Overview
- The story follows defense attorney Sarah Wolff, who moves with her daughter to the outskirts of Berlin while grappling with childhood trauma and difficulty being alone.
- An unseen figure calling himself the neighbor fills her fridge, takes out trash, and installs a nightlight before the interventions escalate into intimidation.
- Believing others fuel Sarah’s psychological struggles, the neighbor metes out brutal punishments against people in her orbit.
- The novel runs roughly 370 pages and features short, cliffhanger endings, time shifts between past and present, and rotating perspectives.
- Fitzek says he favors titles that sound harmless yet carry darker meanings and recounts his own neighborly anecdotes, including past complaints about drumming and renovation noise.