Off the Air
A Mystery
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4.0 • 4 Ratings
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- $14.99
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- $14.99
Publisher Description
Equal parts thought-provoking and entertaining, Off the Air introduces Jolene Garcia in Emmy Award–winning reporter Christina Estes's Tony Hillerman Prize–winning debut.
Jolene Garcia is a local TV reporter in Phoenix, Arizona, splitting her time between covering general assignments—anything from a monsoon storm to a newborn giraffe at the zoo—and special projects. Stories that take more time to research and produce. Stories that Jolene wants to tell.
When word gets out about a death at a radio station, Jolene and other journalists swarm the scene, intent on reporting the facts first. The body is soon identified as Larry Lemmon, a controversial talk show host, who died under suspicious circumstances. Jolene conducted his final interview, giving her and her station an advantage. But not for long.
As the story heats up, so does the competition. Jolene is determined to solve this murder. It’s an investigation that could make or break her career—if it doesn't break her first.
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
Journalist Estes's middling debut finds idealistic Phoenix, Ariz., TV reporter Jolene Garcia looking into a high-profile murder. After Jolene produces a series of hit stories about the hazards faced by park rangers, her station superiors move her into a hybrid role where she spends half her week on fluff, and the other half on more heavily reported, consequential work. One such story falls into her lap when Larry Lemmon, a right-wing Rush Limbaugh figure, whom Jolene interviewed a week earlier, turns up dead at the radio station where he recorded his popular talk show. After a little digging, Jolene discovers that Lemmon may have been poisoned after eating cookies dropped off for him by a mysterious woman. Under pressure from her editors to boost ratings and scoop the competition—including Emmy-winning rival reporter Jessica "JJ" Jackson—Jolene struggles to maintain her professionalism while keeping up with the demands of the job. Estes's background as a reporter lends credibility to Jolene's investigation, but the plot's immersion in the politics of contemporary journalism too often clouds, rather than enhances, the core mystery. This fails to make much of a splash.
Customer Reviews
An Entertaining Read!
When a controversial local radio host, Larry Lemmon, collapses and dies at work after eating a cookie and drinking coffee, the news are vying to get the details and report it first. Jolene Garcia is an award-winning local TV reporter assigned to this breaking news. When JJ, a competing reporter, gets the coveted interviews first, can Jolene think outside the box and come out on top? Jolene knows how important this is to boost her career. Can she be the first to bring a factual full story?
This author has you laughing from the first chapter! I loved the cut-throat portrayal of the news vying for the same breaking news! Also, I loved how Larry’s death became a murder mystery through the eyes of reporters. I loved all the twists and turns as I didn’t see the end coming! This made for a fun and entertaining read! I also enjoyed how it was set in AZ as I used to live there! A great book to vacation with or bring to your next book club!
What a slightly confusing read!
What a slightly confusing read! This book was really hard to read for me – I struggled with the back and forth and feeling like I was constantly missing pieces of background or storyline even though I wasn’t. Jolene is a local TV news reporter who is working on covering the murder of a local radio DJ, and while she keeps getting beat out on interviews and releasing information by her main competitor, she is determined to get the facts straight due to some past drama. There is a lot of back and forth but eventually Jolene stumbles on the true murderer and gets herself into some hot water in the process.
I voluntarily read and reviewed an Advance Reader Copy of this book.