The Perfect Neighbours

by Rachel Sargeant

  Thank you for reading The Perfect Neighbours. I really hope you liked it.

  Without the help of many people, this novel wouldn’t have seen the light of day. I’m grateful to my editor Finn Cotton at HarperCollins and to my agent Marilia Savvides at PFD who believed in me and in this book, and helped bring it to a publishable standard. I’d also like to acknowledge the painstaking work of copy editor Janette Currie. A big thank you must go to my husband Nigel who proofreads my early drafts and gives me the space in our lives for me to write. I must also mention my former tutors in the Creative Writing department of Lancaster University. I thank Sarah, Eoghan, Conor, Tom and Zoe for their expert thoughts on technique. This novel is dedicated to fellow writers Fergus Smith, Gillian Walker, Jenny Sanders, Peter Garrett and Karen Pegg whose constructive criticism on several drafts and wise encouragement kept me going when I might have given up.

  I twice lived in a cul-de-sac in Germany like the one featured in the novel and I used this experience as the backdrop for my setting. However, my real neighbours were nothing like the characters I created in The Perfect Neighbours. They were invariably warm, friendly, kind and witty. I thank them for the many times they helped me and my family, and for making our time as expats fun.

  If you’d like to keep up to date with news on my writing and reading, please visit my website at:

  www.rachelsargeant.co.uk

  and I’d love to hear from you on Twitter:

  @RachelSargeant3

  About the Author

  Rachel Sargeant grew up in Lincolnshire. The Perfect Neighbours is her third novel. She is a previous winner of Writing Magazine’s Crime Short Story competition and has been placed or shortlisted in various competitions, including the Bristol Short Story Prize. Her stories have appeared in My Weekly and the Accent Press Saucy Shorts series. Rachel has a degree in German and Librarianship from Aberystwyth University and a Masters in Creative Writing from Lancaster University. She spent several years living in Germany where she taught English and she now lives in Gloucestershire with her husband and children.

  @RachelSargeant3

  www.rachelsargeant.co.uk

  About the Publisher

  Australia

  HarperCollins Publishers (Australia) Pty. Ltd.

  Level 13, 201 Elizabeth Street

  Sydney, NSW 2000, Australia

  http://www.harpercollins.com.au

  Canada

  HarperCollins Canada

  2 Bloor Street East - 20th Floor

  Toronto, ON, M4W, 1A8, Canada

  http://www.harpercollins.ca

  New Zealand

  HarperCollins Publishers (New Zealand) Limited

  P.O. Box 1

  Auckland, New Zealand

  http://www.harpercollins.co.nz

  United Kingdom

  HarperCollins Publishers Ltd.

  1 London Bridge Street

  London,SE1 9GF

  http://www.harpercollins.co.uk

  United States

  HarperCollins Publishers Inc.

  195 Broadway

  New York, NY 10007

  http://www.harpercollins.com