventory so it can find a new home.
Thanks so much for your understanding and for supporting our events—we love doing this with you!
About The Author
Kathleen Reidy is a writer and public librarian based in the Boston area. She holds a Master’s degree in library science and spent more than a decade in the tech industry. Her short fiction has been published by Puddingstone Press and WayWords. She lives with her husband, daughters, and fluffy best friend. Engineering a Love Story is her debut novel.
About Engineering A Love Story: A Novel
At the height of the boom, ambition is easy—love is the real gamble. It’s the year 2000—dot-coms, Bush v. Gore, and sky-high San Francisco rents. But while the country swoons with irrational exuberance, Chelsea Lefevre’s life is collapsing faster than a tech bubble. She’d had everything she was supposed to want: a house on Boston’s North Shore, exquisite wedding china, a Waspy mother-in-law. A steady, safe marriage. But after a mortifying slip-up, Chelsea finds herself heading into the 21st century alone. Her lifeboat? A new job advising tech execs, taken to escape the misogyny she endured as a software engineer—only to discover she has a surprising knack for spotting the next hot thing. In this heady new world, Chelsea meets Seth Murphy, a magnetic sales executive at one of the country’s hottest startups. Professional boundaries make Seth off- limits, but Chelsea is tired of steady and safe. What starts as a casual fling soon spirals into a secret and intense affair, jeopardizing Chelsea’s career, newfound independence—and heart.But as the bubble bursts, Chelsea will have to decode the difference between good enough and too good to be true, and reckon with how much a smart woman can risk when she’s the only female in the room.
About The Conversation Partner
Meredith Goldstein is a longtime writer for The Boston Globe who also writes other things, including books. Her advice column, Love Letters, is a daily dispatch of wisdom for the lovelorn that started in 2009. The first season of the Love Letters podcast launched in 2018. It is a very lovely podcast.
Meredith’s books include the upcoming young adult novel Things That Grow, about a teen in love (who also learns how to deal with the complicated adults in her life); Meredith’s memoir, Can’t Help Myself: Lessons and Confessions From a Modern Advice Columnist (Grand Central/Hachette); Chemistry Lessons (Houghton Mifflin Harcourt), a young adult novel about a young woman who uses science to manipulate her love life; and The Singles, a novel about a group of dateless guests at a wedding.
Meredith has been interviewed by – and written for – The Washington Post, Bustle, Elite Daily, Apartment Therapy, Shondaland, and Real Simple.
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The Lovestruck is a cozy corner for settling in with a novel, sharing cheese & charcuterie over a glass of wine, grabbing a coffee before browsing the shelves, or treating yourself to something sweet.
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Event venue & nearby stays
Lovestruck Books & Cafe, 44 Brattle Street, Cambridge, United States
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