MOTHER-of-three Louise Fisher is a primary school teacher and an Army wife of 18 years. She has lived in many UK locations as well as postings to Northern Ireland, Germany and, most recently, Washington DC. Here, she gives her verdict on The Perfect Neighbours by fellow Service spouse Rachel Sargeant…
The book is centred around an expat community in Germany. Having lived on an Army patch in Germany I was excited to find out more and it didn’t disappoint.
The characters’ personalities are easily identifiable for those who have experienced patch life and, whereas I’ve thankfully never experienced any of the sinister goings-on of the plot, the characters certainly struck a chord and at times had me grinning as I reflected on my experiences of German life.
The storyline builds on the members of the community and their interactions with each other. It is evident that the author has used her own experiences to develop the characters in the book.
The main protagonist, Helen, is thrown into life in an expat community in Germany after marrying a teacher at an international school. Her desire to ‘not conform’ with the stereotypical patch existence leads her to uncover a sinister story which results in tragedy for the whole community.
The transition from friendliness to hostility soon appears and Helen’s desire to keep her own identity leads to heartache as she unravels secrets and finds out all is not what it seems.
The book is a real page-turner and was the first I’ve read for a long time that had me wanting to find out what happened next as the plot unfolded. It’s a psychological thriller with a good storyline and plenty of twists to keep you guessing until the end. The book will definitely appeal to the Army community, especially if you’ve ever experienced patch life.