Take a photo of a barcode or cover
3.23 AVERAGE
3.23 AVERAGE
*Thank you to NetGalley and Atria Books for providing this book, with my honest review below*
The Main Character had a very clever premise and I was so glad when it delivered on it ten fold. I enjoyed getting to know the characters and learning about their past, from Rory and Max to Caroline and Ginevra, as well as somewhat more minor characters.
This book calls back to Agatha Christie in many ways and I was dying to get the full picture of why the reclusive Ginevra, our author, had brought Rory and those close to her on the orient express (past the initial reason it seemed a little odd, given her subsequent interactions with the group).
Ultimately this unfolded as a supremely satisfying mystery. My only quibble is that after all the tension and all the mysteries, I wish more time had been spent with the final conflicts and closure! This left me wanting more, in the best way. Well worth reading and well worth getting excited for!
The Main Character had a very clever premise and I was so glad when it delivered on it ten fold. I enjoyed getting to know the characters and learning about their past, from Rory and Max to Caroline and Ginevra, as well as somewhat more minor characters.
This book calls back to Agatha Christie in many ways and I was dying to get the full picture of why the reclusive Ginevra, our author, had brought Rory and those close to her on the orient express (past the initial reason it seemed a little odd, given her subsequent interactions with the group).
Ultimately this unfolded as a supremely satisfying mystery. My only quibble is that after all the tension and all the mysteries, I wish more time had been spent with the final conflicts and closure! This left me wanting more, in the best way. Well worth reading and well worth getting excited for!
I feel like I’d give this book a 3.5 because the idea of it was good — the main character being the main character for a book being written by the author who put together the trip for the main character (I know sounds confusing). There are ties to Agatha Christie of which I can’t speak for because I haven’t read her work so beats me! I feel as though the story ended rather abruptly and I wish there was more mystery at the end in a verity sense. Gets the .5 because Italy duh
I didn't enjoy this as much as I did this author's debut but I still had fun! This book is full of so many twists and turns and I honestly felt like I didn't even have time to see most of them coming. My biggest complaint is that I wish there was more about the novel the author was writing, it would've been super interesting to learn things through passages from the book and see things unveiled in the character's lives. But other than that, it was fun to follow the characters through different countries and settings while they took the Orient Express train, and I enjoyed that I disliked every character. It made the conflicts more interesting because I wasn't rooting for anyone but the resolutions were still satisfying.
Thank you to Atria Books and Emily Bestler Books for providing me with an eBook copy to review on NetGalley.
Thank you to Atria Books and Emily Bestler Books for providing me with an eBook copy to review on NetGalley.
Thanks to Simon & Schuster for an advance copy of 'The Main Character' in exchange for a candid review.
More of a 2.5 for me.
I'm mixed on this one as it's readable, and I appreciated the author's nods to 'Murder on the Orient Express' and 'Death on the Nile' to name a few of Christie's books and plot structures I recognized.
Ginevra Ex is one of those successful authors who doesn't mind exploiting her muses and transforming their lives and exploits into best-selling novels. Rory, her latest protagonist, is gifted with an extravagant trip of a lifetime on the Orient Express. Only Rory soon realizes there are many people from her life also on this trip.
The set-up and conflict are more interesting than any of the characters, though I didn't see some of the plot twists coming.
More of a 2.5 for me.
I'm mixed on this one as it's readable, and I appreciated the author's nods to 'Murder on the Orient Express' and 'Death on the Nile' to name a few of Christie's books and plot structures I recognized.
Ginevra Ex is one of those successful authors who doesn't mind exploiting her muses and transforming their lives and exploits into best-selling novels. Rory, her latest protagonist, is gifted with an extravagant trip of a lifetime on the Orient Express. Only Rory soon realizes there are many people from her life also on this trip.
The set-up and conflict are more interesting than any of the characters, though I didn't see some of the plot twists coming.
I went into The Main Character expecting a thriller with a strong sense of place (an Orient Express style train going through Italy) but ultimately there were too many points of view, too many storylines, and not enough story to carry the book.
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.
*Thanks to Atria/Emily Bestler Books and NetGalley for the ARC!*
*Thanks to Atria/Emily Bestler Books and NetGalley for the ARC!*
adventurous
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
The Main Character started strong in the beginning and seemed very promising. Starting off with a mysterious death and then going back three days to recount the events leading to that death had me excited. Alternating between 5 POVs, it seemed to have the makings of a fun murder mystery.
Despite having a strong start, the pacing drastically slowed in the middle a bit too much for my liking. I thought a couple days had gone by in the story, but as I read, I realized all that I had read had taken place in one day. The pacing and action didn’t pick up until closer to the end of the book. Unfortunately, I felt the story ended quite abruptly and didn’t quite hit the mark for me. Another issue I was having while reading was differentiating between the characters when the POV would switch. I’d find myself having to look at the chapter to remember which POV I was reading.
What I did enjoy about this book were the descriptions of the Orient Express and of Italy. The setting is painted in such lavish detail, I could really get a sense of the expensive and ornate details of the train. And the images of the Italian towns were done so well, I could easily picture myself standing in these settings. I also had a strong craving for gelato while reading this
Despite having a strong start, the pacing drastically slowed in the middle a bit too much for my liking. I thought a couple days had gone by in the story, but as I read, I realized all that I had read had taken place in one day. The pacing and action didn’t pick up until closer to the end of the book. Unfortunately, I felt the story ended quite abruptly and didn’t quite hit the mark for me. Another issue I was having while reading was differentiating between the characters when the POV would switch. I’d find myself having to look at the chapter to remember which POV I was reading.
What I did enjoy about this book were the descriptions of the Orient Express and of Italy. The setting is painted in such lavish detail, I could really get a sense of the expensive and ornate details of the train. And the images of the Italian towns were done so well, I could easily picture myself standing in these settings. I also had a strong craving for gelato while reading this
adventurous
emotional
mysterious
sad
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
DNF at 60%. The story was good, interesting even, but not interesting enough for me to keep going.
Our main character is the main character in a novel (so book within a book). She goes on a vacation to getaway and her friends show up, sent by the author, and a previous romance interest who has an early copy of the book for them all to read. We find out secrets about all the friends that have made it into the book and the author even has secrets of her own.
I’m very much a mood reader, so that is probably why I DNF’d (just not in the mood). But I read over 50% and found myself not truly caring what happened.
The audiobook has a full cast & is about 11 hours long!
Thank you to NetGalley & Atria for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.
Our main character is the main character in a novel (so book within a book). She goes on a vacation to getaway and her friends show up, sent by the author, and a previous romance interest who has an early copy of the book for them all to read. We find out secrets about all the friends that have made it into the book and the author even has secrets of her own.
I’m very much a mood reader, so that is probably why I DNF’d (just not in the mood). But I read over 50% and found myself not truly caring what happened.
The audiobook has a full cast & is about 11 hours long!
Thank you to NetGalley & Atria for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.