The Business Trip

August 1, 2024

Sports journalist Garcia makes her fiction debut. Stephanie, traveling on a business trip, and Jasmine, fleeing an abusive relationship, don't know each other but are on the same flight to California. A few days later, they both text friends the same message about the same man--and then they vanish. With a 150K-copy first printing. Prepub Alert.

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Starred review from November 25, 2024
In sports reporter Garcia’s complex and captivating debut, two strangers disappear after sending texts about the same mysterious man. Waitress Jasmine and TV journalist Stephanie sit next to each other on a flight from Wisconsin to San Diego. Jasmine is escaping an abusive relationship; Stephanie is on her way to a news directors’ conference. A few days later, Stephanie’s neighbor, Robert, receives a text informing him that she’s met a wonderful man named Trent McCarthy and flown to Atlanta to spend more time with him. While Robert is initially thrilled for Stephanie, her colleagues are more concerned, and everyone grows uneasy when Stephanie’s texts become increasingly erratic. Then Jasmine’s friends receive similar messages, and both women vanish, raising grim questions about their connections to Trent. Garcia toggles between Jasmine’s, Stephanie’s, Robert’s, and Trent’s points of view, planting cliffhangers at the end of each section that pay off in a series of game-changing reveals. The smoothly executed finale that feels more like the work of a seasoned pro than a first-time novelist. This is sure to keep readers up at night. Agents: Meg Ruley and Logan Harper, Jane Rotrosen Agency.

December 15, 2024
Two women meet on a plane, then disappear. Television journalist Garcia's first work of fiction is the sort of psychological thriller that stands out in the overworked woman-in-peril genre. Fast-paced and with enough twists to keep even distracted readers engaged, the story involves two very different women who meet on a plane. Stephanie Monroe, a divorced mother with a grown son and busy job as a television producer in Madison, Wisconsin, is on her way to a news conference in San Diego. Jasmine Littleton, who works at a dive bar, has sneaked out of her boyfriend's trailer in the middle of the night to flee her abusive relationship. The women have nothing in common and no history together, but they board the same flight to Denver. Then they disappear from the book, leaving the narration to friends and co-workers disturbed by increasingly odd and worrisome texts from them. Both women seem to have met a desirable man named Trent McCarthy. "I met an amazing guy," Stephanie texts the neighbor who's taking care of her cat. "I met a great guy," Jasmine texts her friend Anna, who lent her money for the plane ticket. Then the texts stop, and all traces of Stephanie and Jasmine vanish. Other characters weigh in on the disappearances, too, including Stephanie's angry boss, furious at her not returning to work, and Jasmine's threatening boyfriend, eager to punish her for leaving. As the mystery unspools, Garcia leans more on action and dialogue than characterization, and more than a few unlikely occurrences are scattered throughout, particularly at the end. But she keeps the reader guessing as long as she can, and even when she's forced to reveal her hand and return the narrative to the main characters, she maintains enough tension and momentum to invest any curious reader in the outcome. A thriller that will keep you guessing with unexpected plot twists.

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