This is a DNF at 40%. I'm throwing in the towel on this one. So many points of view, too many characters, back and forth we continued to go.

I just didn't care about any of these characters and the book was so OTT that it annoyed me. After reading others reviews I decided to just not finish it. I kept putting the book down to read something else - a sure sign that I really didn't want to continue to read this novel.

I'm sure this has a fan base but it wasn't for me and I can't recommend it.

I received an ARC of this novel from the publisher through NetGalley. All opinions are my own.

Thank you for the opportunity to read this novel. Since I did not finish it I will not review it on publishing sites.

This was a good debut by Garcia. Although it wasn’t my favourite thriller I’ve read recently, I did read it pretty quickly and thought the overall plot was different. I would read another novel from this author.
Thank you NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for this ARC!

Fast paced and kept me guessing! I would definitely recommend this one. The audio format was wonderful as well.

This novel has plenty of twists and turns. It's a fun read and all of the characters are a hoot. I never saw the ending coming.

The Business Trip is the first time Jessie Garcia has written a thriller, and here's to many, many more I hope! Little unsuspecting me was making my way through the book not expecting it to have such a jaw dropping ending. The pacing is good throughout, but I have to admit I was liking it and not in love with it until the very end. I don’t think I actually liked a single character in this book, even the women, and there are a couple of particularly pompous men that I REALLY didn’t like. While the book is technically about Stephanie and Jasmine, there are quite a few viewpoints and lots going on to keep things interesting.

The Business Trip is another that I highly recommend the audiobook for, and I thoroughly enjoyed it. There was a narrator for each viewpoint and all TEN did an amazing job. Pacing for all was on point, and I thought they fit their characters well. You most definitely have to suspend disbelief with this storyline, but I had no issues with that, and it was a nice escape from the daily grind of life. I also loved the focus on television in this book and you can tell that Garcia has the experience to draft a gripping book with that included!

Read this if you’re looking for a quick, easy read, love stories that go into the unbelievable, and are a fan of the good ole popcorn thriller.

Audiobook Rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

WOW!! This was a super twisty, whiplashing of a read from debut Mystery/Thriller author Jessie Garcia! 4 Twisty Stars!!!

The story starts with two women. Jasmine, a young woman who works as a barmaid and is desperately trying to leave her abusive live-in (no good) boyfriend and escape the lowly life she is living. Stephanie, is a successful news director, who is divorced, a mom to a teenage son (who doesn't want to spend anytime with her,), and she is getting ready to go away to San Francisco for a week long news conference. These two very different women, from very different backgrounds end up sitting next to each other on the plane.

Soon after they both arrive at their destinations, the women begin texting their friends that they met this guy, yes, the SAME guy! Trevor McCarthy from Atlanta. And that's where I have to leave you hanging. But, I will tell you that what happens next is anything but what you would expect! Like most thriller readers, you will THINK you know exactly where this book is going (and you may even question whether or not you should keep going), but please, please, keep reading!! Because there is a WHAMMY of a twist that hits you like a truck and leaves your jaw on the floor, and the ending is very satisfying.

What happened before the flight, during the flight and after the flight? Who is Trevor? What did he do? Who should you believe? The author does a fantastic job of keeping you guessing the whole way!!

Run, grab this book ASAP!!!!

Thank you Netgalley and St. Martin's Press for allowing me to read an advanced copy.

This book was the epitome of popcorn thriller. Lots of POVs increased the mystery and made it fun to read. Once I started reading I absolutely could not stop! It’s a book that had you rooting for the bad guy, which by the end gave me a bit of an ick.

This was a quick read that I enjoyed. I wanted to know what happened. I discussed this with my #sqaf friends and it made for a great discussion. I wasn’t a fan of a few twists in the book so I think that brought down the rating for me a bit. Maybe a 3.5 rounded up. This was my first book by this author and Iook forward to more.

Thank you to the publisher for the advanced copy. Opinions are my own. 3.5 rounded up.

I love a thriller that will keep me guessing till the very end. The Business Trip did just that. I binged this entire book in one sitting. I was hooked from the very beginning. The first two parts of this book had my heart literally racing trying to figure out what was going on. I will say the end got a bit too much like a tell all but I still really enjoyed the twist at the very end. I was not expecting that. If you love a thriller you can’t put down then definitely check this one out.
4/5 Stars

Thank you to the publisher and Netgalley for giving me an arc in exchange for my honest review.

Review of The Business Trip by Jesse Garcia

I had seen great reviews for this one so I was a little nervous that it wouldn’t meet my expectations. But fortunately, I was wrong and it definitely did. I absolutely loved the way this book was written. I loved the different point of view and timelines. The way the author unraveled the story was perfection. There were lots of good twists in this one and I absolutely loved it.

Quick synopsis:

Stephanie and Jasmine have nothing and everything in common. The two women don’t know each other but have boarded 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—soon, the messages become stranger and more erratic. And then the two women vanish. The texts go silent, red flags go up, and panic sets in.

When Stephanie and Jasmine are each declared missing and in danger, it begs the question: Who is Trent McCarthy? What did he do to these women—or what did they do to him?

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

Jasmine is fleeing an abusive relationship when she is seated next to Stephanie on a flight to Denver. One of their seat mates makes a comment that they look and an idea starts brewing in Jasmine’s head. As the two women disappear, we follow their friends, family, and coworkers as they try to piece everything together. Overall, this book felt a little immature in its writing style. Jasmine’s character felt cobbled together quickly in the 4th part and a lot of it was extremely far fetched. It was a captivating story though and I did enjoy reading it.

Fast paced and I liked the multiple pov. I really didn't guess all the twists and turns. Recommended by Frieda and I think if you like hers, you will like this. I did find the Jasmine section a little repetitive after reading the story 2xs so could have cut some details down. The ending was unexpected!

This was a great book. I really enjoyed it. It was a fast read and kept me guessing the whole time. It was just released January 14, 2025, so if you haven't seen it, go find it!

Jasmine is a young woman who is in an abusive relationship with Glenn. She plans her escape and while en route on her escape, she meets Stephanie. Stephanie is on her way to a news director's conference.

We meet Jasmine, Glenn, Stephanie and Trent along the way and how they are interconnected. This one trip goes very wrong and causes a lot of chaos in several lives. Read for more to see how it ends up.

This is a five star for me. You should go read it...NOW!

#TheBusinessTrip #NetGalley

I loved the fast pace and the multiple POV’s. The book kept me guessing – it was suspenseful and made me wanting to keep reading. My major problem was the ending, it was a bit much, especially with one character in particular. Also, without giving anything a way, there was something about Jasimine that kept irking me once we found out her back story. After finishing it a few days ago, I’m still not entirely sure how I feel about this one – some parts I loved and some parts I loved.

I love to try debuts and this had some buzz swirling so I gave it a shot. I'm sad to say that it wasn't for me. The setup was good - Stephanie, an overworked news director, and Jasmine, a woman running from an abusive relationship, meet on a plane and make a connection while talking about their lives. I won't spoil what transpires since it seems a lot of people like this book, but parts were suspenseful, parts were unbelievable, and 2 of the characters were completely unlikable. I both read and listened to this title and did like reading it more than listening, for the simple reason that I could flip back easier to catch up when I put it down for a couple days. Thank you to St. Martin's Press, Macmillan Audio, and NetGalley for the early access in exchange for my honest opinion. 2.5-3 stars

Overall, this story is intriguing. Stephanie and Jasmine happen to end up next to each other on a flight to Denver for two very different reasons. The mystery starts when they seemingly both end up missing and maybe dead, but how did that come about?

I’ve read books written in alternating first person POV, but this is written in multiple first person POV and I wasn’t a fan of that. Third person may have been a better option since knowing whose POV each chapter is about gives a huge hint about the end.

The story was well written and it kept me hooked. This was my first read by this author and I would definitely read more.

Thanks to the publisher for a review copy via NetGalley. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

Ok I will start off saying that the format of this story wasn’t for me, but I do know people that enjoy books like this so I will be recommending it to them.

I know the jumping around in the timeline with multiple POVs is common for thrillers to keep the tension and leaving the reading wanting more. I was pulled in at the beginning and then again with the first twist. However, the last quarter of the book felt rushed and some of it just seemed like it was thrown in. I would definitely read more books by this author. I would like to see how their work develops over time. This was a great debut.

Stephanie and Jasmine are two women who don't know each other but board the same flight for different reasons. Stephanie is on a work trip and Jasmine is escaping from her abusive douchebag boyfriend. Pretty soon crazy texts are flying everywhere to all these other pointless characters, then nothing. Complete radio silence. But both women mentioned a man named Trent McCarthy to those pointless other characters and he becomes the focus in their disappearances.

On the surface, this book seems like something I LOVE. But it was all a trick because this book was SO, SO, SO bad. Like, truly a contender for one of the worst books I've ever read.

Jasmine is AWFUL. We are supposed to feel sorry for her because she is supposedly stuck in this abusive relationship with her dumbass boyfriend, Glenn. There is no single reason to root for her, because she can apparently murder people withouta second thought, but couldn't manage to come up with a way to just kill Glenn and make it look like an accident? She could have done that in the year it took her to save up money to escape. All the framing and murdering was way more work, and he was the only person in the book who might have actually deserved to be killed. This book would've been a lot shorter, maybe even never unleashed on the public.

Along the way we find out she killed a girl in high school and framed the boyfriend. Being rich as a reason to be murdered will come up more than once in this stupid book.

She frames Trent in the present. AND murders Stehanie to steal her identity and justifies it by basically saying that Stephanie has a lot of money and has probably lived a decent life. But THEN also has the nerve to call herself a champion of women? What in the actual fuck?

I think another reason I am so mad about this stupid book is that it started out strong. I was engaged in the story, until all the different POVs started popping up. So many were unnecessary. And then Jasmine retells the same thing, from her POV. Essentially you read the same thing twice, but the second time Jasmine explains why it's okay for her to murder people who she thinks have it coming because they had the audacity to be rich.

Trent, the guy Jasmine choses to take the fall for her, was also seriously awful, in a different way. It felt like his disgusting behaviors were exaggerated so greatly, so that no one would feel bad when he was accused. He was seriously a charicature of the worst type of narcissistic frat-boy mentality type of guy.

The so-called plot twists are not actually plot twists, because they make absolutely no sense whatsoever. There have to be clues, for it to truly be a good twist. But here it was just Jasmine jumping from one perfect set-up to another and everything working out magically for her almost the entire time.

In the end, there is not even any good, logical reason for Jasmine to steal Stephanie's identity. She escaped the moment she was on that flight. She could have stayed in Denver and started over. Do we really believe Glenn was going to come looking for her? And how would he even be able to do that? Again, a much shorter book, or the possibility of it not existing at all.

And yet, here we are.

Awful. Do not recommend.

The Business Trip centers on two women who have nothing in common, except that they look alike and the bizarrely identical texts they both send to their friends about the same man. After a fateful meeting on a flight, they both are seemingly put into a dangerous position by this man they have met on their trip. But everything is not always as it seems!

This is one of those books where it's best to go in without knowing anything. Just dive in and start reading. But be sure to carve out plenty of time, because once I began The Business Trip, I couldn’t stop. Narrated from multiple points of view, it's fast-paced and has everything I look for in a novel like this. The plot twists are well crafted and a few are completely jaw dropping!

I was engaged with this book from the very beginning to the very last crazy twist. If you like psychological thrillers that have intriguing characters and a plot that unravels in a unique way then this is the book for you!

I am grateful to St. Martin's Press for granting me access to a digital copy of this fantastic book through Netgalley. All opinions throughout this review are my own.

3 stars! This story follows Jasmine, who is in an abusive relationship and saves enough money to leave her abuser. She decides to fly to a different city for a fresh start. Stephanie, a news director is on her way to a business conference and meets Jasmine on the flight. They engage in conversation on the flight and they never see each other again.

Stephanie sends a text message to her friend letting him know that she is extending her trip because she met a man, named Trent and they are spending time together and getting to know each other. Jasmine also texts her friend letting her know that she met a man, and his name is also Trent. Then, both women disappear and Trent is arrested for their disappearance.

Did Trent hurt both women, or is there more to this story. This story had multiple POVs that I felt were a little unnecessary but overall this story was good.