Thanks to Atria/Emily Bestler Books and NetGalley for providing me with an early copy to read and review.

I loved the setting of this novel. There’s something about setting a story during travel that helps keep the storyline fresh. I will say, this did drag on a bit before it started to really capture my attention..

I love a good mystery with a few twists and this book also provided some Agatha Christie vibes that were fun. Overall a fun read.

I received a complimentary ARC copy of the Main Character by Jaclyn Goldis from Net Galley and Atria Books in order to read and give an honest review.

…If you are interested in a unique, masterfully written and engaging, character-driven story, with alternating viewpoints and time jumps this homage to …

International best-selling author Ginevra Ex who is famous for using real people to inspire her work chooses former American news anchor Rory Aronov as inspiration for her newest mystery. Ginerva’s process is complex, she goes all out, interviewing friends, family members, even hiring private detectives to dig through her protagonist’s life to uncover their deepest family secrets, twisting and spinning them into the gold that becomes her best-seller. Ginerva after being interviewed by Rory has chosen her to be her latest main character. Rory at the lowest point of her life; recently fired from her job and in need of money, left by her fiancé months from their wedding is topped by her struggles to come to terms with a father with who often no longer remembers her. She is grateful when Ginerva gives her a final bonus; an all-expense paid trip on the lavish Orient Express along the coast of Italy stopping at tourists sites and ending with a special surprise in Positano.

Rory is stunned by the opulence of her trip but soon learns that she is not alone, her brother Max, her best friend and pseudo sister Caro, and her ex-fiancé Nate are all part of her surprise. From Cinque Terre to Rome each stop brings with it events that uncover betrayals, family secrets and make Rory question all that she believed was true in her life. Ginevra has created a real-life mystery with Rory as the main character facing incidents that shake Rory to the core causing her to fear that her story will come to a deadly end.

If you are interested in a unique, masterfully written and engaging, character-driven story, with alternating viewpoints and time jumps this homage to Agatha Christie is for you. Although, not quite a whodunit and at times the book feels heavy with poignant and emotional subjects (antisemitism, alzheimer’s) it keeps the reader enthralled with its twisting plot that reveals little by little to its shocking conclusion. I would definitely recommend the Main Character for those looking for something a little different!

Ginevra is an author who has unconventional methods for creating her books, which involves hiring real people to help create her plots. Her latest character was based on Rory. Now Ginevra has paid for Rory to take an extravagant vacation. When she shows up though, she finds many of her friends and relatives. Everyone has secrets and they might be deadly.

I liked the premise here, but I think there were too many character pov’s for what the author was trying to accomplish. If we’d had only Rory, maybe one other, I think it would’ve been more successful.

Thank you, Atria Books and NetGalley, for my free copy for review.

What initially appears to be a dream trip for Rory, turns into a nightmarish ordeal as those closest to her unexpectedly join her across the Italian coast aboard the Orient Express.

The main character captivated me right from the start, with the prologue feeling like a massive red herring, while also cleverly foreshadowing what's to come.

The concept of an author hiring someone to be interviewed and become the main character of their novel is uniquely insane, yet it makes for a compelling and engrossing story. This book maintains a deliberate, slower pace, never bogging down, but instead offering a wealth of past events to unpack. Its revelations are truly surprising, particularly in terms of where everything ultimately leads. It's a narrative that delves into the realm of what could have been, and explores the enduring loyalty of family, whether by blood or otherwise.

Transporting. Multidimensional. Thought-provoking. Each of these phrases touches just a bit on the captivating tale told within the pages of The Main Character. A beguiling mystery mixed heavily with a generational family drama, Goldis outdid herself with her sophomore mystery/thriller. What I didn’t realize before diving into the story, however, was how the whodunnit portion of the book was just the beginning.

Above all else, this was a character-driven plot if I’ve ever seen one. With believable characters lightly painted with just a bit of fictional eccentricities, I got wrapped up in each and every one. No more, however, than Rory. With a startlingly poignant character arc and a persona that drew me in deep, I would have been happy to follow her to the ends of the earth. At the same time, I loved the rest of her party and was happy to soak in the unfolding puzzle.

As for the plot, it was certainly an homage to Agatha Christie, but it was also so much more. Dredging up complicated feelings on decidedly relevant topics, the focus on antisemitism resonated strongly for me. Adding a depth to the storyline while also lending an original spin, pinholing it as just another take on a classic Golden Age whodunnit would be a disservice. Instead, there was wisdom, insight, and sadness to what I would rather classify as a cross-genre tale.

All in all, told via multiple POVs and dual timelines, this book not only lived up to The Chateau, but perhaps surpassed it. With an evocatively drawn setting, clever twists, and one jaw-dropping conclusion, I’m already eagerly anticipating the next book in Ms. Goldis’ arsenal. Just don’t expect a straightforward mystery of the type personified by Christie. After all, that was just the starting point. Where it went from there, was all down to the author’s own gifted mind. Rating of 4.5 stars.

Thank you to Jaclyn Goldis and Emily Bestler Books/Atria for my complimentary copy. All opinions are my own.

“For Ginevra Ex, bloody, murdered bodies were par for the course. ”
Here are reasons to read the thriller book:

Train trip - Rory is taking a trip on the Orient Express
Main Character - that she was gift by a famous author who studied her as the main character in her book
Mystery - but Rory arrives to find her brother, her best friend, and her ex-boyfriend along with a LOT of secrets

When I found out this book was an Agatha Christie homage, I had to pick it up. The first part of the book was very interesting in how it sets up the trip, the descriptions of Italy, and the promise of a thrilling mystery. But the book kind of falls apart in the middle where the present chapters are interspersed with a lot of background and exposition about the author’s life. When you find out about the secrets of all the people involved at the end, it lands a bit flat for me because of the promise of a really good mystery. Unfortunately, I really ended up wanting more.

Rory has just spent the last three months being interviewed by eccentric author Ginerva Ex. The bestselling author has a unique approach to crafting her main characters: she finds real people and mines their lives for content before placing them in her blockbuster thrillers. To celebrate the end of their time together, Ginerva has booked Rory on an extravagant trip on the Orient Express. But when Rory finds her brother, best friend, and ex-fiancé all on board the train as well, she begins to wonder whether Ginerva is still crafting a story for her.

The story begins with Ginerva coming across a dead body, which is identified as her flesh and blood -- setting the reader up to wonder who has died and how they are related to Ginerva. The narrative then goes back in time three days to follow the events of the train vacation and the POV shifts between the main characters. For a while, not a whole heck of a lot happens, and the book feels more like a character study (no surprise given the title). But as Rory's suspicions mount, the pace and twists pick up. I didn't guess the ending, which is always a plus for mysteries for me.

Review to be posted May 16, 2024 to Goodreads and May 18, 2024 to Instagram @goodquietkitty.

Huge thank you to Atria Books and Simon Audio for the gifted copies!

🎧I just finished this one on audio this week thanks to @simon.audio and it was such a unique and fun mystery! It was a full-cast production which I always love!!

📖THE MAIN CHARACTER is by the same author as THE CHATEAU which came out last year!

📖In the story, there is a famous author who hires people to be the main character for each of her new books as they come out. Her latest book takes her main character on a crazy train ride and mysteriously people from her past keep showing up all with their own secrets 🤫 this all leads to a fun and shocking finale that had me actually surprised!

Parts of the middle were hard for me to stay focused but overall it was a fun read!

📖If you've read and enjoyed MURDER ON THE ORIENT EXPRESS by Agatha Christie then you'll probably enjoy this one too!

Such an interesting story! I could not put it down. All about the secrets people keep from the people they most love

I’ll never say no to a book set in Italy and I was very excited to receive an ARC of this one. The setting did not disappoint and I would love to take a journey on the Orient Express. I really enjoyed learning about the Jewish experience, especially as someone living in the Societ Union in the 80s. Otherwise, I was a bit let down with the character and this moved just a little too slow. I did like how the big mystery unfolded.

Thank you to Atria Books and Netgalley for an ARC of this title but this was a DNF for me. I don’t mean to disparage the author, but this reads like bad fan fiction. The writing is horrendous. I did not make it past the second chapter because it was so terrible. Definitely not for me.

I LOVED The Chateau and I’m a big Agatha Christie fan, so I was very excited to see that Jaclyn Goldis’ latest was being compared to Christie’s novels. While The Main Charachter certainly nods to Christie’s works, I think it’s rather different. This is not your bread and butter murder mystery and I think going in with that expectation is a disservice. True, this has a murder and a mystery, but the pacing and the stakes differ from the typical formula. In my opinion, The Main Character is much more of a family drama, how our past influences our future and messy characters making messy decisions. Forgetting the comparison to Christie’s novels allowed me to truly appreciate the unique story that Goldis has crafted. And I really liked it. The setting is luscious, aboard the Orient Express and along various locations throughout Italy. The characters are compelling. I was propelled by the need to uncover who was lying to whom and why. And I absolutely loved the way Goldis expertly wove the history of antisemitism in the Soviet Union into the plot. It is a history that needs to be told now, more than ever.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Thank you to Atria Books for the ARC.

This was such a intriquing read I read it to conclusion in one sitting. Very much like Agatha Christies Orient Express this is a multi layered array of charachters on a fabulous train ride to exotic locations when murder occurs. Each person is suspect to suspicion and no one is free from suspicion. The famous author that invited the guests on this ride has arranged everything perfectly with the exception of a murder. Or did she? This is a fun read with many interesting characters that is pleasing to read to conclusion. Well done to the author. The atmospheric beauty of this book is lovely.

Thank you to the publisher, Net Galley and to the author for the opportunity. My review opinons are my own. A very enjoyable read I highlly recommend.

This novel really exceeded my expectations in all the best ways. I loved the nod to Agatha Christie with the train trip on the modern day Orient Express (dream vacation destination truly) but I loved the rich storyline so much more. The added history of and plot lines in the Soviet Union was the perfect touch to add insight into the different backstories

This wasn't horrible by any means, but I just didn't end up liking it that much. I found that the jumping around disrupted the flow of the story a good amount, and even with that, the story felt pretty slow-paced. For me personally, a slow-paced mystery just doesn't keep me captivated because I find my mind wandering and getting bored. The characters were okay, though they weren't well bolstered by the slow-paced pacing of the story. Even with how slow the story felt, the ending was shockingly jarring with how abrupt it was. Strange pacing abounds, lol.
Though some of the twists and turns were fun/unexpected, the pacing of this novel and the sudden halt of the ending made this a novel that was not for me.

Cover art 10/10 book, 3/5 as it reminds me a bit too much of her debut novel. This has hints of Murder on the Orient Express and Who is Maud Dixon to me but, I wouldn't say it truly meets the mark of Agatha Christie.

It jumps around a bit and can be a bit hard to follow. I also found some of the characters unlikable or hard to connect with. It was "meh" for me.

Thank you to the publishing team and NetGalley for this free ARC in exchange for my honest review.

The story met each layer that unfolded with the characters. Each relationship is developed well. I was kept on my toes. Ginevra is charismatic and mature with a well-rounded arc.

This book had me at Orient Express. Within it, Rory has been sent on a lavish trip to the Italian riviera aboard the newly remodeled famous train. It’s her reward for being celebrated writer Ginevra Ex’s newest main character – the real-life person who inspires each of Ex’s novels.

But Rory is shocked to see her brother, her best friend, and her ex-fiance aboard as well – all at Ginevra’s expense. The story opens with one of them being murdered but who and by whom remains to be seen.

As the foursome read Ginevra’s new manuscript secrets unravel, but behind the scenes, Ginevra’s own past is catching up to her and just why she was drawn to Rory in the first place remained unanswered.

Why I Love It: While the who-dun-it mystery within Ginevra’s novel was so well executed and the suspense of who was killed kept me turning the pages, it was Ginevra’s storyline that intrigued me most.

I was enthralled by Russia’s history with the Jewish people, having been mostly unaware of the animosity there before this book, and was shocked to learn that element came from Goldis’s own family history!

I was drawn to this book based on its beautiful cover, intriguing description, and luxury train setting, but it wasn't quite what I expected. Noted as a "modern homage to Agatha Christie," the book did not live up to "Murder on the Orient Express." I did enjoy the underlying mystery, and there were certainly many unexpected twists and turns. There were also some very interesting flashbacks to the Jewish experience in the Soviet Union during the 1980s. The pace was quite slow, though, and I struggled to get through some of the book. And even with its slow pace, the ending seemed abrupt, and there were a few loose ends that weren't tied up. I didn't necessarily dislike this book, but it just wasn't what I was expecting, and I would still like to read more from the author in the future.

Thank you to NetGalley and Atria Books for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

The story takes place in beautiful Italy on the luxurious Orient Express, adding to its intrigue. I enjoyed The Château, so I was thrilled to read this one, and it didn’t let me down! It lacked speed but made up for it with suspense. The plot was clever, engaging, and full of twists. If you’re a fan of Agatha Christie, this is a must-read!