Really enjoyed this novel. It had many twists which kept the storyline unravelling until the very end. Well written, and easy to read. Lots of intrigue that kept me invested. Definitely will look for the next book by Jaclyn Goldis!
Thank you NetGalley and Atria Books for this ARC!

I enjoyed this novel of suspense. It was a little slow for me to start, but once I got about 30% in I was pretty well hooked. I enjoyed the dynamics of the female friendships at the heart of the story. The setting was vivid and I imagined myself in the French countryside at a large chateau. The author uses a sense of place well. I will likely forget this one after a little time, but it was an enjoyable read.

Unfortunately I did not love this. The premise feels exciting, and lush but what we got felt tedious and confusing. There were so many points of view and none of them felt distinct in any way. I really wanted to love this but in the end I was left bored and uninspired.

A group of friends get more than they signed up for during a 40th birthday party in beautiful Provence, France. The trip is bittersweet since they know the grandmother of one of the girls and owner of the chateau is dying. The fact is well known that this will be the last time they will all be with her. Shortly after they arrive, events turn drastically and someone is murdered. But who could the culprit be and what have the girls been hiding for all these years?

The premise and cover really had me gravitate towards this novel. Very slow burn, took a long time to get into the pace. I tried but could not connect with the characters at all. Typically I really enjoy having multiple point of views but they all seemed unreliable, similar personalities and hiding more than what’s reached the surface. Many of them felt like the same individual with slightly different characteristics or backgrounds. Now on the other hand, the atmosphere sweeps you right off your feet. I could feel the fresh French countryside air and the suspense creeping up my spine.

I would not characterize this as a thriller but I will say there is PLENTY of drama, secrets and twists to uncover at “The Chateau”. Thank you NetGalley for providing me with an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review!

Review: The Chateau by Jaclyn Goldis 4.5 ️

A dream girls trip to a luxurious French chateau devolves into a deadly nightmare of secrets and murder. 

The Chateau has everything I love in a murder mystery - a fabulous but remote location, multiple POV, lots of reasons for motive, and well executed twists. While it is categorized as a thriller, it’s more a mystery sprinkled with lies and betrayal among a group of friends with lots of history. Everyone had a secret and the way the secrets and backstories tied together to reveal the murderer and motive was perfection. 

If you liked THE GUEST LIST or ONE OF THE GIRLS, you’ll love this locked room murder among a group of friends.

It took me a little bit to get into this one but once I did it was a fun ride. Golds does a wonderful job reating a strong atmosphere and pulling the reader into the setting. The characters were interesting and kept me intrigued.

Thank you to NetGalley for the advanced reader copy. of this book. This book felt more like a drama than a suspenseful thriller and at times I thought some parts were windy and unnecessary. However, it was twisty and fun and I did not predict the ending.

This was definitely a fast paced murder mystery, but I feel like it was missing something. I was able to finish quickly, but then I had no thoughts in my head as I finished it lol it was probably the locked room trope that let me down because they always do.

Thank you NetGalley and the publisher for the eARC

Intense mystery with fictional Holocaust ties!
Deception and suspicion fill this mystery. Friends are invited to the place where they gathered as young adults, years ago, The Chateau. Darcy is now 42 and her grandmother owns the Chateau and has invited Darcy and her friends for a gathering. I can't say much without spoilers, but I enjoyed reading The Chateau and seeing the mystery unravel. I like how the history of each character intertwines within the story to make intense personal connections. I appreciate how the author tied the history of the Holocaust into the past, present and future. I enjoyed the artistic ties and the interesting information, fact and fiction, about Vincent Van Gogh.

Language: R for 78 swears and 41 f-words.
Mature content: implied sex and affair
Violence: fatal stabbing, two non fatal shootings
Ethnicity: Olive skin, caramel skin, white.

Darcy and two of her friends, Jade and Vix, are invited to Darcy's grandmother's beautiful chateau in the Provence region of France, after a twenty years lapse in visits. They will also be joined by their friend Arrabelle, whose grandmother raised her in the chateau, where she worked as a housekeeper. Seraphine is a grand dame and the lady of the manor. She announces to the girls on their arrival that the next day she has something important to talk to them about., but the next morning they find her murdered. What was it Seraphine was going to tell them, and did it have anything to do with why she was killed? The police name them all as prime suspects, and the four friends are uncomfortable around each other as they try to determine who they can trust, or more importantly, who they shouldn't trust.

This book was a two part proposition for me. I read the first part, and although I was enjoying it, the story seemed to take it's time engaging me, and my interest was beginning to lag. But at the point of the book when the murder happened, I started listening to it on audio The audio version of the book was excellent, with a multi-cast for the different characters as told from their various points of view, which I really enjoyed. And at this point, the story went into overdrive. Not only did we have a murder, but we had betrayal, infidelity, war crimes, the list goes on! So at this point, keeping my interest was not a problem.

I ended up really enjoying the book, after its somewhat slow start for me. There was an unexpected twist at the end, as well. Overall I thought this was a good book, but I recommend listening to the audiobook, if you get the opportunity.

Thank you to the author, Jaclyn Goldis, Atria Books, and NetGalley for allowing me to read an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest opinion.

If you’re looking for a psychological thriller that transports you to a beautiful French chateau in Provence that has some fairly dark secrets, look no further than The Chateau!

About the Book

Long-time friends Darcy, Jade, Vix, and Arabelle are reunited for a girls getaway in Darcy’s familial Chateau located in the French countryside. Darcy’s grandmother Seraphine has invited them to visit her at the Chateau nearly twenty years after they first visited her during their college studies abroad in Paris.

Their friendship has stood the test of time, but they are looking forward to their reunion and seeing Seraphine, who has a special connection with each of them, though Darcy is her granddaughter and Arabelle is the daughter of one of her staff and grew up at the Chateau.

Seraphine has also made it clear she has something to reveal to them. But before she is able, to she is stabbed to death. The four girls are reeling from the attach, and they are even more troubled when an anonymous social media account begins to contact them, claiming to know more and with photos of the women on their visit at the Chateau.

Worse, it soon becomes clear to both the police and the four women that someone at the Chateau must have committed the murder. That leaves quite a small suspect list, including the four women and a few staff members.

As suspicion grows, secrets the women have held from one another for decades begin to come to light and all of their friendships are called into question. Could one of them be behind the murder? And what exactly was Seraphine planning to reveal?

My Review

A true locked room mystery, the cast of characters present in the novel is relatively small. Every character has a secret that is revealed throughout the book. There is a surprising amount of deception going on here!

The audiobook helps a lot because it can be hard to keep the characters straight when there are so many rotating narrators across chapters, but this was a full cast recording and I was able to keep track of the changing narrators much more easily than I think I would have in physical book format.

The setting was well-done—I loved hearing about the Chateau and both Darcy and Arabelle’s memories from childhood there.

The number of secrets these characters are holding was shocking—and they were good secrets. Like juicy, jaw-dropping secrets. They get revealed throughout which adds to the twists and turns because people I thought would definitely not be responsible suddenly had a motive that absolutely made me suspect them.

One thing I’d warn readers about is that the characters get fairly unlikable towards about 30% through the book as we learn about their secrets, hidden jealousy, or ways they may not have been as supportive as they could. What I’ll say is to stick with it! For the most part they all come back around as we learn a lot more about them. By the end I found the book was full of people who were just dealing with the messy parts of growing up and how to include one another in the parts of their lives they may be scared to show others.

A twisty book with a great setting and a compelling mystery!

The cover got my attention, and French Chateau made me read it! I’ve read reviews that were all over the place, but that didn’t sway me any. I liked it. I found the characters a tad obnoxious and out of touch with reality, but I still enjoyed the book. It was a twisty who done it that kept my interest throughout.

This was overall enjoyable but too slow of pacing for the mood that I was in when I read it. I've seen reviews across the board for this one so I'd say if you're intrigued by it, give it a try! Thank you so much NetGalley and Atria Books for my review copy.

They had me at french chateau for this one! I was intrigued the whole time, but did get confused here and there. I would say it is a pretty mid-level thriller!

A strong weekend recommend! Twists, turns, and all sorts of secrets! A group of college friends reunite at an Avignon chateau for a twenty-year reunion and birthday celebration . . . the dream vacation turns deadly and you're left guessing until the end who the true killer is.

Thank you @netgally for the Advanced Reader Copy. Four longtime friends get an invitation from Darcy’s grandmother invites them to stay at her chateau in France, like they did on weekends during college when they studied abroad. She says she has something to tell them, but it is very mysterious. And then the grandmother is killed while they are all in the chateau. They all have secrets, and now are doubting each other-is one of them the murderer? And what was she going to tell them? I enjoyed this mystery and story of friendship and betrayal more than I thought I would. And the French countryside location definitely helped. #thechateau #jaclyngoldis #mystery #frenchchateau #murder #friendshipandbetrayal #bookstagram #booklover #reader #bookblog #lovetoread #fictionreader #bookreview #bookrecommendation #readersofinstagram #bookloversofinstagram #takeapagefrommybook #readallthebooks #booksbooksbooks #booksofinstagram #bookwormproblems #bookaholic #booknerd #whattoread #readingtime #bookaddict #ilovetoread #ilovebooks #needtoread #readallday #netgalley #advancedreadercopy

DNF- out of touch and obnoxious characters. I wanted to like this book but there wasn’t any POV shared that I cared for, rooted for, or wanted to hear the story of.

The cover alone was enough to intrigue me, and the pages inside matched the glorious gothic atmosphere. A wonderfully twisty who-done-it with complex characters and twisted motivations.

In the world of good-not-great thrillers, I think there are books with unique and intriguing premises that fall flat in execution and there are books with a more common theme that are written exceptionally well. In my opinion, THE CHATEAU falls into the second category. I loved the setting, I thought there was decent character development (especially for a thriller) and while a bit predictable, I was content with the ending. I don’t think this one will prove to be particularly memorable, but in a world where I find more and more authors throw rational thinking out the window in favor of shock value, I thought this was a solid read. Would recommend!

This one is a DNF for me. I tried really hard to get in to this one but i just couldn’t. The multiple POVs were really hard to follow and I just could not get invested in the storyline.