Surprise Me by Sophie Kinsella

Surprise Me by Sophie Kinsella surprised me. Not because I liked it; I figured I would since I’m generally a Kinsella fan. What surprised me was the direction this story took. It started off very light-hearted. Sylvia and Dan go to the doctor for physicals for their health insurance. Because they live fairly healthy lifestyles, and given that life spans are increasing, they learn that “til death do them part” is about sixty eight years. After reality sets in, they decide they need to do things to get through the next sixty eight years as a couple. Ultimately they decide to “surprise” each other, leading to a string of funny occasions as they each plan events for the other. All the surprises lead to a night of passion in a not-so-secret-to-Dan garden. This is when the story took a surprising, and somewhat dark, turn. Dan has an ex that he reacquaints himself with shortly afterward. Sylvia catches parts of conversations between Dan and her mother that concern her. She catches Dan and his ex, Mary, huddled in conversations. Finally, she discovers a hidden cell in a desk drawer that she thinks is one thing but really leads us, the reader, down another path. By the end of the story, the surprise is on Sylvia, who goes through a transformation from naive, sheltered woman, to a woman determined to be her own person, and make her own decisions. While I did enjoy the story, as well as the characters who live in Dan and Sylvie’s world, I feel slightly confused. What I thought the story was wasn’t what it was at all. But what it ended up being was still enjoyable. I guess the “surprise” was on me. I received an advanced copy of this novel from the publisher.