Title: Layover by David Bell
Publisher: Berkley
Genre: Contemporary, Mystery, Suspense
Length: 414 pages
Book Rating: B
Complimentary Review Copy Provided by Publisher Through Edelweiss
Summary:
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 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.
Review:
Layover by David Bell is an entertaining (yet somewhat improbable) mystery.
Joshua Fields is on his latest business trip when an enigmatic woman catches his attention. Both are waiting for their flights when the two travelers bump into another not once, but twice. Joshua accepts her invitation to join her for a drink where their conversation is the most honest discussion he has participated in quite some time. Before leaving to board her flight, beautiful Morgan Reynolds lays a passionate kiss on Joshua before mysteriously proclaiming they will never meet again. Well, needless to say, Joshua cannot get Morgan out of his mind, and he impetuously switches flights in hopes of spending more time with the lovely stranger. Much to his dismay, she is not at all receptive to his invitation to chat during their flight and when the plane lands in Nashville, TN, Joshua is ready to resume his normal, unsatisfying life. That is until he catches sight of a news story about Morgan who has been reported missing. Joshua dutifully reports what he knows about her to the police but making yet another rash decision, he sets off to Wyckoff, Kentucky where he hopes to help locate his mystery woman.
Joshua is a dutiful son who has obediently (and unhappily) followed the path laid out for him by his father. Now in his mid-twenties and working for his father’s company, he spends more time in airports and hotels then he does his Chicago apartment. So it is not completely unexpected when Joshua makes a few reckless decisions after meeting the inscrutable Morgan. But, well, with common sense thrown out the window, Joshua quickly finds himself in way over his head as he tries to find Morgan.
In nearby Laurel Falls, Kentucky, Detective Kimberly Givens is investigating the disappearance of local businessman Giles Caldwell. His house has been ransacked but with only one missing item, Givens rules out robbery as a motive for whatever has happened to Caldwell. As she digs deeper into his background, she learns some very disturbing information about Giles that she suspects might have something to do with whatever has happened to him. The trail leads Kimberly in a very unexpected direction but will she discover his whereabouts? And more importantly, if Giles is the victim of foul play, will Givens figure out who is involved in the crime and why he was targeted?
Layover is an interesting mystery with a unique storyline. Joshua’s discontent is understandable, but his pursuit of Morgan has a decidedly stalkerish vibe. Morgan gives off mixed signals and Joshua quickly falls victim to her hard luck story. Is Morgan a victim of circumstance? Or is she a master manipulator? Pick up a copy of David Bell’s clever mystery to out the answers to these compelling questions!
