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Surprise Me

Waaaay back in the day, I used to work at an independent bookstore, and between customers I would sneak-read the Shopaholic books by Sophie Kinsella. This was when chick lit was all the rage and half of the spines on the books I shelved were neon pink.

I remember liking the Shopholic series, so I thought I’d see how I’d enjoy Kinsella’s work all these years later. Surprise Me is sometimes funny, sometimes a little too twee, but the plot isn’t able to bear the weight of the book. The premise is that London couple Sylvie and Dan have been living in married bliss, and until they get medical exams and realize that they’ll probably be spending the next 68 years together. I guess they’re really healthy or their doctor is a psychic. The idea of all those years ahead of them (and indications that Dan’s parents’ marriage isn’t great) brings them anxiety. What if they get bored? So they decide to spice things up by surprising each other with gifts and outings mostly. Of course it all goes adorably awry.

There are genuinely funny sections of this book, but mostly I was confused at how the prospect of maybe having another 68 years together derails the main couple. First of all, no one knows how long they have to live. Even if you are exceptionally healthy, accidents happen. That aside, I would love to have 68 more years with my husband. That’s why I married him. I kind of thought that was the point. Sophie and Dan are also raising five-year-old twins and managing busy careers, so I wondered how they even had time for that kind of marital existential crisis.

To top it off, the ending bothered me because we learn Dan is hiding a big secret from Sylvie (we know that from the beginning but we learn what the secret is at the end), and I had a hard time being sympathetic to him. Surprise Me is cute, but I just didn’t buy most of it.

– Elyse

#1 bestselling author Sophie Kinsella’s emotionally charged new standalone novel about marriage and family, and how those we love and know best can sometimes surprise us the most.

After being together for ten years, Sylvie and Dan have all the trimmings of a happy life and marriage; they have a comfortable home, fulfilling jobs, beautiful twin girls, and communicate so seamlessly, they finish each other’s sentences. However, a trip to the doctor projects they will live another 68 years together and panic sets in. They never expected “until death do us part” to mean seven decades.

In the name of marriage survival, they quickly concoct a plan to keep their relationship fresh and exciting: they will create little surprises for each other so that their (extended) years together will never become boring. But in their pursuit to execute Project Surprises, mishaps arise and secrets are uncovered that start to threaten the very foundation of their unshakable bond. When a scandal from the past is revealed that question some important untold truths, they begin to wonder if they ever really knew each other after all.

With a colorful, eccentric cast of characters, razor-sharp observations, and her signature wit and charm, Sophie Kinsella crafts a humorous, yet thoughtful portrait of a marriage and shines a light on the danger of not looking past the many layers of the ones you love to discover how infinitely fascinating–and surprising–they truly are.