A Thrilling Debut: Jessie Garcia's "The Business Trip"
Jessie Garcia's debut novel, "The Business Trip," is a captivating psychological thriller that expertly weaves together suspense and intrigue. The story follows two women, Stephanie and Jasmine, who, despite their vastly different lives, find themselves entangled in a mysterious web of danger.
Stephanie, a successful news director, is on a business trip when she encounters Jasmine, a woman escaping an abusive relationship. Their paths cross unexpectedly, and soon, both women are sending alarming texts about a man named Trent McCarthy. As their messages grow increasingly erratic and their friends become increasingly worried, it becomes clear that Stephanie and Jasmine are in grave danger.
Garcia's writing is both suspenseful and evocative, drawing readers into the heart of the mystery. The author skillfully alternates between Stephanie and Jasmine's perspectives, offering a multifaceted view of their lives and the escalating threat they face. The plot is filled with twists and turns, keeping readers guessing until the very end.
"The Business Trip" is a thrilling and thought-provoking novel that will leave readers on the edge of their seats. Garcia's debut is a promising start to what is sure to be a successful career.

Thank you, NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for this book for review. I really enjoyed this thriller and all the twist, right to the end. Stephanie and Jasmine were on the same flight but are completely different. This book definitely kept me guessing as to what was going on. Really good thriller and I will keep an eye on this author in the future.

The Business Trip is a fascinating tale of two women swapping lives… or did they? Each character’s escape from their past will have you questioning what’s real and what’s not. The protagonist's conference cover story pulls you deeper into the mystery, but don’t trust a word she says. Even the red herrings have their own twists! This book kept me guessing at every turn, with unexpected layers that made it impossible to put down. A thrilling and unpredictable ride from start to finish!

This one was a lot of fun (if you’re like me and have fun reading thrillers with lots of twists and turns!) and I really liked the author’s writing style, the differing POVs and all the twists. This was one of those books that had me guessing and second guessing myself while reading and I love that! Overall, this was a quick read with short chapters and loved the ending (which isn’t always the case for me with thrillers).

to be honest the majority of this book felt pretty repetitive and almost boring until the end… there wasnt a single likeable character in here, many things felt extremely unrealistic. however, the twist at the end had me laughing so hard it to was too good to watch how this book wrapped up.

this was a pretty good debut novel & i do look forward to giving any future books jessie puts out a try!!

The Business Trip is a quick and fun read that hooks you immediately with its short chapters and shifting POVs. The story centers around two different women, Stephanie and Jasmine, who both disappear at the same time and only reach out to friends with cryptic text message updates that suggest a whirlwind romance with the same man.

I had a fun time trying to figure out exactly what had happened on the titular business trip but was a little underwhelmed by the final twists. You also have to unfortunately spend a lot time with some very unlikeable characters, which made some of the parts less enjoyable. Overall, this was a very promising debut, and I will definitely check out what Garcia writes next.

This one was a rollercoaster! It was quickly paced, and I burned through it trying to understand how the author was going to wrap this up.

I appreciated the unique format, meaning the first half is told through several different points of view trying to determine what happened to the two main characters who both have seemingly disappeared. We know their stories will cross at some point we are just left trying to piece together how.

At the end you realize that there are several breadcrumbs, but they are well hidden. The second half switches the point of view one of the missing women and you start to learn how the story unfolds.

The author wraps it up nicely, it felt like a bit of a stretch but not so much that it wasn't a satisfying ending. Overall, this is a solid read that I would highly recommend, and I am looking forward to what this author has in store for us in the future.

This was such a good book. One of those, you think you know what is going on, until you don’t. No spoilers here! Read it!!

Thank you to Jessie Garcia and St. Martin’s press for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

4/5

“THE BUSINESS TRIP is the gripping, page-turning debut from author Jessie Garcia.

Stephanie and Jasmine have nothing and everything in common. The two women don’t know each other but are on the same plane. Stephanie is on a business trip and Jasmine is fleeing an abusive relationship. After a few days, they text their friends the same exact messages about the same man—the messages becoming stranger and more erratic.

And then the two women vanish. The texts go silent, the red flags go up, and the panic sets in. When Stephanie and Jasmine are each declared missing and in danger, it begs the questions: Who is Trent McCarthy? What did he do to these women— or what did they do to him?

Twist upon twist, layer upon layer, where nothing is as it seems, The Business Trip takes you on a descent into the depths of a mastermind manipulator. But who is playing who?”

This was really fun to read and I really liked this story, though I did find a lot of the dialogue and writing to be kind of forced and stilted.
I did like the twists, even the ones I saw coming were fun to explore. There was one twist at the end, though, that wasn’t explained very well and felt like it was just thrown in for shock factor. I felt more confused than anything after. Overall, it took away from the story a bit and left a weird taste in my mouth to end with.

Very good for a debut novel though, and I definitely will read more from this author. I really enjoyed making my way through the story and it was definitely a page turner. Would definitely recommend for anyone who likes thrillers.

This story opens with Channel 3 News Director Stephanie Monroe packing for a business trip to a news conference in San Diego. At the same time, a domestic abuse victim named Jasmine is planning a trip of her own, to escape her abuser and disappear. And what better way to disappear than to become someone else? The plot thickens when the folks back at Channel 3 begin receiving odd text responses from Stephanie, including very uncharacteristic, impulsive travel changes. This is so not like her. Suspecting something is wrong, they launch an investigation. Meanwhile, Jasmine’s disappearance is taking shape with remarkable success, and the reader has a front row seat to it all. Garcia’s writing flows, with no wasted words or unnecessary scene-setting to bog it down. The colorful cast of characters move the plot along at a brisk pace and there’s no telling where it will lead or how it’ll end. I love that! This one’s a true pleasure to read. Check it out!

This was a solid ⭐️⭐️⭐️. I will say some things that took place seemed a little far fetched to me. Once this happens I start to disconnect from the story. My opinion is my own and I encourage other readers to read it for themselves.

Ohhhh...do not miss this one!! You will need your thinking cap on!!

Two women who didn't know each other are dead - did obnoxious Trent do it?

Jasmine was running away from her abusive boyfriend, and Stephanie was heading to a conference.

Somehow they were seated together on the plane and got to know each other.

What we know is what their lives and Trent’s life were like and currently are like. All were interesting characters and one was especially despicable.

Ms. Garcia kept me glued to the pages with such suspense and incredible twists that you will wonder how she even thought of the storyline.

Her very clever way of organizing the book's structure made it one that will have you not wanting to stop reading even though a few things seemed hard to believe, but I did.

This marvelous debut has jaw-dropping twists and an ending that had me scratching my head as Ms. Garcia ended it as well as she had written the entire storyline. 5/5

Thank you to the publisher for a copy of this book. All opinions are my own.

Thank you netgalley for the arc of business trip in exchange for my honest review. Stephanie Monroe is getting a little tired of her life and thinking that maybe she would be a little better appreciated if she just disappeared. Jasmine is escaping from an abusive relationship. Shes had a rough past without much support but she manages to scrounge up enough money to run away from Glenn. Heading to a conference Stephanie and Jasmine end up on seat mates on an airplane and the rest is history. This twisty turn of a novel was great for October. 3.5 stars and an easy read.

Thank you to NetGalley, Jessie Garcia and St Martin’s Press for the free ebook in exchange for an honest review.

Wow I have been having a run of meh books and this wasn’t different unfortunately. The twists I saw coming and I just felt like the pacing was so slow. So much repetition. Just not for me.

Huh? What? Who? 😅 What a whirlwind. To say I was invested, is the least I can say. I need someone to talk too after all of that. Great book!

I received an ARC of this novel from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

The novel reads like a Lifetime movie.

An amazing debut! Like nothing I have read before. It kept me guessing at every turn. I can't wait to see what the author writes next.

Wow! This is a great debut novel with some unexpected twists! Jasmine definitely got the short end of the stick in life with an emotionally abusive family, few friends, and a jerk of a boyfriend. If only she hadn’t decided to take out her anger on other people. I was surprised at the elaborate scheme that she came up with. Her escape didn’t surprise me, but everything she did afterwards was shocking. The twist at the end, though. Wow! It was hard to put this book down!

Many thanks to St. Martin’s Press and NetGalley for this advanced readers copy. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.

The first half of this book felt like a slow burn to me. I wasn’t sure if I was going to like it but I was interested enough to continue. By the second half of the book, I was shocked. It picked up the pace and I started questioning everything I was predicting in the first half.

I was so, so excited to get my hands on this book, and WOW! It did not disappoint. You will find yourself second-guessing yourself at every turn! It is fast-paced, twisted, and twisty.