Book excerpt: When you were 17, what did you think your life would be like when you hit 27? At 17, Rachel Hill was the girl most likely to succeed. At 27, with an Honours degree and a career as a travel writer, she thinks that marriage is the only thing missing from this perfect trifecta. Her American boyfriend is smart and gorgeous, just the guy everyone thought she'd find. But one rash decision changes everything. Suddenly Rachel finds herself living back at home in her childhood bedroom, nannying a surly six-year-old and watching Mary Tyler Moore re-runs. Her friends worry she's having a 'quarter-life' crisis - but the real story is far more bizarre. As she confronts her idea of perfection, she finds that happiness is living the life you want to live, rather than the one you're expected to.