Did I really love or really hate The Secret History?

Obligatory “on mobile sorry for my shit formatting”.
After reading a million people recommending The Secret History, I decided I’d finally read it. Everyone said it’s what If We Were Villains was trying to be and that was promising because I loved If We Were Villains. (However, I do acknowledge that it leaves some to be desired and was like 88% Shakespeare quotes and is certainly not the next great American novel but I found it enjoyable in the way a Lifetime movie is enjoyable- it’s pretty not good but still really tugs the heartstrings ya know?) Anyway.

I can’t decide if I loved or hated The Secret History. It is brilliantly written. Those sort of long, lumbering sentences that you don’t get in the Lifetime Movies of Books were incredibly enjoyable. I felt like I was reading something of substance written by an author who really loves literature. The characters are deplorable and I hated every single one of them but they are well written and developed, even if infuriating. The story is compelling and I could not put the thing down! But here’s my problem- I had thought, due the the entire first chunk of the book, and the description on the back, that Julian was going to have a real impact on the plot. It felt that he would have influence over the group, that he would drive the story in some way or another! So much focus was on him from the discussions with the French teacher, to Richard’s comments on the conversation they had before he was accepted into the program, to the details of his classroom and his questionable relationship with Henry. I felt that the book would be about him, in some way. But it just…. Wasn’t. He feels like a half thought out character that could have been so much more. After all the acclaim I saw for this book, I just need to know I’m not alone! Or if I am, I need someone to help me see what I’m missing here!