Surprise Me by Sophie Kinsella #BookReview

After being together for ten years, Sylvie and Dan have a comfortable home, fulfilling jobs, beautiful twin girls, and communicate so seamlessly, they finish each other’s sentences. They have a happy marriage and believe they know everything there is to know about each other. Until it’s casually mentioned to them that they could be together for another sixty-eight years… and panic sets in.

They quickly decide to create little surprises for each other, to keep their relationship fresh and fun. But in their pursuit of Project Surprise Me – anything from unexpected gifts to restaurant dates to photo shoots – mishaps arise with disastrous and comical results.

Gradually, the surprises turn to shocking discoveries. And when a scandal from the past is uncovered, they begin to wonder if they ever really knew each other after all. . .

This is my first Sophie Kinsella novel, can you believe it? I did see Confessions of A Shopaholic with Isla Fisher on tv and I happened to watch it again not so long ago. I quite enjoyed myself and that is why I finally picked up my copy of Surprise Me.

Sylvie and Dan have been together 10 years, married for 7 years. They are THAT couple, the perfect one, they literally finish each other’s sentences and are in a great place at the start of the novel. Then they hear from the doctor that they’re in excellent health and are expected to be together for another 68 years; they have to recover a little bit from that announcement. Sylvie and Dan make a plan to surprise each other to help keep their relationship fresh and exciting but nothing goes to plan. I enjoyed the little surprises they threw for each other, they’re good fun and most are things that are easily considered when you’re a couple (surprise breakfast in bed for instance). But then halfway through the novel Sylvie hears Dan having a hushed conversation that unsettles her and he reaches out to some old friends among which an ex-girlfriend. There might be a surprise coming up she doesn’t want to discover. She thought her marriage was solid but Dan is absent-minded, taut and he always has to work. Can they get back to the way they were?

Surprise Me was easy to read, it’s not too taxing so perfect reading material while you have some time off and are enjoying the sun. The characters, especially Sylvie, and many of the situations she finds herself in were quite relatable. The second half and the ‘secret’ that Dan keeps from Sylvie was more serious than I expected but a great twist in the story too, it’s something that brings on a change for the couple on its own and the biggest surprise she’ll have all things considered.

A great book that certainly surprised me. I’ll be looking out for more books by Sophie Kinsella.

I received a free paperback copy of this novel a few years ago in a giveaway. This is my honest opinion.

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