Second Chances

The book I am currently reading (one of three, actually) is titled Untold Story (published in 2011), and it is written by Monica Ali, the famed British novelist. What if Princess Diana had faked her death, escaped to the United States, and lived in a town called Kensington -- ha, ha, that was funny -- under the name Lydia Snaresbrook? And, then, picture a grizzled paparazzi, who recognizes Di by her startling ultramarine eyes (she has abandoned her brown contacts years ago). Imagine the result.

Yep. This novel is a page-turning story. The writing is nice, though it lacks Ali's moving descriptions and strong writing (both of which can be found in her bestselling, NYTimes Editor's Choice novel Brick Lane) but the plotline is fabulously fairy-tale-esque. One paragraph deeply moved me.

In this paragraph, Lawrence, Di's loyal private secretary that abetted her and helped her fake her death and move to the U.S., was describing his conversation with Dr. Patel, his doctor (he is dying with a brain tumor; his doctor reckons, at the time of writing, that he has six months or so to go). This takes place in 1998, just a year after Di's "death", and nine years before the events of the present time in the novel (April 2007, the tenth anniversary of Diana's death). Dr. Patel has said that she was a Hindu after Lawrence asks her if she believes in an afterlife, and that she believes in reincarnation.

Me too, I said, I believe in reincarnation. I didn't elaborate. I think I may have offended her; she thought I was poking fun. Maybe what I should have said is, I believe in another chance.

Isn't that beautiful? Very powerful. Check out Untold Story.