Surprise Me by Sophie Kinsella

I decided to try reading a book outside of my usual genre this month and went for a contemporary romance.  Sophie Kinsella (aka Madeleine Wickham) is many reader's go-to author for chick lit, light hearted, charismatic reads.  Some of her other books are titled, "Girls Night In", "My Not So Perfect Life", and "Confessions of a Shopaholic."  Just the titles alone make me think of pink, champagne, bubbles, and facemasks.  I don't know much about the other books outside of their titles, but Surprise Me seems like it may have a little more depth and seriousness to it than some of Sophie's other works. 

Sylvie and Dan, a happily married couple, have been together for ten years now.  They have twin girls, fulfilling jobs, and can finish each other's sentences.  A trip to the doctors tells them fabulous news!  They will have another 68 years of marriage together.  As the reality of that statement sets in, they start to panic.  Will their marriage be able to last another 68 years or will the routine of life grow tiresome?  They decide that they need to spice up their marriage in order to keep things fresh, new, and exciting.  But not all of the surprises go to plan, and anxiety sets in about their future together. 

The first half of the book was mostly charming and humorous.  Some of the initial story building at the very beginning seemed to drag for me, but it was worth it to continue reading.  The section of the book that shows the couple's surprises back and forth to each other was the best part of the book.  Laugh out loud funny and so relatable.  As the story progresses into the second half of the book, it does take a more serious turn.  At the end there is a totally unexpected element that was a lot darker than the rest of the book.  I was not expecting the ending at all, but I love how it rounded out the story and finished things off nicely. 

After reading a few other reviews on the book, I found most people were surprised to see, and didn't like the more anxiety ridden main character of Sophie, in comparison to Kinsella's usual protagonist.  Most faithful Kinsella readers point people to her Shopaholic Series if you're looking to explore her works for the first time.  As I had no prior knowledge of her works, I didn't see any problem with the book at all.  I really don't know if I could stomach something like the Shopaholic series, so this one was probably better for me personally.  If you're used to light and fluffy books, then you may be better of starting with the Shopaholic Series if you haven't read it already.

Rating: 4 out of 5
Positives: Pretty light and fluffy with some good laughs while still having some substance to keep you interested and engaged.
Negatives: Dragged a bit in the beginning.  I almost wish the sections where they surprised each other would have continued instead of taking the more serious turn, but I still enjoyed the book as a whole.

A Monster Calls by Patrick Ness

A Monster Calls follows the story of a thirteen year old boy, named Conor, who is learning to live with his mother's cancer diagnosis and her declining health.  With his mother's treatments also come nightmares for Conor.  Conor begins to be visited by a monster at 12:07 as he wakes from his nightmares.  The monster is formed out of a yew tree he can see from his bedroom window.  The yew tree monster tells Conor that he will tell him three true stories.  After the monster tells his three stories, Conor must tell a true story of his own.  If the monster determines that Conor's story is untrue, the monster will eat Conor.  The only problem is that Conor's story and his truth are not going to be easy to talk about.

The original creator, Siobhan Dowd, was terminally ill with cancer herself when she started working on this story.  She died before she could finish writing it.  Patrick Ness then took over and expanded the idea into the work it is today.  Ness also worked with a beautiful illustrator, Jim Kay, to really bring life to Siobhan's ideas.  The book has now been adapted to a film starring Lewis MacDougall, Felicity Jones, Liam Neeson, and Sigourney Weaver.  They also adapted it into a stage production in 2018, which looks phenomenal from the trailer and previews available online.

As soon as the story opens, you realize this is not going to be an easy, light-hearted read. Conor's mother is very sick, and the author isn't shy in showing the realities of cancer in a household.  For anyone who is sensitive to these topics or has experience with sick parents, just be aware that they don't sugarcoat the experience.  Make sure you have your tissues ready.  As someone who lost a parent to cancer at 17, I can so relate and empathize with Conor.  Especially his anger.  The ending of the book was so cathartic and something I really needed to read.  It really spoke to me on a personal level and helped me work through some of my own struggles surrounding my father's passing.  I don't cry often while reading, but I was crying through the ending of this book.  The ending was exactly what it needed to be.


Rating: 4.5 out of 5
* Positives: Not too long - 226 pages; Interesting concept and idea; Spot on in terms of reality of the story line (at least for me)

* Negatives: A part of me wonders if you have to have experienced grief like this to "get it."  I saw a few different reviews from people who were annoyed or unfazed by the story.  I'm thinking they are just in the wrong demographic (or soulless people who have no heart) but if someone has no concept of grief, then they may not understand where Conor is coming from.