Review: The Chateau

The Chateau by Jaclyn Goldis
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

I received an ARC of this book.
I am not sure how to review this book, because it seemed like it was almost 2, if not 3, different books, and none of them were very well-executed. The first part of the book, in which we are introduced to a group of 4 friends who are having a "reunion" (not sure why it's called that so often, when they see each other regularly...) at the French chateau owned by one of the women's grandmother. After a while this section of the book began to feel interminable. I began skimming because I was bored with the constant inner monologues that were taking place. I suppose these were intended to help us get inside the characters' heads and make us understand their motivations, but I just got to the point where I did not care any longer and began skipping pages. The pacing was way too slow and nothing was actually happening.
The story finally began to pick up with about 1/3 to 1/4 left, but by this point, not only was it too-little-too-late, but it felt like the book was moving in a completely different direction. All of a sudden we had mystery and intrigue and deep family secrets revealed, which was good...but it all came completely out of nowhere, which was not good. Then at the big climax, it felt like the book was trying to be a suspense thriller. And again, it felt like the plot had moved in a totally separate direction from everything leading up to this point. And the ending...I am guessing it was supposed to be a fun way to leave things up in the air, but I didn't care by that point.
The other big issue I had with this book were the characters themselves. They were all unlikable, and it was extremely hard to tell them apart. Each chapter was from a different character's point of view, but I was constantly having to go back and remind myself who was "talking" (to themselves... in their own head... for pages on end...) because none of the characters had their own separate voices to distinguish themselves from the other characters. Honestly the only character I really liked was Darcy, and I really got the feeling the author wanted us to like her the least.
I would not recommend this book. The pacing was terrible. It couldn't decide if it wanted to be womens literature, a psychological thriller, a locked-room whodunnit, or suspense. I was not impressed.

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