This one has a lot of nods to Agatha Christie, but only on the surface. This is a domestic thriller(ish) on a train. The main character is very bland and thus the story dragged a bit for my taste. I also didn’t find it to be all that thrilling - confusion yes, thriller no. Thanks to NetGalley for this read. I would have enjoyed more substance, but it felt more like it was a rush to finish.

This book was fine, but nothing outstanding. I hope it finds it's audience but it was not very memorable for me.

If you love Agatha Christie or murder mystery style, “the main character” is definitely giving these vibes in a new modern day twist

The plot follows a well known renowned author who hires every day people to study and use for inspiration for her next book.

Rory is the latest muse who gets more than she bargained for when she is offered a fully paid for vacation to the scenic picturesque Italy travelling along the Mediterranean coast on the Orient Express.

When a real life murder mystery begins to unravel she is thrown into doubt when people from her real life are involved.. her sibling, bff and ex fiancé are all on board and all seemingly have something to hide.

I loved the stunningly visual setting, the excitement of a moving locked door scenario, the vacation aspects, the murder mystery, the multiple cast of suspects. This had all the markings of an excellent summer thriller. A must read!

Thank you to Atria books, Jaclyn Goldis and NetGalley for the EARC!

Publish date: available now

The Main Character is easily one of the most unique mysteries I've ever come across. The book centers on an author who hires people to inspire her writing. She gets to know them through interviews and then turns them into fictional characters. But her latest muse, Rory, has no idea her role in the story is just beginning. Rory is treated to a luxurious trip along Italy’s Mediterranean coast on the newly renovated Orient Express (think Agatha Christie), but it’s more than just a thank you gift. Rory finds herself in a real-life murder mystery, surrounded by an unexpected cast of characters: her brother, best friend, and ex-fiancé, all of whom have secrets.

This murder mystery is full of twists and completely original. While the Agatha Christie nods are nostalgic, everything else feels fresh and new. I was hooked and couldn't put it down!

**3.5-stars**

The Main Character is the 2nd-release that I have read from Jaclyn Goldis, the 1st being The Chateau, which ended up not being a great fit for me.
While I still had some issues with this one, it was definitely a more enjoyable read, IMO. Thus, Goldis and I have an upward trajectory together, and I love to see that.

In this story we are following a group of characters on a luxury train trip aboard the newly-renovated Orient Express. The focus of our tale is Rory, who has recently worked as the main character for a bestselling mystery author, Ginevra Ex. What does that mean exactly? Basically, Ginevra researches Rory, her main character, including everything in her life, and everyone, and then the author frames the main character of her next book on what she discovered while learning about Rory. I'm sure that sounds intrusive and it was, but Rory willingly participated.

How bad can it be?

The train trip was a gift to Rory from the author at the conclusion of the project. The ARCs are ready and Ginevra wants to thank Rory for her time.
Upon boarding the train though, Rory is shocked to find her brother, her best friend and her ex-fiance already aboard. What the heck is going on here? Why would the author bring them all together like this?

It seems Ginevra uncovered some truths during her research that could shock the heck out of Rory. Playing out on the train, as twisted as any fictional story, Rory finds herself suddenly in a vacation from hell. Was this the author's plan all along? Rory needs to find out.

As with The Chateau, there's a lot going on here. We get various perspectives in the present, as well as a historical perspective. Generally, I enjoy that, and by the end, I enjoyed that here as well, but in the beginning, I will admit to being bored by the historical portions. I did appreciate how the author ended up tying the two timelines together though, and it does make sense in light of everything that ultimately played out.

I did enjoy the characters and all of their interpersonal dramas. They're not likable, but they were definitely interesting. I did have times when I felt for Rory, and I sort of liked her best friend, Caroline, as well. As with most friend groups, there are secrets which end up being exposed. It makes for an intense trip and I do feel like Goldis did a solid job building that tension throughout.

One area where I was disappointed, however, was the atmosphere. I'm an atmosphere girlie and when you tell me we are going on a train journey, especially on the infamous Orient Express, I want to feel that. Honestly, I kept forgetting they were even on a train. There was so much focused on their interactions, they really could have been anywhere. It's unfortunate, because the train is a huge selling point for this novel.

Nevertheless, there are still some fun and engaging attributes to this, so I can see a lot of Readers really enjoying it. I'm also happy that I had a much better experience with this than with The Chateau. If you pick this one up, I highly recommend reading the Author's Note at the end, where Goldis discusses some of her inspiration for the historical portions of this story. I thought that was so good to know and I'm sure her family is extra proud of this one because of it.

Thank you to the publisher, Atria Books, for providing me with a copy to read and review. I'm 100% on board with future work from this author.

I liked this multi-generational, multi-perspective, twisted story. I appreciate the author’s research for the historical pieces of the narrative, and I enjoyed the current storyline as well.

I thought this was an interesting book and concept. It had some really fun parts and it was interesting. It wasnt my favorite but it was okay and kept me entertained. I did feel bad for Rory throughout the book because she kinda thrown into a rough situation with no warning. It felt very Agatha Cristie type book but missed on certain things.

⭐️⭐️⭐️

𝘼 𝙩𝙝𝙧𝙞𝙡𝙡𝙚𝙧 𝙖𝙗𝙤𝙪𝙩 𝙖 𝙡𝙪𝙭𝙪𝙧𝙮 𝙩𝙧𝙖𝙞𝙣 𝙩𝙧𝙞𝙥 𝙩𝙝𝙖𝙩 𝙞𝙨 𝙣𝙤𝙩 𝙬𝙝𝙖𝙩 𝙞𝙩 𝙖𝙥𝙥𝙚𝙖𝙧𝙨 𝙩𝙤 𝙗𝙚.

Ahhh I’m so bummed I didn’t love this book as I went into it with high hopes… although I wasn’t a fan of The Chateau by this author, this book had such an interesting premise… with the take on Agatha Christie’s style of storytelling.

I should’ve known I wasn’t going to enjoy this book, but I still went into it expecting more than what it gave.

While I did find the luxurious train to be fascinating (Orient Express traveling to southern Italy), I didn’t care for the action. I also felt like the ending was way too abrupt. The story is also formatted in a confusing way with the way it just changed POVs out of nowhere, I kept getting confused when I would start a new chapter.

Overall, this wasn’t my fav thriller whatsoever… while it had its moment, it wasn’t for me.

Thank you so much NetGalley and Atria Books for the review copy in exchange for my honest review!

I was slightly meh about this one. I keep thinking I know where it’s going then I’m wrong — but not in an exciting way but more in a “oh that’s a choice” way. There’s also a lot of backstory that’s boring and unclear how relevant it is.
I learned in the author’s note that there’s a bit of the book based on real experiences from the author’s family. I think ultimately I found the heavy backstory distracting and was way more interested in the present day storyline. Also there were a few loose ends that don’t get acknowledged so that felt a bit unsettling to me. I’d skip this one — what a bummer of a vacay read but I’m not opposed to giving the author another try since I loved THE CHATEAU!

I struggled with this one. I love the idea of an Agatha Christie homage, and the luxury train setting. But the characters were quite unlikeable/uninteresting and there were too many of them. I wound up not continuing with the book.

Ginevra Ex, a reclusive bestselling author, chooses a main character, does exclusive interviews and writes a fictionalized account of their lives. Her latest character, Rory, is thrilled to learn that as a bonus, Ginevra has planned a trip for her aboard the famous Orient Express. Her elation soon turns to puzzlement when she finds out friends, family and even her ex fiancé are also aboard. Why? Each have a secret, but will they come out on the trip? What does Ginevra have up her sleeve? It’s up to Rory to unravel the mystery, but will the trip mirror Ginevra’s past bestsellers? Will they survive the trip, or will someone end up dead? This book was difficult to connect with and the characters were all unlikable, leaving no one to really root for. While it’s toted to be a modern day “Agatha Christie” novel, other than the nods toward the original book, there is no real comparison and with its abrupt end, this one didn’t quite catch or hold my interest. Thank you to Simon and Schuster and NetGalley for an ARC of this book.

I was so thankful to receive this ARC from Atria Books and NetGalley. I am always excited any time I can get my hand on a thriller. This book takes place in a gorgeous setting and only heightened my desire to visit Positano someday. I thought the plot was original and enjoyed the idea of a mystery author using someone’s real life to guide their novel. I personally found it a little hard to connect with the characters and would have enjoyed more page-turning, rising action. The book included one of my favorite plot elements which is when the identity of the murderer AND the victim are a mystery. Though there were some shocking plot twists, it often felt like the main character was making quick connections on some pretty loose thread. I would still read more from this author even though this particular novel wasn’t a favorite.

I actually loved last year's novel, The Chateau by Jaclyn Goldis, so I was thrilled to be given an advanced e-copy of her latest novel, The Main Character. I am having a hard time thinking how to review it, though. I did enjoy aspects of it, particularly the train setting. The plot was decent, if a bit convoluted. The book was barely a mystery and not at all a thriller. It was more a dysfunctional melodrama where characters behaved very oddly at times. I do believe if the book were about 25% shorter, I would have enjoyed it more. I just kept losing focus as I just wasn't interested in all the extraneous detail that was included in the story that really added little to the main plot. All said, though I was pretty meh about The Main Character, I am definitely looking forward to future titles by the author as I still see the promise I felt with The Chateau.

Many thanks to NetGalley and Atria Books for providing me with an eARC of The Main Character in exchange for my honest review!

I'd had a good time with Jaclyn Goldis's previous novel The Chateau, but I'm sad to report that The Main Character wasn't as enjoyable. Sure, I'm always up for a whodunnit that draws inspiration from Agatha Christie's thrilling style. I'm always up for stories revolving around an ensemble that comprises a majority of people who really aren't all that easily likable, who display some major flaws that get me arching an eyebrow at them. But The Main Character, even with its intriguing premise, leaves me feeling restless for big stretches of the plot, particularly during the first and second acts. I feel like we could have compressed a lot of that material in order to move along more quickly and focus purely on the important meat. Instead, I'm just being forced to slog through plenty of fluff amongst the plot. It doesn't help that the voices for the characters aren't very distinct, meaning I would get confused sometimes as to which perspective I'm reading.

The third act, though, is where it does create a fairly satisfying payoff to the characters and their story arcs (particularly that of Ginevra Ex's), where it amps up my emotional investment in the overarching narrative. But then too quickly after a major twist occurs, the plot just ends. It simply cuts itself off, causing me to lean back and go "Wait, that's it?" at this abrupt conclusion that has sucked some of my enjoyment out of the ending.

Overall, I wish I could have had a better time with The Main Character, but oh well, I'll have to rate it 2.25 out of 5 stars, which I'm rounding down to 2 stars.

Thank you to Atria Books for letting me read an early copy of THE MAIN CHARACTER. This one is out now.

I really enjoyed this soap opera thriller. I loved the characters and the setting really sucked me in. If you're looking for an entertaining escape read with some mystery on a train, this one is for you!

Rory is working on a memoir of her life with an author while she works on discovering herself and her next steps in life. The author bamboozles Rory into a train ride with her friends and family who also are in the novel, not all roses though. Rory discovers secrets, on secrets, on secrets and must suss out truth from fiction.

I read this book while on vacation, the perfect vacation read. Rory was on a little vacation herself in Italy until it all came crashing down. Thankfully, my vacation didn’t end like hers 😆. The novel starts slow, a lot of scene setting but once we get to thwart meet I couldn’t put it down. I was engrossed! Rory’s story and history were so interesting and the characters were developed well with moments of good and evil in all. I found I enjoyed this more than Chateau.

My favorite parts were of the setting though! I have always wanted to go to Italy! Taking a train through Italy would be magical.

I loved The Chateau & dare I say I love The Main Character even more!?!

Ginevra Ex is an author with an out-of-the-box method for writing her stories. She chooses a real-life person, investigates into their background, interviews friends, family, employers, etc. – learns all she can & then writes a fictional story based on that information, but is it really all fiction?

Rory is her latest character who Ginevra has surprised with a trip along Italy’s Mediterranean coast on the famed Orient Express (yep, THAT Orient Express). However, Rory is surprised when her BFF, brother & ex are also on the trip after being invited by Ginevra. Just what exactly is Ginevra up to? Her book is already written after all. There are lots of secrets amongst the guests as well as Ginevra herself. Will Rory figure it all out before they come to the same demise as one of Ginevra’s novels?

It took me just a little bit to get into this story. It had a bit of a slow start for me, but once it got going, I was wholly invested & couldn’t put it down. Obviously, I loved the premise of the mystery & shadiness going on aboard the Orient Express, but this book was more than that. I loved the chapters that flashed back to Ginevra’s history, which 100% ties into the story, you just have to wait to find out how. Of course, there are lies & deception & such unbearable heartache. I did not expect to feel such a deep sadness for certain characters.

I thought this book was very well done & cannot wait to see what Goldis comes out with next!

This one just wasn’t quite as good as her last one. I love the orient express setting but this one left me with way more questions than answers at the end of the book!

Rory is sent on a fabulous trip on the Orient Express, as a courtesy of being the mysterious author Ginerva Ex's main character in her latest novel. This book is full of secrets, lies and twists, but unfortunately it fell flat and kept falling. There were so many side stories that proved to not be super relevant, and created a lot of confusion for me. Too many backstories, too many characters.

Thank you to NetGalley for ARC access.

Title: The Main Character by Jaclyn Goldis
Publication Date- 05/21/24
Publisher- Atria
Overall Rating- 3 out of 5 stars

Review: Review copy given to me by the publisher in exchange for an honest review.

The Main Character starts off with a very interesting premise. You are introduced to a lot of characters who all have ties to each other, some of which overlap in interesting ways. The story starts off in a really exciting manner, I flew through the first 21 percent. Unfortunately, it went downhill from there. I personally just did not like where the story was going. Without spoiling anything, if you like stories that have family history and strong family ties which adds to the drama and anticipation then this may be for you. I am slowly learning that isn’t for me.

The writing is okay, it’s not great but it’s not bad. There were a lot of interesting elements to this story. For example, we have an author who writes stories based off real people she meets. I really enjoyed that aspect and found it fascinating.

It has a vacation and adventure atmosphere at the start but strayed from that after the first 20 percent. In summary, I did enjoy this but I ended up DNFing it at 80 percent because I just didn’t care about where it was going. Again, with the family stuff, if that’s a direction you enjoy you don’t want to miss this one.