The first twist didn’t shock me or interest me. The twist at the end though was really good and I didn’t see it coming. It was definitely a satisfying and shocking twist. Aside from the setting of The Orient Express, it's confusing that this book is being compared to Agatha Christie in a positive way. Unfortunately, The Main Character was a miss. Thank you, NetGalley and Atria Books, for providing an ARC.

In an homage to Agatha Christie, an author sends her muse and muse's family quite literally on the Orient Express. As the passengers begin to read first copies of the book inspired by themselves, mysterious things begin happening and it quickly becomes obvious that someone has something to hide.

This book was fun and captivating, with present and past timelines. In the present we have "The Main Character" and her family and the book inspired by them, and in the past we have the story of a tumultuous relationship between the author and her sister. The way they tie together in the end is amazing and not necessarily expected. This book kept me guessing until the end.

The Main Character is an interesting quasi-mystery/family drama, filled with stories within stories within stories like Russian nesting dolls.

The novel begins with Ginevra Ex, a famous author who writes books about a real person who she selects to be her “main character,” and then extensively interviews the main character, and his or her family and friends.

Her latest main character, Rory, has just finished her interviews and is gifted a luxury vacation on the Orient Express. What begins as an exciting adventure quickly turns dark as Rory’s brother, her best friend, and her ex-fiancée are on the train as well, each with their own secrets. What game is Ginevra playing at? Is this just another chapter in the book?

Overall, the book has glamorous scenery, but the plot tends to drag until the last third of the book when things begin to happen quickly. The characters are all interesting, but it was frequently difficult to understand their points of view, since they all had the same voice and there were important details missing. As a result, any changes in character felt abrupt and inexplicable.

Despite these issues, I found the book entertaining, and hard to put down. I liked The Chateau as well, and look forward to reading the author’s next book. 4.0 out of 5 stars.

Thanks to Simon and Schuster and NetGalley for providing me with an advanced complimentary copy of this book.

3.5/5!

Jaclyn Goldis is back again with an intriguing and highly suspicious mystery set amongst a group of friends who all have a secret or two that they’re hiding.

The Main Character unravels through alternating narratives from our friend group and the author, Ginevra, who has brought them together. While we get perspectives from several characters, it’s really Rory who ends up being our main storyteller. I loved getting to know her backstory and details about her father’s life. (Side note: Make sure you read the author’s note at the end to see where all of the inspiration for the father came from.)

The setting for this book in Italy and aboard the Orient Express train add really great details to the story, which I thought made it more well-rounded. I had a particular fondness for the scenes on the Orient Express as a lover of Agatha Christie and locked-room situations.

I do think this story could have been paired down a bit. There are a lot of details needed to make everything work and I think at times there was more repetition than was needed, which caused my reading pace to slow down.

This book definitely solidified by fandom for Goldis and I can’t wait to see what she puts out next!

This mystery novel is part locked-room thriller and part historical fiction (1980's Soviet Union) mash-up. In the current timeline, Ginevra Ex is a world-renowned writer who annually selects a real-life 'main character' as her subject for her fictional work based on their lives. Her current main character is Rory, who receives a lavish all-expenses paid Italian coastline trip aboard the newly renovated Orient Express. But when she boards, Rory is confronted with her ex-fiance, brother, and best friend are also passengers, invited by Ginevra. With each stop along the trip, secrets are exposed and murder is afoot, and Rory must untangle bother he own life and Ginevra's past to understand how they are interconnected before more people are killed.

Dual timelines, escapist/luxurious setting, and a uniquely compulsive plot made this page-turner a delight. I particularly liked the flashbacks to 1980's Russia which covered Jewish persecution and attempts to immigrate to Europe and America which were inspired by the author's own family's experience.

The premise of this story was so interesting and intriguing! I absolutely loved how unique and intriguing it was. The multiple viewpoints kept me on my toes and the twists were unexpected!

I was not expecting to visit the Soviet Union but the historian in me was here for it. The author’s note made me love it even more so. The premise created of how Genieve writes her stories and the scenes of her process was such a creative element to the story! Every second I was away from this book it was occupying my thoughts and everytime I picked it up I was sucked into the story!

The Main Character by Jaclyn Goldis is a mystery novel inspired by Agatha Christie. It's not exactly a whodunit sort of story, but the premise sounds like that.

Ginerva Ex is a famous author, and her latest main character is Rory. She arranges a luxury train ride for Rory on the Orient Express that travels to amazing locales in Italy. Why is Ginevra so invested in Rory, and what secrets are going to be revealed?

On the surface, this is an excellent premise, and I was really invested in the story. The locales are beautiful, and the setting creates an atmosphere. However, the constant changing of characters' narrative with the writing style was hard to follow for me. I would have enjoyed the story more if the first-person narrative was different. I expected an explosive ending, but alas, it really fell flat for me. I wanted more. A few tweaks would have made this an excellent one, in my opinion.

Thank you, Atria Books, for this book.

Happy Pub Day to @jaclyngoldis and The Main Character (my #1 mystery suspense /thriller of 2024)

This book was seriously so fun with so many moments where my jaw literally dropped and my mind kept guessing!

✨Bullet Pointed Mini Review:

🇮🇹Lux All-Expenses Paid Italian Trip
😩Strained relationships
🧐Twists and turns
👥Shady Caracters
⌨️Reclusive Disgraced Elderly Author
✨Multiple POVs
🎭Lots of D R A M A
🕰️Multiple Time Periods

Thank you to @atriabooks @atria thrillers for the review eARC and the gifted finished copy!!

#themaincharacter #jaclyngoldis #atriabooks #atriathrillers #AtriaPartner #thatbookbetchhh

So this book was definitely a trip…..it took me a while to get into this book and there were times when I just wanted it to end. There were little twists that kept you going along the way but I definitely started to get into it toward the end of the book when the action started taking place. Overall this book is about 3.5 stars and I liked the characters and the way the story built up but it took a lot for me to get into it and finish it.

Many thanks to NetGalley and Atria books for this Advanced Readers Copy!

I loved this author’s first thriller novel, The Chateau so I wanted to love this book as well. The Main Character is inspired by Agatha Christie’s Murder On The Orient Express. It is well written and has some fantastic twists, especially towards the end. However, this book is not going to be for everyone. There are multiple narrators (5!) and two different storylines/time frames, which can make it a little confusing and hard to keep up with (especially if you typically read/listen to multiple books at the same time). Overall, the book was good, but in my opinion, not outstanding. I would recommend it if you enjoy complex stories that explore friend and family relationships that take place on an extravagant vacation.

Thank you @atriabooks for allowing me to read this book in exchange for my honest review.

The Main Character is a fun, twisty, immersive ride. While it felt a bit more "mystery" than "thriller", I read it in just a couple of sittings and found it to be a great escapist read. A great choice for some casual summer reading!

I picked this one up and then put it down for about a month before coming back to it. The first chapter just didn't grab my attention at all with everything else going on. It picked up after that, though, and I finished it in a day. I was able to figure out a few of the solutions before the end, but also the end seemed kinda meh? The writing just lacked some conviction for me.

I received a copy of this book in exchange for a review, all opinions are my own.

This murder mystery is prime escapist reading, especially for anyone who has dreamed of traveling the coast of Italy by train. With nods to Agatha Christie and plenty of picturesque scenery, there's a lot to like here for readers looking for a page-turner with summer travel vibes. Plus: a sub-plot set in the USSR in the 1980s, with historical details based on the author's own family's experiences, which I found fascinating. Regarding style, the writing is repetitive in places and leans heavily on metaphors which can feel trite. The story is told through the perspectives of multiple characters, although not equally and some characters are not fully fleshed out or carried through the entire book.

This book was a look into the world of the rich and famous lifestyle. The author describes each and every character in great detail. I had my own picture of how each one looked!! There are a lot of “colorful” characters and so many twists and turns as the story develops. I enjoyed it as I was able to “live in another world” as I read it.

The Main Character was such a fun read. I loved all its twists and turns I didn't see coming. I liked Rory and most of the other characters. If you enjoy atmospheric settings, you need this book on your shelf. This would be the ultimate beach read, but it would also be a great read for a rainy day or any day you want to escape to sunny Europe.

Thanks to NetGalley for the advanced reader copy.

The elements of this book should've come together to create an atmospheric mystery thriller with a satisfying conclusion, but somehow things didn't quite pull together in a way that felt authentic (at times I felt the hand of the author a bit too much in what characters were doing).

I am so sorry I tried really hard to love this! It had so much potential. Jaclyn truly writes beautifully and her words and meaning are artwork. However as a thriller it did not have enough wow factor or twists or turns to keep you invested. By over 50% the most crazy thing that had happened were the books bring stolen. The twists at the end were just kinda lame and I wasn’t caring anymore by the end. I’m so sorry!

I received a DIGITAL Advance Reader Copy of this book from #NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

I really enjoyed this book. I wouldn't categorize this as a thriller though and there are definitely mystery elements to it but it felt much more like a drama. There is a death that gets teased at the very beginning of the book but it doesn't happen until much much later. I was not expecting that twist at the end (it didn't feel like a twisty type of book) but it was needed but at the same time the ending felt abrupt. I get why it ended there but I wasn't a huge fan of how it ended.

The premise of the book is very interesting and I was happy to see that the characters weren't stuck on the train the entire time. I also love the idea of an author interviewing someone so in depth and turning them into the main character of their book.

I thoroughly enjoyed this wild (train) ride of a book. The concept was unique and the story was heavily character driven. There were so many mysteries to unravel as the story went on and I was left with a sense of closure at the end that I desperately needed after all the unanswered questions that were posed throughout the book! I also really appreciated the Agatha Christie vibes and the travel theme. This book is a perfect summer read!