Running Home to You

In this sweeping sapphic sports romance, two college softball stars compete for each other's hearts--if only they can get past their fear of striking out--from the nationally bestselling author of Play You For It.

When Abby Cruz transfers to Insley University and joins the softball team, it seems the only thing she and Kate Hutchins have in common is their love of the game. Abby's raw talent and reckless behavior threaten Kate's carefully controlled world, especially when their coach assigns Kate the unwelcome task of tutoring her rival.

As they learn to work together, they discover their differences are exactly what they've been missing off the field. Kate provides Abby with a sense of home after loss and grief. Abby, meanwhile, helps Kate embrace a freedom she's never known because of her strict religious upbringing. As they chase a national title, it's not long before the same love they have for the game grows for each other.

But much like on the diamond, their relationship requires perfect timing. While they try and fail to get it right over the next decade, the game keeps bringing them back together--from Puerto Rico to Tokyo, through courtrooms, churches, and Las Vegas casinos--as they fight to shake the weight of generational curses. But when an alumni game returns them to their college field, they must decide if it's really the love of the game calling them home, or the one in their hearts that they've never been able to let go of.

Author: Samantha Saldivar
Publisher: Dell
Published: 05/19/2026
Pages: 384
Binding Type: Paperback
Weight: 0.59lbs
Size: 8.01h x 5.23w x 0.83d
ISBN: 9798217092611


Review Citation(s):
Publishers Weekly 03/02/2026
Booklist 04/01/2026

About the Author
USA Today bestselling author Samantha Saldivar is a corporate broadcast producer who has previously worked at the NBC affiliates KGW in Portland and KMTR in Eugene, where she won a regional Emmy award for Best Evening Newscast. During her time studying at the University of Oregon's School of Journalism and Communication, she reported on college sports for campus television and interned at the now-defunct Comcast Sportsnet Northwest. She lives in Portland with her wife. Her debut novel, Play You For It, was a national bestseller.