I loved the story line in this book; A mystery writer that hires people to be the main character in her stories, using their own background and experiences to create her works of fiction. With great characters, amazing setting and locations, I devoured this book!

A modern twist on Agatha Christie's The Orient Express - a murder takes place on a train while on a trip through Italy. The plot was pretty original, except of course the pieces that were inspired by Christie. I found myself getting really into it at first, but the middle dragged on a bit. I didn't find the characters very likable and the plot didn't move forward for a bit, but it picked up again at the end. I liked hearing the backstories of Ginerva and the father, and overall found it an enjoyable mystery.

Ginerva Ex is a thriller writer who hires people to be her main character. Rory is that person. She is given a fancy trip on the Orient Express train in Italy and is surprised to find on board several people she was once close to. Things get complicated pretty quickly and no one is who they seem to be. I enjoyed the story and especially the author’s note at the end regarding her inspiration.

Overall, this was deeply enjoyable, but I will say I found that last twist more superfluous than satisfying.

I have to start off by saying I’m not sure I’ve ever read an Agatha Christie move but I’ve definitely seen several movie adaptations of her stories and several novels inspired by her legacy. This one proudly claims to be inspired by Christie. I will say it does have several twists and a murder and that tracks for what I’ve seen of Christie’s work but it’s also a lot to live up to so I would take that comparison with a grain of salt.

Ginevra Ex is a famous thriller author who follows around an individual for a set period of time as inspiration for the main character in her next novel. This time she has chosen Rory and also gifted her with an extravagant train trip to Italy aboard the Orient Express.

Rory is surprised after boarding the train that it’s filled with significant people in her life/ her ex, her best friend, a former fling and her brother are also along for the ride.

This novel has several different POV’s including some that are historical and those sections read as historical fiction covering things in Jewish and Ukrainian history, that the author covers in their note at the end come from personal family history.

I felt that the author did a good job of getting you hooked and invested in the story and kept the pace to make you want to keep reading during the present day sections. There were several red herrings that made you question the motives of several of the passengers including Ginevra herself but at times there were almost TOO many of these ultimately unimportant side-plots. This is likely personal preference, but I found the historical passages a bit slower paced and tended to slow down e pacing with the rest of the story.

I enjoyed this overall and am giving it 3.5 stars.

⭐️ ⭐️⭐️💫

Thank you to NetGalley and Atria books for the E-ARC in exchange for an honest review.

I really enjoyed the setting and the links to Agatha Christie. It was a bit slow at times but overall I enjoyed this book. Thanks to NetGalley and Atria Books for the ARC.

Multiple POVs; flashbacks; an intriguing prologue that had me hooked right away and an interesting plot that kept me eager to know everyone's secrets and how it would all play out; the amount of exposition was excessive and boring at times; enjoyed the final plot twist but I wish the ending hadn't been so abrupt; overall, a very twisty and entertaining murder mystery, full of drama and suspense, and a great reminder to take control of your own narrative.

Special thank you to Simon & Schuster, Atria/Emily Bestler Books, and Netgalley for an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.

I get excited about mysteries on the orient express, thanks to the queen Agatha Christie. But that’s literally where the similarities end. This plot was meh, twists were meh, and I felt the whole experience was mid.

Thanks to NetGalley and Atria for the ARC of this book. This will be out in May.

Ok wait dare I say it it’s like Agatha Christie with a touch of saw. I know those sound like they would never go together but it does. Sooo many mysteries and twists and I can’t imagine being stuck with all these people close to me only to figure out it’s a whole mystery at the same time. Who would you trust

I’m not used to this style of writing/plot type and was caught off guard as the story went on. I tried to give this story a chance, but I personally cannot get along with this plot. It’s perfect for fans of Agatha Christie

The Main Character
by Jaclyn Goldis
Pub Date: May 21, 2024
Thanks to the author, publisher, and NetGalley for the ARC of this book in exchange for my honest opinion.
Another stylish and compulsively readable mystery from Jaclyn Goldis, this is the perfect read for fans of Ruth Ware, Lucy Foley, and Paula Hawkins.
Jaclyn Goldis has been on my radar ever since her debut novel, The Chateau, was released last year. Once I saw this gorgeous cover, I knew that THE MAIN CHARACTER was a book that I needed to read.
This book has a great premise but it ultimately fell flat for me in the execution. I won't say that it's not worth a read because it isn't terrible and I'm sure lots of other readers will enjoy it more than I did, but definitely don't go into it expecting the genius of Christie's works.
3 stars

The concept of a Orient Express retelling was really fun, but this was incredibly slow moving and skimmable. I was considering DNFing around the 40% mark, but read other reviews saying there's a lot crammed in at the end, so I skimmed forward and finished the book from there. There was SO MUCH at the end. Like big revelation after big revelation, and I think if they had been better spread throughout the book, it would've been much more engaging. Overall the writing isn't bad and if you like a slow burn, I think this isn't a ~bad~ read, but it wasn't for me.

I really enjoyed this book! It had a great twist that I was not expecting! The setting and location was awesome and was a great addition to the book. Also, I LOVED how she took a real person and fictionalizing their real life to fit into what she was writing. The author did a great job creating the relationships and characters in the book. Great read.

Rory boards a train in Europe that has been paid for by an author whose writing a book with Rory as the main character. After months of interviews, Rory is excited to relax.

But the trip is anything but relaxing as 3 people are on board she wasn't anticipating seeing. With copies of the soon to be released book, the characters have secrets to hide from Rory.

Loved the story and overall premise of the book. There's a lot of character development in the beginning but once the story starts to really unfold I enjoyed it and couldn't wait to see what was next.

Thank you Netgalley for this ARC!

Mystery, intrigue, history and a dash of Agatha Christie add up to an entertaining and page-turning read. This was my first Jaclyn Goldis book and definitely won't be my last. My thanks to the publisher for the advance copy.

I really liked The Chateau, but it is very possible that I like this book even more.

Based on the Preface (Prologue?), I thought for sure that I had this all figured out. And I was so wrong, but in the best way. This author is very clever and I hope that she keeps it up.

The setting is Italy, and the Orient Express, so she's getting extra points there.

I highly recommend this one if you like a good mystery.

What a cool premise for a book! A well known author gets to know REAL people and writes them into the plots of her mystery novels. This time, it's Rory, and after Rory has spent 3 months overseas in interviews with said author, the author thanks her with an all expense paid trip in Italy on a very fancy train. To her surprise, when she arrives, those closest to her are on said train, including her ex-boyfriend she is FINALLY getting over. This was a really fun setup, and I was excited to read. I did find this moved somewhat slow at at times, and I felt as though the author gave away some of the tension a bit too early--for example, they characters so easily assumed the author had something up her sleeve when they all saw each other on the train. Anyway, it was still good! Would recommend.

Loved this Homage to The Orient Express. I’d you are looking for a mystery and would enjoy a bit of historical fiction along the way, this is a book to be put on your TBR list!

This book was different from other thrillers I have read recently. The story definitely had some amazing un-guessable twists but at the same time, it also was touching, beautiful, and fun. The story follows Rory, who has been chosen as a "Main Character" for popular author Ginevra Ex. The author interviews her characters and then constructs a story around them, creating bestsellers out of peoples' lives. However, the story does not go as planned, and secrets long kept are revealed. The character building was amazing, as were all of the twists that even I, someone who reads thrillers and mysteries very frequently, did not guess at any point in the book. The book was a quick read, and I got attached to the characters to the point where I was not able to stop reading even when I wanted to. I would highly recommend this book if you are looking for something to break a book slump, or if you want something fast which you know will be well-done.

This ebook was provided by NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

This was a fun trapped mystery that kept me guessing! The ending was wild. I would have loved more intense scenes throughout the story.