In this high concept psychological suspense novel from the USA Today bestselling author of Somebody’s Daughter, a chance meeting with a woman in an airport sends a man on a pulse-pounding quest for the truth.Joshua Fields takes the same flights every week for work, his life a series of departures and arrivals, hotels and airports. During yet another layover, he meets Morgan, a beautiful stranger … meets Morgan, a beautiful stranger with whom he feels an immediate connection. When it’s time for their respective flights, Morgan kisses Joshua passionately, lamenting that they’ll never see each other again.
As soon as Morgan disappears in the crowd, Joshua is shocked to see her face on a nearby TV. The reason: Morgan is a missing person.
What follows is a whirlwind, fast-paced journey filled with lies, deceit, and secrets as Joshua tries to discover why Morgan has vanished from her own life. Every time he thinks one mystery is solved, another rears its head—and his worst enemy might be his own assumptions about those around him.
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There is something inherently sexy about meeting a stranger at an airport, especially one you connect with on every level. But what if that someone might be a missing person? It’s a great premise for a book, and David Bell’s latest, Layover, captures all the excitement and terror of this exact situation. If you like Harlan Coben, you will love David Bell.
This psychological thriller is perfect to read on a long flight!
Would you cancel everything to follow someone you just met in an airport bar? That’s what Joshua does after having a few drinks and a chat with a gorgeous woman. The conversation was intimate and Morgan was very mysterious. Joshua gets the feeling that she needs help, and after the way she ended the conversation, he needs to find out more about her.
Joshua works for his father, and flying is a big part of his job. He is on the way to a business meeting in Tampa, but decides to change his destination to follow Morgan. This isn’t like him at all. He’s not spontaneous and he never disappoints his father. So his dad is worried about this choice. He is afraid he’s being taken advantage of, by a manipulative woman. But Joshua insists that isn’t the situation.
When Joshua catches up to Morgan, she lets him down numerous times, but he’s determined to help her. Yes, I wanted to shake him several times and tell him to quit being such a sap! He ends up entangled in more trouble than he imagined. But he believes in Morgan, and insists on helping her clean up her messes. OMG, give up on her already!
This was my second read by David Bell. He is an excellent writer, but I was blown away by my first read, Kill All Your Darlings. This one had some tough competition and, unfortunately, there was no comparison.
Sincere thanks to Edelweiss and Berkley/Penguin Audio. I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.
My Rating: 3.5 ’s
Published: July 2, 2019
Audio: 11 hours 51 minutes
Recommend: Yes
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After publication my reviews can be found at Amazon, Twitter, GoodReads, Barnes and Noble, BookBub, NetGalley, and Edelweiss
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You know what I really liked about this book? Actually I liked quite a few things. First of all, David Bell is a great writer. His characterizations are excellent, I felt like I really knew Joshua, Morgan, and the determined and persistently hungry Detective Givens.
**Small aside: I think her hunger was supposed demonstrate how dedicated she was to her job, how self-sacrificing, etc. But too often when the POV switched back to her, it led off with her gnawing hunger as if it’s noble to be starving. Eat a sammich and just stop.
Okay, anyway, I also loved that this doesn’t get wrapped up in a lovely package. Much like in real life things are complicated, emotional and can feel unfinished. I respect the opinion of anyone who felt the end fizzled but I don’t share your opinion. For me, it worked.
I loved that I felt hopeful, frustrated, disappointed and charmed in spots. Sometimes I wanted to throttle Joshua, far more often Morgan but overall…I felt.
Thank you to David Bell, Berkley Publishing Group Berkley and NetGalley for giving me this ARC in exchange for an honest review.
Dollycas’s Thoughts
A chance meeting at an airport. Joshua feels an instant connection to Morgan. She gives him a killer kiss good-bye, but he can’t just let her go. He chucks his plan to meet his father to close a business deal and follows Morgan. He knows she is on the run and hiding something huge but he just can’t leave her behind. Joshua is soon mentally trapped into Morgan’s web and he could end up making the ultimate sacrifice all the be with a girl he met on a LAYOVER.
David Bell is one of my favorite authors but this one didn’t blow me away as others have.
Joshua Fields appears to be a very intelligent young man who may need a vacation from work but he keeps making bad decisions. I understand being in a rut and wanting change but I had a hard time believing the lengths he went to for a woman he just met and knew for all of a few minutes. He is a good guy but his first move was almost stalkerish. After that, though I realized Morgan was a master manipulator who knew just how to pull Joshua’s strings as soon as he continued to follow wherever she led.
I realize the premise of this book from an encounter the author actually witnessed but I just couldn’t get on board with it all. Maybe if the woman was a someone from his past, that he hadn’t seen in years I would have found it believable because they would have had a smidgen of history to build on.
Putting their meeting aside the story itself was complicated as Morgan’s story was revealed piece by piece from several viewpoints. The key was learning the true story and for that to come out there were several twists. Readers are treated to some suspenseful moments as the chase of Morgan and now Joshua continues. The author’s writing style of short chapters with mini-cliffhangers and alternate points of view worked very well. Those little teasers had me doing the just one more chapter thing over and over again. For me, the ending was unexpected and made me glad I had kept reading.
Aside from wanting to jump into the book several times to try to stop Joshua making stupid choices, this was a largely entertaining read.
Of course, I am looking forward to David Bell’s next thriller.
Joshua Fields has a chance encounter with a mysterious woman during a layover and his world soon spirals out of control. I am a big David Bell fan and enjoyed this fast paced ride!
David Bell’s Layover was an interesting book. A layover in the Atlanta airport leads to life-changing decisions for the Joshua Fields. He is a successful commercial sales exec that has become bored with his driven professional life. Little does he know when he meets Morgan Reynolds that his life is about to change forever. The storyline was intriguing but seemed to drag in places. Would recommend for those looking for an escape into suspense, mystery, and whodunits.
Layover opens on an ingenious setup: a chance, romantic meeting in an airport with a woman who turns out to be missing. Bell starts with a bang then dials up the suspense to full-throttle, lobbing twist after twist that will test Joshua and his conflicting loyalties. Smart and highly addictive, this one should come with a warning: don’t start until you’re prepared to read straight through.
Mr. Average American businessman on a routine airport layover meets a women. What could go wrong. This is what happens to Joshua, a tired, unhappy traveler in David Bell’s latest thriller, Layover. If Joshua had done the right thing, his situation might not have gotten worse. I really enjoyed this story. The characters were real and compelling and … flawed. The plot flowed well and had some interesting twists. My kind of book. I must give David Bell and Layover five stars. Enjoyable. Jeff Bailey, author of Not On My Watch.
This is the first book I have read by this author and it definitely won’t be the last. This is the story of Joshua, who meets Morgan at an airport on a layover. They spend a little time together and Morgan tells him, they will never see each other again. Joshua follows her halfway across the country, trying to find her and find out why she left. Joshua is then followed by Simon, who is trying to find Morgan, because he believes she killed his brother. This story is woven and weaved and wrapped. I don’t feel like this was suspenseful, but I wasn’t bored.
A boring, predictable life takes an extreme turn in one layover. A woman is chased to discover she is a missing person and running from a past. A detective is on their tracks trying to piece the puzzle together. Readers will be shocked to find the ending. I’m still spinning! Perfect summer read.
If you’ve ever people watched during a layover or had a conversation with a stranger that captured your interest then you’re sure to enjoy this book. This fast paced, interesting, unique, and amazing read was perfect for my 3 hour Denver airport layover. Highly recommended travel companion read.
Wow, I devoured this book in one sitting! Joshua meets Morgan while in the Atlanta airport awaiting his flight. He feels an instant connection with her, but she is mysterious and tells Joshua that they will never see each other again. She then moves on to her flight. Joshua makes an impetuous decision, and his life changes instantly.
Meanwhile, Kimberly is a detective hoping for a promotion. She has a young daughter, Maria, who misses time with her mom. Kimberly hopes to be able to spend more time with Maria, but right now, she is on a case trying to find local businessman, Giles Caldwell, who was reported missing by his strange and different brother, Simon.
As the story unfolds, it seems there is a connection between Morgan and the Caldwells.
This is a quick moving novel, and you will be wondering what is the truth and what is not.
#Layover #DavidBell
A man meets a woman during a layover and they instantly bond. Shortly before her flight departs, he purchases a seat on the same flight. He is shocked at her chilly reception and when he looks for her after their flight lands, she’s vanished. Not only are they involved in a cat and mouse chase, but now the police are also looking for them. This story had a basic plot with lots of drama and filler that didn’t amount to much. I liked how it ended.
Just total chaos and craziness. Oh David Bell, you frustrate me so much, yet you still get 4 stars.
Joshua Fields, real estate, lives in hotels and on airplanes. Takes the same flights weekly for work, same Xanax for the flights. On a typical routine layover, he meets Morgan, a beautiful mysterious woman who he is drawn to immediately. When Morgan passionately kisses Joshua to depart on her flight and regrets she will never see him again, Joshua decides to make a change in his mundane life and follow her.
As Joshua attempts to approach Morgan on her flight he is immediately spurned, and told he has the wrong person. Confused and angry, after disembarking the plane he sees Morgan on tv and social media and realizes she is a missing person. He attempts to alert the authorities to his encounter, but without much guidance from the airport police, he is left to his own devices. But this is not the last Joshua is to hear from Morgan.
What comes next is an insane and chaotic journey of secrets, lies, running, and hiding that confuses even the best of sleuths.
First of all, this Joshua Fields dude is an idiot. I hate him. Who in the world would go off not just once, but multiple times chasing that damn girl? He deserves to be dead. I mean chopped up in little pieces and put in a trash bag and then later shown on an episode of Dateline, kind of dead.
Which of course is EXACTLY why stupid people like him go off and follow these women, situations like this actually really happen, news shows do stories about these mindless fools, and people like David Bell can write fictional psychological thrillers. Thus, making this book and insane plot totally believable and worth the 4 stars I’m giving it just over my complete frustration. UGH. Rant over.
So back to my initial statement. David Bell you frustrate me. Why? Because you wrote a book about a total unbelievable idiot in an unrealistic situation and was able to make it work, and I’m jealous over it. Nobody said I had to love the characters to still like the book.
Thank you to David Bell, Berkley Publishing and Edelweiss for the ARC of this novel for an honest and unbiased review.
David Bell is an author you can count on to deliver superb thrillers and this is no exception.
I discovered Mr. Bell when I received an ARC of “Somebody I Used to Know” in 2015. I was completely bowled-over. I could I have missed this guy?
In the ensuing years I’ve read his entire catalog and have not once been disappointed.
In “Layover” a chance meeting in an airport leads to…everything.
The chance meeting has been used many times before, but never like this.
Our protagonist, Joshua Fields, is frequent business traveler who has layovers in many airports.
At this particular transportation hub he runs into a woman, Morgan, in the gift shop.
He has an immediate attraction to her.
They have a drink together and Morgan even kisses Joshua. She then says they’ll never see one another again and disappears into the crowd.
Oh, but boy, do they see each other again!
After Morgan leaves Joshua sees her face on TV. She is a missing person. But why?
What follows is a tale at full-flight that travels through the turbulence of lies, secrets, betrayals, death and the truth about Morgan’s disappearance.
Joshua is put through the wringer of fast-paced, wrenching suspense. It never lets up all the to the unexpected, comforting conclusion.
That’s it. Be surprised for yourself.
Do yourself a favor. Read anything and everything by David Bell!
Imagine meeting a stranger during a layover and having that magical kiss, that kiss that pushes you to want more? Joshua Fields had such a kiss that started him on a tangled journey filled with twists and suspense that will keep you guessing till the end!
This one started out very promising, but about half way through things took a turn for the crazy and they never came back for me…
There are so many places in which the reader is asked to suspend disbelief here that it makes the story difficult to swallow. The decisions made by Joshua are a MAJOR part of the problem in that regard. Why oh why would a sane individual, even one facing a dark night of the soul because his life is not what he thought it would be (seriously – am I the only one who finds it tough to feel sympathy that he’s stuck in a great job that flies him all over the country working for his dad who basically sticks up for him at every opportunity no matter what he does?!), follow a woman he met for twenty minutes all the way to hell and back?
Why wouldn’t the cops act like cops instead of repeatedly letting him go? Why would his ex keep hanging on, his dad keep covering for him, the detective let everything slide? Answer: they wouldn’t, at least not all of them, and since that is the conclusion I came to early on, I couldn’t keep myself swallowing what the author was serving long enough to fall into the story…
The action ramps up in the end, but with a series of rather unbelievable coincidences and revelations that did nothing to pull my back in, believability-wise. There were some cool bits, but overall this one just didn’t work for me…
My review copy was provided by Penguin First to Read.
An airport, a chance meeting, an unforgettable, secretive woman, a woman who is actually missing, tells lies and doesn’t care who she involves or hurts.
Joshua saw a woman in the bar and knew she needed some help just by the way she was acting so he canceled his plans with his father to follow Morgan.
Is she really worth helping? After their meeting, Joshua thinks so.
Meanwhile, Morgan’s boss is also missing and not too long after Morgan had been visiting him to try to straighten out the reason she didn’t get a raise after making an app that made the company a lot of money.
LAYOVER moves along quickly, and I wanted to tell Joshua to stop being a good guy and stay away from Morgan who he never knew before this chance meeting.
Every time they would find each other and Morgan would leave it had me wondering why in the world Joshua was being so irresponsible….just get back to your life, but he wasn’t listening to me. 🙂
More characters, and I mean people who don’t think, come on the scene and each one has some connection to Morgan, but the only connection they all have in common is that no one knows where Morgan is or where her boss, Giles, is.
LAYOVER kept me in suspense, kept my blood pressure up, and had me shaking my head at the stupidity of Joshua. Why go to these lengths and ruin your life? Maybe he didn’t think he was ruining his life?
Mr. Bell has written another tense thriller with a very manipulative, not nice main character.
Are you intrigued?
ENJOY if you read LAYOVER!! 5/5
This book was given to me by the publisher in print and NETGALLEY in exchange for an honest review.
Layover is one of Bell’s best thrillers yet – addictive and twisty, I couldn’t put it down!
A layover at an airport, a mysterious woman and an unforgettable kiss. This is how Layover by David Bell begins and then takes you on a suspenseful and intriguing story! I was swept away by Joshua’s story. A man who hates flying, yet it is a big part of his job. During a layover, he meets Morgan, a woman who captivates him and leave a long-lasting impressions. Imagine his surprise when he sees her on TV as a missing woman. And so, begins Joshua’s journey to find this mysterious woman who takes him down a rabbit hole!
Joshua is not a happy man. Feeling stuck, something about Morgan makes him act in way he never imagined. But Morgan has her secrets and they are ones she wants to keep close. Full of mystery and suspense, Layover by David Bell will keep you on the edge of your seat!
Read and reviewed for Reviews From The Heart.
Happy reading!