Abby Offsides: A Novel (Thousand Voices)

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.

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.

“Abby Offsides, the witty debut from Anna McCallie, shines with sparkling banter and charming characters. This slow-burn sports romance is absolutely worth the wait. . . . Delightful!”—Carley Fortune, #1 New York Times bestselling author of One Golden Summer

“This book made me care about soccer—or football, rather—for the first time since Ted Lasso. A charming debut romance that will make you want to fall in love with someone who has both a great accent and fabulous thigh muscles.”—Emma Straub, New York Times bestselling author of This Time Tomorrow

“Irresistibly charming, Anna McCallie has written characters you’ll want to befriend, a leading man you’d leave your husband for! An addictive, funny love story that’s the sweet escapism we all need in our lives right now.”—Fran Littlewood, New York Times bestselling author of Amazing Grace Adams

“A big-hearted story about finding love and community in unexpected places . . . A character filled with longing, laughs and a little healthy competition, Abby is as funny and relatable as the novel itself. I found myself rooting for Abby, Lachlan and Mersey Football Club from the opening chapter of this sparklingly life-affirming debut.”—Ella Berman, author of Before We Were Innocent and L.A. Women