Die unberechenbare Wahrscheinlichkeit des Zufalls

by J.W. Ironmonger, John Ironmonger

Thomas Post ist gewissermaßen ein Vorgänger Joe Haaks, des Protagonisten aus John Ironmongers Weltbestseller Der Wal und das Ende der Welt. Doch wo Joe das Leben durch einen Algorithmus rettet, steht Thomas noch vor dem unberechenbaren Rätsel des Zufalls.

Geschieht alles aus einem bestimmten Grund?
Azaleas Mutter starb an einem Mittsommertag.
Genau wie ihr Großvater, ihre Stiefeltern und einer der Männer, die ihr Vater sein könnten. Folgt diese Kette von Zufällen einem bestimmten Muster? Und wird sie selbst an einem 21. Juni sterben?
Azalea vertraut sich einem Experten für Zufälle an: Dr. Thomas Post. Als dieser beginnt, die Rätsel ihrer Vergangenheit zu entwirren, werden seine Überzeugungen von der Liebe, dem Leben und der Statistik völlig auf den Kopf gestellt.

Spiegel-Bestsellerautor John Ironmonger erzählt eine Geschichte über das Schicksal bzw. die Selbstbestimmtheit des eigenen Lebens. Romantik trifft hier auf Philosophie, Thriller und Abenteuer. Ein fesselnder, sprachlich eleganter, berührender, intelligenter und oft auch amüsanter Roman wie Die unwahrscheinliche Pilgerreise des Harold Fry und Der Wal und das Ende der Welt.

Genres: Fiction, Contemporary, Mystery, Africa, Novels, Audiobook, Philosophy

464 pages, Paperback

First published March 14, 2012

About the author

See also John Ironmonger

Reviews

[Betsy Robinson · Rating 5 out of 5]

The first of Ironmonger's books published in the USA, the second of his books written, and my second read, Coincidence plops John Ironmonger onto my list of favorite writers.

He is a wonderful storyteller, but he is also a philosophy teacher, a purveyor of social justice, and a romantic.

A little girl named Azalea is found alone, apparently abandoned, in a fairground in Devon, England, and the story—put together like a jigsaw puzzle—proceeds to not only trace her back to her roots, but through Socratic dialogues, debate the merits of determinism (the notion that some outer force determines what happens to us) and free will, and expose the brutal army of Joseph Kony in Uganda.

There is nothing better than a great story about big ideas, delivered in a compelling and loving way.

And speaking of love, in both the Ironmonger books that I've read (the first being Not Forgetting the Whale), there is an omniscient storyteller who very occasionally voices a sweet amusement at the foibles of his characters. (I must steal this!)

Also, both novels end with wonderful back-of-the-book material that adds to the reader's knowledge and is as well written as the rest of the book.

[Anne · Rating 3 out of 5]

Unfortunately and surprisingly, this book is not the type of book that engages me. After reading and loving the same author's book Not Forgetting the Whale, I expected to love this book as well, expected a similar style of writing and structure. While NFtW has philosophical questions to explore he did so through a charming and lovable protagonist and a wonderfully engaging story. Coincidence also has philosophical questions to explore but does so very heavy handedly and at the detriment to character development and to the story through which he explores these questions. I did not feel engaged with any of the characters nor was there a cohesive plot to follow. This was more of an intellectual read and a puzzle to be pieced together.

In essence, this book is concerned with whether coincidences occur in life or if life is preordained, and if it is, can anything be done about it. To explore these philosophical questions we meet Azalea as a 3 year old. She is found wandering alone at a fairground and is too young to tell anyone any pertinent information about herself so she is eventually adopted. It is through her life that we explore the questions of destiny and chance. As an adult, Azalea introduces herself to Thomas, a mathematics professor who specializes in disproving the notion of coincidences. Azalea has experienced some disturbing and troubling coincidences which she wants to discuss with Thomas. These 2 main characters we meet throughout the book as the story jumps back and forth in time and place from Britain to the civil war in Uganda and to different times in Azalea's life, though not in chronological order. We spend a lot of time in Uganda, much more than is necessary to tell Azalea's story. In fact, it is in Uganda where we meet several secondary characters who may or may not survive the civil war. For me, all the true feeling and suspense takes place in Uganda and for these secondary characters, the people trying to survive the civil war. I felt more for these characters and their plight than about Azalea. The civil war Joseph Kony's reign of terror is an important story to tell but felt overdone for the purposes of this novel, not melding smoothly with Azalea's story and concerns.

Through all of the events narrated and depicted in the book I found out things about Azalea, about who her mother was, about her father, and her adoptive parents. All of this information was stumbled upon as pieces of a puzzle slowly coming together. But, because the reader doesn't get to know Azalea in any real way other than her philosophical concerns and what happens to her I felt completely removed from and disengaged from her. I got to know Thomas slightly more than Azalea because the reader is privy to the inner workings of his mind as he narrates his parts of the story. Her early life story is eventually pieced together and told to us through events which take place and at one point she herself tells us about things she has discovered herself (the telling not showing of storytelling). When we meet her as an adult throughout the book but particularly at the end, we hear her discussing at great length with Thomas her concerns about coincidence and destiny which she feels has ruled her life so far and may still do so. Speaking of endings, the end of this book was a disappointment.

If you are deeply interested in the questions of determinism and destiny and you like intellectual puzzles you may like this book. If you prefer character or plot driven novels I would take a pass on this one.

This turns out to be Ironmonger's debut novel, though the second novel published in the US. I understand that he is working on a new book and I look forward to reading that one with the hopes that it will be more in keeping with the style of NFtW.

[Diane S ☔ · Rating 4 out of 5]

Thomas is a college professor, a stereotypical academic intellectual. He teaches a class in probabilities, tries to find rational explanations to things and events that seem coincidental. Azalea has experienced, in her life, many things that seem coincidental, things she believes did not happen at random, but are fated by her past. One such personal belief of a dire nature causes her to seek out Thomas.

From the time she was three, and found wandering alone in a fairground, her life has taken many different turns. Adopted by the Foley, a family with a long line of missionaries, she is taken to live with them in their mission in Uganda. This is the most interesting part of the book. The scenes in Uganda are taut with suspense. Joseph Kony has terrorized the region, making baby soldiers out of boys as young as five. When he visits the mission things quickly become dire. Who will live and who will die?

Azalea's and Thomas's relationship is interesting, all the conversations about chances and fate, is there a higher power guiding our lives? Are they pre-ordained?.There is much to think about at the close of this novel. As you read the book, one is amazed at the amount of coincidences in Azalea's life.

This is the type of novel I love to discover. Not getting much buzz, but very good, strong characters, history and an all around interesting story. There are a few problems with tenses, the novel does go back and forth in time but neither of those things changed my enjoyment I. the book. This is a first novel by this author and a very worthy one.

[Cheri · Rating 5 out of 5]

”We are all the product of a whole host of staggeringly unlikely events.”

As a three-year-old Azalea was left at a Fairground, and turned over to authorities. Soon thereafter, she was adopted by Luke and Rebecca Foley, and after some time, they moved to Uganda to teach the children at a mission in the little township of Langadi, a remote spot which lies north of the Nile in the Moyo District in the province of West Nile. It was a troubled time when they arrived in 1984, during Joseph Kony’s reign of terror.

As an adult, Azalea meets Thomas Lewis, or, one could say she ran into him, literally, as part of a collision of people on an escalator, ending up in a pile.

Thomas Post is an authority on probability. Azalea Lewis is a woman who believes strongly in coincidence, that certain coincidences in her life point to her future fate. The death of several of her family members have occurred on the same date, Midsummer’s Day, a decade apart – beginning with her great-grandfather’s death - leaving her convinced the same fate awaits her.

There’s so much more to this story, but hopefully you will read this, and discover the charm yourself.

Not long ago, I read John Ironmonger’s Not Forgetting the Whale, which I found due to my goodreads friends Antoinette and Betsy’s reviews, and which I loved. And then I added this one after I read my goodreads friend Betsy’s review, and I’m so glad I did. I love the way Ironmonger manages to incorporate important concepts, current and past events and interweaves them into a compulsively readable story with charm.

Betsy’s review: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

[Jill · Rating 5 out of 5]

Coincidences happen. Wishes come true. Or maybe they don’t.”

J.W. Ironmonger creates a real gem of a novel, interweaving an enchanting love story with an intellectually satisfying story of two people trying to make sense of their place in the universe. Is everything in our life controlled by an all-knowing creator who bends the future in any way that he – or she—wishes? or do things happen more or less randomly based on free will?

Azelea Lewis, the key character of this novel, is the Queen of Coincidences. Her life is shaped by a series of uncanny events, starting from the time she was three years old and found wandering a fairground in England on Midsummer’s Day, 1982. Later, on Midsummer’s Day 1992, the couple that adopted Azelea are presumed killed by Uganda’s cult-like Lord’s Resistance Army. And the coincidences just keep piling up from there.

Her lover and nemesis is Thomas Post, a respected academic who uncovers the scientific explanation behind so-called coincidences. In particularly fascinating prose, Thomas debunks some of our most widely-known and oft-repeated historical coincidences in an attempt to show that the universe is, in fact, random.

This book will make you think about the concepts of pre-destination versus free will. Can anyone change the way the universe will unravel? Or have we humans tapped into a clever mechanism that allows us to enter our own will into the equation? And in the end, does it all even matter? It’s a rare book that entices the reader to think and feel at the same time. One thing’s for sure: you will never think of coincidences in precisely the same way again.

[switterbug (Betsey) · Rating 5 out of 5]

If you think that your life is charmed and charged with coincidence, meet Dr. Thomas Post, a London university applied philosophy professor and gangly, red-haired coincidence authority. He will shoot down divine belief in coincidences with statistics, theories, and candid, rational, un-magical thinking. That is whom Azalea Lewis seeks out to question all the tragic coincidences in her life.

Azalea was born in the Isle of Man and orphaned at three when her mother disappeared while with her at a Devon fairground, Midsummer’s Day, 1982. Later, she finds out her mother was abducted and killed that day, and that her father could have been one of three men. She was adopted by good-natured, loving missionaries and moved to Uganda. Her adoptive parents were also killed on Midsummer’s Day, in 1992. Will she die, too, on the next Midsummer’s Day, June 21, 2012? She thinks so. There are more coincidences to be revealed as Azalea and Thomas kindle an affectionate relationship, and she tells him what she knows of her life story.

As Thomas and Azalea become closer, they deliberate and examine the theories surrounding coincidence, luck, synchronicity--all the different and loaded words and beliefs that it entails. Thomas insists on the element of free will and randomness, and edifies Azalea on theories of determinism and providence, among other arguments. Azalea is open to the possibility of a master-controller, or divine intervention; Thomas trusts the scientific principles as explanation, although he is compassionate and sensitive to Azalea's position. Ultimately, he disregards the idea of a non-random influence.

“…coincidences…aren’t the responsibility of any malign force—or even benign force. They’re just things that happen from time to time. That’s all.”

Ironmonger’s euphonious narrative seamlessly alternates different time periods from 1982 to 2012, weaving in disparate events and settings. From the Isle of Man, to Uganda during the brutal civil war, and present day London, the author constructs a riveting, page-turning story that will appeal to readers of popular and literary fiction. Although the framework of coincidence calls attention to the mechanics of plot design, it is accomplished with subtlety. Occasionally, it veers into over-deliberation, but when it does, it is brief and doesn’t deter from its credibility. As June 21st draws near, the story becomes more and more intoxicating.

Addendum: What a coincidence—this is the second novel in a row that I read which remarks on the inherent problems of quantum mechanics, and how the observer affects what is being observed!

[Gabrielle (Reading Rampage) · Rating 4 out of 5]

Sometimes, I need a feel-good book. The weather has been cold and crappy, and a belligerent, narcissistic tangerine just took the oath of office, so I figured I was due for a hopeful book, a big oatmeal cookie, a cup of tea and a hot water bottle.

John Ironmonger writes quirky, clever books. He is an unusual novelist but he knows human nature. "The Coincidence Authority" asks a simple question: is everything that happens to us a series of coincidences or is everything pre-determined by a mechanism we can't understand?

Thomas is a scientist who has an unusual specialty: debunking so-called coincidences by demonstrating that statistics and the human brain's natural tendency to search for patterns in everything is what creates what we perceive as serendipity or destiny. Azalea is a woman who's entire life has been influences by a series of highly improbable events. She goes to Thomas to try and find an explanation behind the tragedies she has been plagued by her entire life.

The non-linear narrative structure can feel a little messy, but Ironmonger is very good at pacing: he keeps things interesting and suspenseful the whole way, even when you have no idea where he is going. He also throws quite a bit of theoretical science at his readers with "The Coincidence Authority"; I personally find it fascinating to read about the Billiard Ball theory, but I can see how it could get a bit grating for some people.

The love story is predictable, but not easy. I'm not sure how to explain that, but just like real budding relationships, there are issues, snags and conflicts between Thomas and Azalea. "They were, in a sense, two solitary people who had become used to their own company, relaxed in their own company, but who longed nonetheless for another heart to beat alongside their own." Introverts will go "aaaww!".

I have read all of Ironmonger's books (in the reverse order in which they were published, come to think of it) and I always finish them feeling a bittersweet fuzziness, because they are sweet but also deep and never go where I thought they would. This little book is about the age old debate of faith vs. science, the cosmic roll of the dice vs. things happening for a specific reason. And like that age old debate, it doesn't give you an answer, nor does it seek to make you believe in one possibility or another. I think Ironmonger simply wants to tell a story to remind people to not worry so much about that particular question and enjoy life a little.

Read it. Let your lip curl into a little smile. Feel a little bit better regardless of the surrealy fucked up place the world is now in. Take a break from the big questions for 300 pages.

[Roger Brunyate · Rating 5 out of 5]

A Novel Approach to Storytelling

This enjoyable British novel gripped me throughout, largely because of its unusual approach to storytelling. My friends and I often make a game of picking out those moments you sometimes find in fiction when an author inserts a blatant coincidence or plot contrivance to help the story along. Generally, it is laziness and shows disrespect for the reader. But here is an author who uses coincidence as his main constructive principle, and builds a story around it. And it works, it works superbly.

Azalea Lewis is plagued by coincidence. Although adopted and, she thinks, an orphan, she meets not one but two men claiming to be her father, both of whom are blind. Significant events in her life seem to take place on Midsummer Day, ten years apart. A chance encounter also makes her collide (literally) with the one man in England who considers himself an expert in coincidence, the London University psychologist Thomas Post. She believes that strange things happen for a reason; he can prove that coincidences are either less statistically unlikely than commonly assumed, or else the result of outside manipulation: if a coin comes up heads five times in a row, it is unusual but not impossible; fifty times, and it is almost certainly weighted. Their discussions about these matters are fascinating, not just because of the examples that Thomas produces, but because they raise deeper issues of determinism, faith, and free will.

The book begins as a mystery, when the four-year-old Azalea is found abandoned in a Devonshire fairground, and the police search in vain for further clues. Ironmonger caught my intention from the very first page, because of his apparently objective style that nonetheless leaves no doubt that he is in control of what he will reveal when; I thought especially of Jim Crace's writing in Being Dead. Later, as the connections ramify, I thought of Penelope Lively's interest in the apparently arbitrary linkages between events in books such as Consequences or How It All Began. I also thought of Kate Atkinson in Life After Life, although Ironmonger never goes so far as to multiply alternate realities like she does. But there is a particularly easygoing kind of narrative in all these British authors that I could see in Ironmonger too, especially once the genre shifted towards romance.

Ironmonger was born in East Africa, and the action returns there for several scenes, to the West Nile region of Uganda, on the border with South Sudan. This is the region terrorized by Joseph Kony and his Lord's Resistance Army, one of whose tactics is to abduct children from schools and force them into soldiering or childbearing, inflicting terrible mutilations on those who attempt to escape. A coincidence, since I have just been reading Susan Minot's recent novel Thirty Girls, about the very same subject. Ironmonger is the more successful of the two, I think, because he has the wisdom not to go deeper into the Kony story than he can handle, and not to risk making the affairs of his Western characters seem trivial by comparison.

Although in this instance touching on a major humanitarian issue, Coincidence makes no claims to be an earth-shattering book. Instead, it is intelligent, artfully constructed, and warm. Nowhere did I admire it more than in its final pages, set back in Uganda, when the author abandons the conventions of romance and quite avoids melodramatic denouement. Instead, he offers an ending that is satisfying both in philosophical and in human terms, warmed by the wisdom of another character who has lived through it all and has made his own peace.

[Kristine · Rating 4 out of 5]

Original review found at http://kristineandterri.blogspot.ca/2...

* I received an advanced readers copy from Harper Perennial via Edelweiss in exchange for an honest review*

Coincidence is a truly unique and interesting tale of one woman and the circumstances that surround her life. It is at times funny, haunting, tragic and beautiful. The synopsis is extremely detailed (perhaps too detailed) so I won't re-tell the story but I will say that the events of Azalea's life and before are nothing short of unbelievable. Ironmonger does a spectacular job of weaving in and out of each story flawlessly.

I was drawn to Azalea's back story in particular her time in Africa. Although fictional, I was deeply haunted by the interactions with the LRA and Joseph Kony. We all know who he is after a very broad Internet campaign against him in 2012, so to read about him even in a fictional setting was very eerie for lack of better words.

Azalea's present story with Thomas was good but I did not enjoy it quite as much as when the book took us back. Their dialogue was sometimes too intellectual and wordy, leaving me slightly bored at times. I did however like the two of them together and was hopeful that they would have a positive outcome. Admittedly, I had no idea how the story would end or if Azalea's predictions would come true which kept me glued to the pages.

If you are looking for a well written book full of a large cast of unforgettable characters and a unique storyline then I would highly recommend picking this book up. I am very happy and thankful to have had the opportunity to read it before the release date.

As a side note: There is a bunch of information about Joseph Kony at the end of the book that is worth reading if you don't know much about him and his organization. I really hope that it is included in the final published version as it is very informative.

[Pamela Barrett · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book has to go on my favorite list. I’m so glad I found this author; this is his first novel published in the United States, and hopefully there will be more to come. So now that I told you that, let me tell you about the story. A toddler, maybe three years old, is found wandering around a fairground at night in Devon, England. Her family can’t be found, but through questioning her, she tells them that her name is Azalea and that her mother is taking her to see her daddy on a boat. They try to find her family, but after months go by they drop the ball; and when a woman’s body washes up on the coast line not far from where she was found, no one connects the dots to Azalea who is now adopted. Her adopted parents bring her to a small village in Uganda where they are taking over the Holy Tabernacle Mission of Saint Paul a school that helps the villager’s children and orphans. When a Ugandan rebel uprising hits their compound Azalea loses her parents again. Her life is a series of coincidences and missed communication, so when as an adult, she accidentally meets Professor Thomas Post whose specialty is debunking coincidences, she asks him what he thinks of her life and if a certain date that surrounds her families untimely deaths is bad luck or divine providence? The date is fast approaching and the answer could mean her death. This is an outstanding mystery by J.W. Ironmonger; it held me captive right till the last page. Seeing Africa, where he was raised, through his eyes was a pleasure and heart breaking at the same time. 5 stars.

[Buchdoktor · Rating 5 out of 5]

Dass ein kleines Kind davonmarschiert und verlorengeht, für das ich verantwortlich bin, gehörte schon immer zu meinen Urängsten. Genau das passiert Azalea Ives auf einem Rummelplatz in Devon. Ihre roten Haare lassen vermuten, dass sie irischer Herkunft sein könnte. Das kleine Mädchen berichtet der Polizei, dass sie mit ihrer Mutter auf dem Weg zu ihrem Daddy war, der auf einem Boot lebt. Auch mit einiger Phantasie können die Polizisten keine Familie Ives finden. Später wird eine falsche Zeitungsmeldung über Azaleas Schicksal entscheiden. So kommt das Mädchen in eine Pflegefamilie und wird von den Folleys adoptiert, die mit ihr in einer anglikanischen Missionsschule in Uganda leben werden. Die Landkarte vorn im Buch weist darauf hin, dass Ereignisse in dieser Region eine Rolle in Azaleas Leben spielen werden. Den Namen Lewis erhält Azalea bei einer weiteren Adoption. Dreißig Jahre später treffen in der Londoner U-Bahn Azalea und Thomas Post aufeinander, der an der Londoner Uni Philosophie lehrt und sich mit Zufällen befasst. Zufälle und Muster, auch die Magie von Daten, haben für Azalea eine besondere Bedeutung, darunter Wiederholungen von Kalenderdaten. Azalea wächst zu einer spröden, abenteuerlustigen Person heran, von der anzunehmen ist, dass auf tragische Weise ihre Wurzellosigkeit über ihr Leben entschieden hat.

Azaleas Mutter Marion hat geglaubt, den Vater ihrer Tochter verheimlichen zu müssen. Wenn Azalea in ihrem Heimatort aufgewachsen wäre, wäre mit der Heimlichtuerei in dem Moment Schluss gewesen, in dem jemand die Ähnlichkeit zwischen Vater und Tochter erkannt hätte. Doch durch den Zufall auf dem Rummelplatz muss Azalea mit ungeklärter Identität aufwachsen und sucht noch als Erwachsene Erklärungen in Zufallsmustern. In diesem Buch gibt es verschiedene Wahrheiten und verschiedene Versionen. Als Leser tappt man lange im Dunkeln, wohin der Erzähler einen auf seiner Rallye durch Azaleas Leben am Ende führen wird.

J. W. Ironmonger verknüpft mit skurrilem britischen Humor Handlungsfäden auf zwei Kontinenten und aus unterschiedlichen Zeiten zu einer warmherzigen Geschichte, die spannend wie ein Krimi wirkt. Sein Ton klingt selbst für die 80er Jahre des vorigen Jahrhunderts wundersam verschnörkelt. Ironmongers Themen sind das Recht darauf, über die eigene Herkunft informiert zu sein, aber auch die Missionstradition in Afrika und Bürgerkriege der Neuzeit. Die Missionsstation, an der draußen das Leben vorbeizieht, ist eines von Ironmongers wunderbaren Sprachbildern, das einen ahnen lässt, wie stark Afrika den Autor selbst und seine Figuren beeinflusst hat. Außer dem von Bürgerkriegen zerrissenen Afrika nehmen auch Ereignisse im Nordirland-Konflikt und der Falklandkrieg Einfluss auf die Handlung.

Fazit
"Das zufällige Leben der Azalea Lewis" erscheint in einer Young Adult-Reihe für Leser ab 14 Jahren. Nicht jedes Buch, in dem Jugendliche eine zentrale Rolle spielen, ist deshalb gleich ein Jugendbuch. Auch wenn die Suche nach den eigenen Wurzeln ein zentrales Thema der Pubertät ist, ordne ich den Roman als Belletristik ein, die auch von interessierten Jugendlichen gelesen werden kann. Das Buch scheint mir ein weiteres Beispiel dafür zu sein, dass Verlage im Bereich von Young Adult und New Adult viel experimentierfreudiger sind als in ihren Belletristik-Programmen und dort auch skurrilen Erzählern eine Chance geben. John Ironmongers nächstes Buch Not Forgetting the Whale steht schon auf meinem Wunschzettel.

[Anne Williams · Rating 5 out of 5]

JW Ironmonger was a new name to me. I like to think I keep aware of prize nominations – even if I then decide they’re not for me – but The Notable Brain of Maximilian Ponder went totally under my radar despite its Costa short-listing. I’m so pleased that the same didn’t happen with this one, because it really is a beautifully crafted little gem.

If I say this is an exceptionally clever book I don’t want that to put anyone off - the theories around coincidence that underpin it are absolutely fascinating. In essence, at its core is a love story between the wonderfully diffident professor, Thomas Post, and Azalea, the English Literature tutor with the magnificently convoluted past and an unshakeable belief in her destiny. The writing is fantastic – addressing the reader directly at times, sometimes detached, sometimes matter-of-fact and now and then beautifully – almost cinematically – descriptive. And, perhaps most important of all, it’s an absolutely absorbing and engrossing story, which kept me turning the pages until the very end. All the characters – however briefly they appear – leap off the page, and the African scenes will long live in my memory. I absolutely loved this book – different, unusual, quirky, eminently readable, and it will fully exercise your brain and your emotions. One not to be missed.

[Karin · Rating 5 out of 5]

Eine der schönsten und spannendsten Geschichten, die ich dieses Jahr gelesen habe. Was ist Zufall? Gibt es ihn überhaupt, oder ist doch alles vorbestimmt? Dieser Roman ist voll von eigenartig anmutenden, teils traurigen, teils wundervollen Ereignissen im Leben einer jungen Frau und der Menschen in ihrem Leben. Zufälle die vielleicht keine sind - oder aber doch.

Das Buch ist so schön und spannend erzählt, dass ich es kaum weg legen konnte, es hat mir gedankenvolle Stunden beschert. Klare Empfehlung.

[Larry H · Rating 3 out of 5]

Do coincidences really exist? Are our lives determined by chance or does a guiding force dictate what will happen?

On Midsummer's Day (June 21), 1982, three-year-old Azalea Ives is found wandering in the midst of a fair in the United Kingdom. With no sign of any parental figures, and her being too young to provide information about her family or where she lives, she is entered into the foster care system and eventually adopted by teachers Luke and Rebecca Folley.

Ten years later, on June 21, 1992, Azalea's adoptive parents are killed in Uganda, part of an uprising led by notorious warlord Joseph Kony.

The confluence of these events, and the fact that other things have occurred in Azalea's life more than once, has led her to believe that on June 21, 2012, she will die as her mother and adoptive parents before her. She seeks out Thomas Post, a professor specializing in the study of coincidences, to see if he can shed some light on her fate. Post believes that life happens randomly, but the more he gets to know Azalea and learns about how her life has unfolded, the more he starts to wonder—and worry if she might be right about meeting her death on that same day.

Coincidence spans from 1982 to the present, from the United Kingdom to Uganda. It's a tremendously intriguing book that debates whether fate has a hand in determining the course of our future, and whether there is anything that can be done if we believe that to be true. It's also a book about whether you should live your life for the moment instead of worrying about what your fate might be, and how emotions trip up our rational thoughts.

I enjoyed the premise of this book, and liked when it focused on Azalea's story throughout the years and her uncovering the many similarities or coincidences in her life. However, I felt the book spent a little too much time laying out her family's time in Uganda and Joseph Kony's reign of terror (although some of it is explained later in the book) and that took away from the power of the story. I also felt in trying to lay out an argument about whether coincidences really do exist, the book got a bit technical and heavy-handed.

At its heart, this is a powerful, emotional story. I just wish the actual story got more attention than the message the book was trying to convey. But it's still very fascinating, especially if you believe in coincidences.

[Jim Puskas · Rating 4 out of 5]

Further thoughts, on just having re-read this: The book can be seen as many things -- a mystery, a romance, a philosophical argument, a commentary on the wreckage left behind after colonialism. It's all of that and more. And by the way, a darned good yarn. It features something that has always greatly appealed to me: a story where people's lives intersect at long intervals in unexpected ways, where seemingly unrelated events conspire to change the direction of the story, resolve unanswered questions or confound seemingly well-laid plans. Writers as diverse as Frederick Forsyth and Nevil Shute manage this trick especially well and Ironmonger holds his own with them. Of course, given the subject matter here, we're presented with bizarre occurrences, so a suspension of disbelief is in order. A highly entertaining read.

[Margaret McCulloch-Keeble · Rating 5 out of 5]

What a lovely book. Profound and quietly thought provoking, with a tale that spans time and countries and civil wars. Original and poignant. I've had this on my wish list for ages. I'm pleased to have read it.

[Renita D'Silva · Rating 4 out of 5]

Brilliant! A unique, beautifully written, wonderful book! Loved it!

[Nicole]

Kurzmeinung / Leseerlebnis
Auf den letzten 10 Seiten des Romans überlegte ich, ob ich 4,5 Sterne vergeben soll und was genau zu 5 Sternen fehlt. Allerdings war das Ende - damit meine ich die letzte Seite - dermaßen offen, dass ich doch nur bei 4 Sternen bleibe. Offene Enden sind manchmal ok, hier hätte ich mir aber die Auflösung gewünscht.
Eine gut geschriebene, interessante Geschichte, die ich gerne in der Länderchallenge "Uganda" zugeordnet hätte, weil ein nicht unerheblicher Teil dort handelt und ich einiges über das Land gelernt habe. Allerdings stammt der Autor aus Kenia und ist Brite.
Im Anhang sind Literaturempfehlungen zu den in dem Roman behandelten historischen Ereignissen, davon werde ich mindestens eines auf die Wunschliste packen, denn ich möchte nun mehr über Uganda erfahren. Ein weiteres Buch über Zufälle vom gleichen Autor befindet sich bereits seit einer Weile auf meinem Kindle.

[Zöe · Rating 4 out of 5]

Truly phenomenal book. It was really thought provoking, the details of the African landscape was so beautiful and I could see it in my minds eye. I loved the writing style of how it was written like someone telling a story (like it was a story of a story if that makes any sense? Lol). The characters were wonderful and it really made me rethink what good luck, coincidence, divine intervention and destiny might mean. It also was funny that while I was reading this, I was experiencing a lot of coincidences. Was that a… coincidence?

[Nicole · Rating 3 out of 5]

I did like this one but it’s hard to explain. Azalea’s story is told back and forth between past and present. Her mother was killed when she was too young to remember her. She is adopted by two missionaries and while living in Africa have to make an escape in which her mother gets killed. Azalea meets the men who think they are her father. Since her mother never knew who he was, he was never in Azalea’s life. She is convinced that she is also going to die and seeks the help of Thomas Post who is an expert in debunking coincidences. Though they cannot agree on coincidence versus everything is random, they do form a close friendship. Thomas is very heartbroken when Azalea leaves. She goes back to Africa to see if her fate is what she thinks it is. Will she die on June 21? Thomas does eventually track her down, and alas, she has survived the dreaded date.

[Reeka (BoundbyWords) · Rating 5 out of 5]

As seen on my blog:



All my life, I've been a tireless, and possibly sometimes annoying, advocate of incidents in my life that are linked together, seemingly without explanation. I would read about the most obscure country in a magazine, and then turn on the television to find a documentary airing about that exact country; I would be having a conversation about the most random of things, and then later, with someone else, the exact topic will come up. Needless to say, I am endlessly fascinated with coincidences, and will always be. The fact that J.W. Ironmonger crafted a narrative around this very idea, thrilled me like you wouldn't believe, and once I started reading Coincidence , there was no doubt in my mind that it would become one of the BEST books I've read this year so far.

Yes, one the BEST books. I say it without doubt, without regret, and with every ounce of appreciation and awe at what the author has accomplished in only 277 pages. The synopsis for Coincidence is one that is so easily explained, yet if I were to tell exactly how it made me feel, words would abandon me. But I want to try, because I want to tell you how Coincidence started it's spark in my brain, and spread throughout my entire being, until I was sure there was no more space for it to occupy. Though it did, it spread until I was bursting, and I needed to come on here and tell you AT ONCE how magnificent this book was. IT WAS MAGNIFICENT. A true testament of remarkable writing skill, and a story line that reads like the grown up version of some your favourite middle grades: in the sense that it was a story about someone telling a story. Coincidence was told in third person, with a narrating voice that I almost suspected was a close cousin to Lemony Snickett-albeit a less malicious-minded one. 

Azalea Ives was 'abandoned' at the precious age of 3, left alone on the fairgrounds of a brightly-lit pier. A year later, after she has been successfully adopted by two new parents, her birth mother's body washes up on the shores of that exact pier. Ten years later, on the exact date, Azalea's adoptive parents are brutally killed in Uganda, where the family was living as missionaries. Now it's present day, ten years later, and the dreaded date that all of her parents were killed on is soon approaching. Azalea can't help but fear for her life, especially when it's been completely run by a series of unexplained coincidences. She enlists the help of one Thomas Post, the "coincidence authority," and hopes on hope that he will be able to shed some light on her strange life, and potentially help her to see another ten years.

The wonderment abound in this book was palpable. Every new revelation, or coincidence, was a jolt to the heart, a proverbial punch to the gut. Ironmonger's writing was profoundly poetic, and felt like an extension of a dream. His depiction of East Africa in the late 60's was told in a voice of someone who had to have lived there himself, which he did, and was a perfect addition of setting to the story. I've said it before, but I absolutely LOVE when author's bring personal experiences into their fictional narratives, it's such a smart move, and adds such a genuine depth to their tales.

There are so many appreciative parts of me right now, there are so many places in my being that are still tingling with the after effects of reading a book that spoke straight to my soul. I urge EVERYONE who has every paused, for even one second, to consider a strange occurrence-anyone who has ever wondered if there has to be more to what meets the eye. You must, must read Coincidence -a million times more "musts".

Recommended for fans of: A Series of Unfortunate Events , Christina Baker Kline, Markus Zusak, mystery, drama, speculative fiction.

[Morri · Rating 4 out of 5]

…damn he did it again 🥲

[Nadine · Rating 5 out of 5]

Ich muss ganz ehrlich sagen, dass ich mich mit einer Rezension hier sehr schwer tue. Nicht, weil mir das Buch nicht gefallen hat, sondern weil ich nicht weiß, ob ich meine Begeisterung in dieser Rezension richtig raus kommt.

Der Inhalt des Buches ist ganz einfach: Azalea Lewis sucht Rat bei Dr. Post, der Experte in Sachen Zufälle ist. Er erforscht diese und berechnet für Interessierte, ob es in Zukunft möglich ist, dass dieses oder jenes Ereignis eintrifft.
Azalea hat ein bewegtes Leben hinter sich. Sie hat mehrere Elternteile, unter anderem ihre leibliche Mutter und auch ihre Adoptivmutter, verloren und alles scheint darauf hinzudeuten, dass sie am 21. Juni 2012 sterben wird. Dr. Post soll das bestätigen oder auch widerlegen. Der Großteil des Buches handelt von Azaleas Leben, das von unglaublich viel Zufällen oder - wie Azalea glaubt - vorher festgelegten Begebenheiten geprägt ist.

Der Erzählstil des Buches hat mir unglaublich gut gefallen. Der Leser bekommt die Geschichte erzählt, aber nicht von dem allwissenden Erzähler, sondern von einem, der auch mal spekuliert oder Tatsachen einfach nicht kennt. Die ganze Zeit über hatte ich die Stimme von Christoph Walz im Ohr und würde mir wünschen, dass er das Hörbuch hierzu einliest. Das Buch ist definitiv kein Unterhaltungsbuch, das heißt man kann es nicht mal eben schnell weg lesen, auch wenn der Klappentext und das Cover dies implizieren. Die Diskussionen zwischen Azalea und Dr. Post über Zufälle und ob es diese gibt oder ob alles vorherbestimmt ist, haben mich zum größten Teil überfordert, aber ich habe es so gehalten wie bei der Serie Dr. House: Ich muss nicht alles verstehen, Hauptsache ich verstehe den Sinn des Buches. Die Diskussionen waren meiner Meinung nach schon sehr philosophisch, was eigentlich gar nicht mein Ding ist.

Das Buch lebt von Sprüngen in die Vergangenheit, davon, dass mehrere Personen aus ihrem Blickwinkel die selben Situationen erzählen und ist aus diesem Grund, wenn man nicht genau aufpasst, sehr verwirrend. Ich muss zugeben, dass ich zu keiner der Personen eine nähere Beziehung aufgebaut habe. Das hat aber nicht gestört, weil der Rest des Buches einfach passte.

"Das zufällige Leben der Azalea Lewis" wird in Deutschland als Jugendbuch deklariert, ist aber meiner Meinung nach für Jugendliche zu komplex. Der ein oder andere mag den Inhalt vielleicht verstehen, aber ich glaube, dass der Erzählstil zu ausschweifend und zu sprunghaft ist um Jugendliche wirklich zu fesseln. Außerdem wird noch viel über die Situation in Afrika bezüglich Bürgerkrieg und Rekrutierung von Kindern geschildert, was meiner Meinung nach ebenfalls kein Jugendthema ist.

Von mir gibt es die volle Punktzahl für ein außergewöhnliches Buch.

[Nancy · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book was not what I was expecting. First of all, the book begins with a few strands of the same story. A child is found at a fair without an adult. She has bright red hair and a small scar on her face. She is soon placed with a couple named Folley and adopted. The original parents remain a mystery for many years. Somewhat forever. there is then an earlier strand of the Christening of a baby girl which goes awry. The first oddity is that the child has three godfathers, which is explained soon thereafter. The second is that the child finds herself with an identifying scar which helps with the rest of the book.


At last we meet Marion, the birth mother of Azalea. She finds herself pregnant with Azalea and takes her concerns to the minister who later accidentally blesses Azalea with her scar. The quandary revolves around the fact that Marion is single and the DNA donor is one of three men. She tosses her fate to seagulls.


Does this all seem random? Perhaps it is. Or is it Providence? Could it be predetermination? Because, much later, in a comical description of a few broken bones at the bottom of an escalator and then a proper meeting of Azalea and Thomas Post, Azalea recounts the coincidences of her life. Information regarding her history, the fates of those contributing to her care and parentage have come to light. Certain dates tend to coalesce into tragedy and patterns have emerged.


The cerebral discussions of coincidences, chance, statistical probability and philosophy added to the story but was much less interesting to me than the descriptions of events, landscape, interactions, and history. Because, out of context, it seems random, Azalea's biggest turning points occur in Africa. Specifically Uganda, Sudan, and Kenya. There is a helpful map at the beginning of the book to assist the reader in understanding the geographical impact of choices made. Without revealing the story too much, Azalea's life is once again uprooted and the direction altered by the actions of one man; Joseph Kony, who is an actual man and made of stuff from nightmares.


We know that Azalea returns to England and teaches poetry where she meets the somewhat nihilistic Thomas Post. Between her conception and the time with Thomas is a journey that defies statistical probability but can be put into a neat little equation. The events are not statistically improbable. What happens from the time she leaves Thomas and the ending of the book Is what then defines Azalea. For those of us who are a little thick, one character spells it out for Thomas. And the reader. Worthwhile read. Great for book club.

[Laura · Rating 3 out of 5]

Very uneven writing in what could have been a really outstanding book.

Azalea's life seems ruled by coincidence, and yet... are they? Can the seemingly ordained be explained? That's the position taken by Thomas, whose academic career is founded on disproving the existence of coincidences by mathematics. Several examples from "real life" are used, like how many times you flip a coin and get heads, long digressions into the Big Bang and billiard ball theories, and then there's Azalea's life.

Azalea's life is told in a series of flashbacks, and from her apparent abandonment by her mother to her finding possible fathers to the deaths of her adoptive parents coincidence has ruled things. This leads her to believe that there will be another event that will occur, one that Thomas realizes he cannot live with (even as he disproves or deflates her interpretation of the earlier events). The strongest parts of the book are when we're hearing about her life before they meet and their relationship; the weakest are when the narrator interrupts. The tone of the latter is not as strong as the force of the narrative, perhaps because it's in that "we know... we see..." mode. Pacing is another weakness, with the ending feeling a little rushed.

As for the coincidences? Too many of them are resolved "off stage" without Azalea's awareness. At times the author seems to be trying to prove determinism, while at others it's a definite argument for randomness/free will. This would have been a better book had the author chosen one side.

ARC provided by publisher.

[Jessica Hinton · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 stars...
I wanted to like this more than I actually did (does that make sense...?) All the elements for a fantastic tale were there - great characters and extraordinary circumstances. The central character has been dogged by 'coincidences' her entire life... or is some greater being trying to fuck with her? She takes her tale to Thomas, a mathematician who has devoted his life to disproving the idea that anything is fate, or happens by coincidence. Instead he's convinced that life is just that - random. But how can he explain what has happened in Azalea's life?

The concept of this tale intrigued me so much. And the narrative sections about Azalea's past life were fascinating. (On a side note, anyone that doesn't know about Joseph Kony should read up on him first...) I agree with other reviewers that the ending felt unsatisfactory - another 50 pages and I felt it could have come to a proper conclusion.

Also the cover of my copy and the tag line: "She believes in fate. He believes in fact. What are the chances of a happy ending" really billed this as straight up romantic fiction - which it most definitely is not. (It happily has way more to it than that)

Had the ending resolved more I would have given a better rating, but then I do like everything tied up in a nice big bow and sometimes life just isn't like that!

[Lorrie · Rating 3 out of 5]

I really couldn't help but like Azalea. Her story was weird, sad, and interesting which is why I gave the book 3 stars instead of only 2. What I couldn't get into was the idea of coincidence, faith, or whatever the author was trying to convey. I finished the book and still missed the author's angle. Were we supposed to think the author was leaning towards which? Even the ending left me hanging. It took me a couple weeks to read this short story because I only read it before bed so I'm assuming something was lost in the expanse of time. I'm giving the author the benefit of the doubt because I really hate to talk this book down since the author has received considerably favorable press. I'm a little stumped. It was once again troublesome to read about Joseph Kony. So...I'm going to assume the author doesn't want us to know what he believes about life, what his characters believe about the universe, and instead we are to form our own beliefs. This is fine with me. Each to his/her own. Why not just come right out and state this instead of wasting an entire book skirting around the issue?

[Kathleen · Rating 4 out of 5]

***I won this book through a Goodreads giveaway***

I have always been fascinated with coincidence and I am always questioning the idea of predetermination, so obviously I found this book extremely interesting. Because I am very on the fence about these ideas I found myself vacillating wildly to each side throughout the story. But I believe that was the author's intent. This book was really a page-turner for me and at times it was really hard to put down. I immediately took to the characters and was drawn into the mystery immediately. The first 15 pages were fabulous! While sometimes I felt like the writing was a bit long winded, I enjoyed the style of writing. In fact, in the first part of the book I could actually hear someone narrating the story to me. What I didn't love was the cover - it leaves a lot to be desired and does no favors for the content.

[Rebecca Altmann · Rating 4 out of 5]

I enjoyed this book.
It was on the row-end display shelf at the library, just as you walk in the door, and my local librarians do a good job of picking out some interesting books for that shelf. Often I don't look any further.
I really had no idea what to expect as I started reading and had no idea how the story could move from a lost-child investigation through to a setting in Africa (based on the blurb on the back) but it did, and it hooked me while doing it.
It is a quite different type of story and hard to categorise. It starts out as a mystery and ends up as a romance with quite a bit of discovering-yourself / changing-because-someone-else-needs-you-to-step-up type of stuff along the way. Not to forget the kidnap/hostage drama in the middle.
It is a real mix and I think quite well put together and I'm still surprised by how much I enjoyed it.

[Cathy · Rating 3 out of 5]

I enjoyed this book but had to give only 3 stars because of the ending. It was a very interesting tale of a girl who is abandoned at a fairground and how coincidences follow her throughout her lifetime. She seeks out a man who is a specialist in the area of coincidences, to find out her fate. I won’t give that away. This is why the ending didn’t do it for me. I feel like the author took the easy way out or had a deadline. Just would’ve like 50 more pages to give me more closure. But overall, a unique story that was worth the read.