... come as something of a surprise

「〜はちょっとした驚きである」。

〜に入る主語が長くなるような場合には、It comes as something of a surprise that ...として、that以下にその驚きの内容を続けることもあります。

CNNの記事、'Photographs reveal secret life of urban Africa' By Mark Tuttonから。

'David Adjaye -- a London-based architect, born in Tanzania -- has produced a collection of more than 3,000 photographs from 52 of Africa's 53 capitals. For those who haven't seen those cities first hand, his "Urban Africa" exhibition may come as something of a surprise'.