The Book Bag: The Business Trip

Tuesday, January 14, 2025

Release Day! The Business Trip by Jessie Garcia ~ My Thoughts #TheBusinessTrip #JessieGarcia @stmartinspress.bsky.social

Happy Release Day!

Congratulations Jessie

on the release today of

The Business Trip!

The Business Trip by Jessie Garcia

Mystery, Thriller & Suspense, 352 pages

Published January 14, 2025 by St. Martin's Press

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?

My thoughts about The Business Trip ~~

(I love to note the first lines of the books I'm reading. First lines can really grab a reader's attention and I love seeing where the author takes the reader after their first lines.)

First lines—"The Day of the Flight. I had to move carefully, quietly, grabbing only what I could take in the dark without waking Glenn. He snorted and rolled to his side, and I froze, hand in midair above the suitcase, ready to abort the mission and slip back under the covers if needed."

OMG! This book grabbed me from the very first paragraph. It started off intense and just kept going. This is a very well written, twisty tale that I found myself totally immersed in. I was completely baffled about who did what and was puzzled as I tried to figure out what the heck was going on.

It is astounding to me that this is a debut novel and I can't wait to see what else this author writes. She has definitely gained a fan in me with this book. This is a five star read for me and I highly recommend it if you love twisty thrillers!

I received an ARC of The Business Trip and this is my honest opinion of the book.

About the author

Jessie Garcia knew she wanted to be a writer or a reporter from about the age of 8. After growing up in Madison, WI she attended college at Boston University, gravitating to television journalism.

Jessie spent over 25 years on the air as a sportscaster and became the sideline reporter for the Green Bay Packers as well as a host of NFL coach's shows. She then got into TV management and now oversees a newsroom of journalists.

Jessie also taught journalism at four universities and produced a documentary on a little-known piece of track and field history.

She has several award-winning non-fiction books out but recently turned to fiction. She has always been drawn to mysteries and thrillers and is excited to be bringing you The Business Trip.

Jessie has two adult sons and lives in Wisconsin with her husband. Their two animals truly rule the house: a savvy cat who simply appeared in the front bushes one day, and a dog who won their hearts at the Humane Society.

Follow her on Instagram at jessiegarcia_author for behind-the-scenes anecdotes.

Connect with Jessie

Goodreads | Twitter | Instagram

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Monday, January 6, 2025

It's Monday! What Are You Reading? January 6, 2025 #IMWAYR

It's Monday! What Are You Reading? is a place to meet up and share what you have been, are and about to be reading over the week. It's an opportunity to visit other blogs and to comment on their reads. And ... you can add to that ever growing TBR pile! So welcome everyone. This meme started with J Kaye's Blog and then was taken up by Sheila from Book Journey. Sheila then passed it on to Kathryn at the Book Date. And here we are!

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I'm back.... I think. I took an unexpected and unplanned hiatus from blogging—and reading too, I guess—to be honest. I think I've been in the holiday slumps plus we've had a lot of personal stuff going on. My head and heart just hasn't been in it. Hopefully, now that the new year has flipped over, I can get back on track. I've got some reviews I need to write and post. I apologize to those authors. Soon, I promise!

Good news though, I'm right on track with my Goodreads goal, with one book read so far this year! 😍 Yay me!!

Thanks for stopping by. I hope you all have a good week.

Happy reading!

What I'm currently reading