Page 14 - PGA Community News - May '24

Page 14, PGA C.A.N.! May 2024 May 2024
Book Review

The Main Character a luxury trip through Italy almost her entire life; and Gabriele, a handsome Italian to
aboard the sumptuous whom Rory was once attracted.
By Nils A. Shapiro Orient Express train. As if that weren’t enough, Ginevre Ex has arranged to
Many years ago I read But when she boards have distributed to all of them advance copies of the novelized
a couple of the all-time the train, Rory is shocked mystery she has just written based on Rory’s life, a tale that
bestselling murder mystery to find that Ginevre Ex has includes a secret one of the group is hiding—and a murder
novels by Agatha Christie also arranged for the most in their future! But before any can read the book, one of
and decided that this literary important people in Rory’s them has stolen all of the copies.
genre was simply not my life to join her on that trip: The story of The Main Character is told through the eyes
cup of tea. Max, her brother, whose of these different people in alternating chapters—a chapter
While my own personal pharmaceutical company from Rory, then one from Max, one from Caroline, back
reading tastes lean toward is reportedly about to to Rory, then to Ginevre Ex, and so on. It is an adventure
nonfiction, especially history introduce an Alzheimer’s fascinating to view from each one’s perspective. But you
and anything related to nature treatment drug that will help are advised to keep in mind my—despised but necessary—
and a better understanding of the wonderful animals with to cure his and Rory’s father caution that nothing on this ride is as it seems.
whom we share this planet, I do make it a point to review and make himself a billionaire; Nate, the man Rory loves who If you enjoy murder mystery novels, The Main Character,
several novels a year in consideration of this column’s has just broken up with her; Caroline, her best friend since published this month, is a must. Even I am anxiously awaiting
readers’ more varied preferences. childhood, who works for Max and has had a crush on him the next stop on Jaclyn Goldis’s literary journey.
So, when a year ago I was urged to read a new author’s
first book, a murder mystery novel, I turned the first few pages
reluctantly—but was then caught up in what surprisingly
turned out to be an impressive and intriguing story that
deserved a rave review and strong recommendation in my
book review column.
The name of that novel was The Chateau. Its author,
Jaclyn Goldis, is a young American woman who practiced
law in Chicago before leaving her job to travel the world and
write novels, and finally settle in Tel Aviv, where she writes
from cafes near the beach. She has now published her second
novel, and it is clear that her first success will not be her last.
Now, having just finished reading The Main Character,
I am reminded of what impressed me so much about Goldis,
and why I had looked forward to her next book. Rarely in any
work of fiction have I come across a writer who combines
intricate and imaginative story lines with an innate ability
to narrate perfectly—dialogue so natural, and other actions
related with such exquisite word choices that for me the
loveliest part of this reading experience was savoring the
author’s writing style, prompting me many times to put the
book down for a few minutes to reflect on precisely that.
Fans of Agatha Christie will be well aware that one of
her most famous murder mystery novels was Murder on the
Orient Express, which was made into a film more than once.
Her readers will immediately recognize Goldis’s nod to Dame
Christie by setting most of her own new novel on an Orient
Express train!
But that is where the similarities end. Where Agatha
Christie’s story follows the usual plot—a murder takes
place and we must then try to figure out who committed the
dastardly deed—in The Main Character we are taken on a
very different journey.
I won’t reveal any more about that because I don’t want
to spoil your fun. Instead, I am forced to use a phrase here
that I absolutely despise: Nothing on this ride is as it seems.
(I once devoted an entire column to how much I hate that
phrase, which is used to promote so many books and films
by lazy advertising writers who can’t think of more creative
ways to describe what they are promoting. But in the case of
The Main Character it is the most important element in the
story line.)
The book gets its title from its theme: A famous bestselling
author of murder mysteries, Ginevre Ex, has figured out that
her biggest successes have come from stories based on real
people’s lives. So she hires real people and pays them to
become the main characters in her books, interviews them Upscale Resale
extensively, then fictionalizes their lives in novels.
Her newest main character, an American woman named Experience The Difference
Rory, has just lost her job as an anchor person on a TV news
show and, as a double blow, her boyfriend whom she was New and consigned furniture, unique lighting, accessories and gifts.
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after Rory’s in-depth interview relating her life story to
Ginevre Ex, she learns that the author has gifted her with

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