RATING GUIDE:
5 – A keeper!
4 – Very good
3 – Passable
2 – I’d rather read a telephone book
1 – An absolute bomb.
Read at your own risk!
The first time I ever read a Sidney Sheldon novel, I was
seven years old. It was “The Other Side
Of Midnight”. I was too young to
understand what the book was about, but to this day, I have not forgotten that
scene in the book where one of the characters does a Do-It-Yourself abortion
using a coat hanger. Talk about
graphic, deadly and memorable.
While I have yet to get
reacquainted with that book, for now, let’s talk about “If Tomorrow Comes,”
which was one of Sidney Sheldon’s many, many books. Published in the 1980’s, “If Tomorrow Comes” is the story of a
young woman named Tracy Whitney. Tracy
is a young woman who appears to be on the verge of living the life she’s always
dreamt about, now that she’s about to marry the man of her dreams (who’s also
the father of the child she’s carrying).
The unexpected suicide of her mother drives Tracy to confront the man
who she suspects caused it. It is this
unfortunate even that turns Tracy’s life into hell. Tracy lands in prison.
When she is finally freed, she is nothing like the naïve, hopeful young
lady she was. She has lost everything
important to her --- her mother, her future family, her job … Mad as hell,
Tracy uses both her brains and her body to take her revenge from everyone who
made her life hell. AND get this: Tracy the banker turns into Tracy the Unbeatable
Con Artist!
For someone who is supposedly
smart, I can’t believe how naïve and dumb Tracy was when she decided to
confront the man who caused her mother to kill herself. Since it’s the same dumbness-naiveté that
landed her in jail, I found it difficult to sympathize with her.
But I was soon wrapped up in the
world Sidney Sheldon created for Tracy --- this dark, depressing hell called
women’s prison, and then the glamorous world of the rich and famous (or, in
Sidney Sheldon’s head, the horny bitches and the devious assholes). By this time, Tracy has turned into this
brilliant and elusive Con Artist and Jewel Thief with Robin Hood’s sense of
divine justice (as in, steal from the filthy rich; they’re assholes and they
deserve it). After all of her horrible
experiences, Tracy has forgotten all about using her heart … until she meets
her match in the equally brilliant con man with a conscience, Jeff
Stevens.
“If Tomorrow Comes” has the feel
of a book that was written in the eighties, and is therefore a little
dated. However, the book still manages
to pass the test of time and remains as compelling as it was back in the
day.
Sidney Sheldon’s writing is very
masculine. There’s nothing flowery at
all in the way he writes; it’s all very sparse and precise. But his style is very visual and
unforgettable. Tracy’s time in jail is
so graphic that you can’t wait for her to be free; it’s a very difficult read.
It’s ironic that Sidney Sheldon
reveals Tracy and Jeff as people with morals and conscience despite their
profession, while the other characters who are supposed to be the good citizens
of society are actually the people who deserve to go to hell. This is probably what makes this book such
an enjoyable read. In this book,
everyone gets what they deserve, and the bad ones REALLY get it.
The “villain” in the story,
Daniel Cooper, was a particularly disturbing character to read about. There’s nothing quite as creepy as a
brilliant, moralistic man whose thoughts are on the Bible even as he stalks
Tracy Whitney and fantasizes about her sexually as he fondles her panties. This is the kind of character that makes
Hannibal Lecter appear like Sesame Street’s Elmo.
I couldn’t help but think of how
Pinoy this Sidney Sheldon book is. It
has all of the elements of a Pinoy telenovela:
a young, beautiful, naïve heroine, scheming villains, angst, a fantastic
storyline, rich-beyond-imagination settings, sex … which makes me wonder how
many of our Filipino writers had Sidney Sheldon in mind when they created their
masterpieces. Why, if I hadn’t known
that Sidney Sheldon wrote this book, I’d swear he was Pinoy!
Sidney Sheldon’s TV roots show in
this book, for the book is action-filled from the get-go and the tension just
goes up with each page and chapter. It
turns out that Sidney Sheldon wasn’t just a novelist, but also a playwright and
a writer for film and TV, having produced shows such as the classic “I Dream Of
Jeannie” and “Hart To Hart”. This book
appears to deliver everything that is expected from a popular TV or movie in
the Philippines. Actually, swear it was
written by a Pinoy!
But the book’s strength doesn’t
just lie in its ability to “deliver the goods,” so to speak. Sidney Sheldon’s book, slick and glossy
escapist fare it appears to be, actually delivers many positive messages. It is a book about the power of a woman to
overcome adversity. It provides a
warning to people to look beyond the surface and go deeper than looks, money or
prestige. Lastly, it is a book that
tells everyone that there’s always a choice to go back to being good, of
choosing good over evil.
RATING: 4 1/2
