Unfortunately I had to DNF. The premise sounded really interesting, but nothing happened for several chapters. Instead it felt extremely info-dumpy with no plot even though a murder had happened. This might be more interesting to those interested learning about the field of journalism.

I had high hopes for Christina Estes' Off the Air. I was drawn in originally by the synopsis, but, ultimately, the writing style wasn't enough to engage me or to keep me interested. I couldn't develop a connection to the characters, and this was ultimately a DNF for me. I appreciate the opportunity to read early.

2.5 stars

The author sure knows her stuff when it comes to journalism! This was more like a book about journalism with a murder thrown in. I found some details/backstories to be overexplained and unnecessarily long, which made parts of it a slow read. I also didn’t really love our main character, Jolene, until the end, which I really enjoyed.

I both read and listened to this book, and preferred the audiobook.

Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press, and for the advanced copy in exchange for my honest review.

Off the Air is a delightfully fun, easy and entertaining read that takes you inside the world of tv journalism and the cutthroat battle to be number one when it comes to delivering a story.

Following a local journalist, Jolene, as she races to own the breaking headlines of a local controversial radio host found dead, the plot twists and turns with the mystery of who killed him and why. This is by no means a mind-boggling mystery, but it was a fun one to follow along, and gave cozy mystery vibes to Jolene's sincere attempts to solve the riddle while juggling her slightly deranged bosses and her relationships with her coworkers.

There are definitely a few oddities of this book - the beginning really plays up the fact that Jolene did the last ever interview with the host before he was killed, but then that storyline drops off almost immediately and without fanfare. And there are several near-sidebars of interesting Arizona area facts that don't seem to have any relevance to the storyline itself, but are interesting to read nonetheless. But overall nothing that was totally off putting.

In general, this is a great little popcorn mystery to pick up when you want to escape into some easy reading and some light entertainment. It delivers there and will be a great spring reading addition.

Many thanks to the publisher for my copy.

I really like this author but this book misses the mark in a big way. There was to much focus on technical aspects and it over ran the story. I am sad to say this was a DNF for me.

This is the first book I've read by Christina Estes and I enjoyed it. I grabbed this book because the description sounded like a fun mystery.

Description:
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.

My Thoughts:
The author's background as a tv reporter was evident in the authenticity of the fast-paced tv reporters' day to day activities and concerns showcased in the book. The necessary insensitivity of the reporters was also evident and we all hate that aspect of reporting whether it be tv or newspaper or magazine. However, I can also see that is the job and the stories wouldn't be as sensational and titillating without it - news would be rather bland and uninteresting. And yet it is easy to hate. The desire to "get the scoop" on a story has to be at the forefront for every journalist.

The murder was an interesting one and there was certainly more than one suspect. I enjoyed the story plot even though I felt the characters didn't have a lot of depth and I didn't really get too invested in any of them. This is a good debut murder mystery for the author and I think Christina Estes shows a lot of potential as a fiction author. I would recommend this to anyone who likes the journalism field and murder mysteries.

Thanks to St. Martin's Press through Netgalley for an advance copy.

I don't know much about the world of journalism other than what I see on TV or social media. I loved learning about the ins and outs as well as how modern issues impact the jobs these people have. Christina Estes writes a main character that is easy to follow along with and created a plot that mimics real life so closely that it could be breaking news. My only issue with this story was the backstories, or at least, the over explanation of things. For the first half of the book it felt like everything had a long backstory or explanation. It didn't always feel necessary.

Overall, I enjoyed my journey into the world of modern news media, the story that could be considered a "what if" in today's society, and the overall plot and pacing. Estes work was easy to read and enjoy, and didn't feel like a chore to get through. I will be recommending this to friends and family.

I was not a big fan of this one. Everything felt forced and the FMC rubbed me the wrong way. I'm sure others will enjoy this, but it wasn't for me.

I like a good mystery. This one had a good murder mystery with a good number of suspects that all had motive. The pace was a little slow for me. My other issue with it was that I didn't find the lead character likable. It took me while to finish the book. The murder mystery is solved with a satisfactory ending. I received an advance copy and am voluntarily leaving a review.

Off the Air follows Jolene Garcia, a young reporter, as she aims to get to the bottom of an unexpected sorta-celebrity death - before competing reporters do. There were elements of the story I liked - her ambition, and it was realistic in terms of the speed, how sometimes things pan out, and they don't. It was at times almost too realistic in a way that didn't always keep me as a reader engaged. Like many mysteries, it picks up at the end. Jolene is a flawed protagonist - you want to see her succeed, but also sometimes grimace in frustration as you read her choices along the way!

Thank you to Minotaur Books, St. Martin's Press and to Netgalley for an ARC.

I don't think this book was what i expected it to be. I anticipated a more humorous type story probably due to the cartoon cover but really its just a straightforward story about a reporter trying to break the story before getting scooped- yet again. Which in itself isn't bad- however the person being poisoned wasn't interesting and she really made it clear that everyone else was reporting wrong and she was the only one following the cardinal journalism rules. I also really struggled with the writing style. Every pop culture or Phoenix cultural reference was followed by 3 paragraphs of explanation. Either your audience gets it or not but stopping to explain the connections took me out of the story. Suffice, to say I didn't enjoy this book but overall it was well written and might be perfect for someone else.

3.5 stars rounded up.

This was a cozy mystery about a talk, show, host dying onset, and then it appears like maybe he was murdered. We follow a news reporter who is trying to find out what happened to our talk. Show host while also trying to respect the people that she talks to that says not to use their names, or that what they’re telling her is off the record.

Every time our FMC, Jolene, talked to someone knew she gives you a tidbit of history on something that happened. As I am writing this review, I cannot think of one example lol. But I knew a few of the things that happened so I know that they were true pieces of information.

This book is for you if you enjoy:
🎙️ following a story as it unfolds
☠️ trying to catch a murderer
🧠 learning new pieces of history
💔 a story with no romance, all about a woman and her career.

Thank you to NetGalley, Dreamscape Media, and Minotaur Books for the free ARC & ALC in exchange, for an honest review.

Thanks to NetGalley for the advance copy. My rating reflects rounding up from 2.5. When controversial talk show host Larry Lemmon drops dead at his studio, Jolene Garcia is there to cover it for local Phoenix station, KFRD. This presents a real opportunity for Jolene to build her reputation as a reporter on a story larger than the typical assignments she gets. When it turns out that Lemmon’s death is suspicious, it becomes something of a feeding frenzy and Jolene uses every trick she can to get information to scoop the competition. The story presents a revealing look at how modern news organizations operate in the current social media environment, and illustrates the pressure reporters must feel to land the story and get the public to pay attention. “When a story goes viral, it spreads like a virus and ‘infects’ people. The infection triggers people to share and talk about it.The content can be packaged and delivered in a variety of ways, but the goal is always the same: to move people to think, to talk, to share—to ‘infect’ them if you will.” The view is that the “audience is anyone with a pulse". It reveals the hierarchy of the station—“…a TV station is a dictatorship run by a general manager who answers to corporate who reports to a shareholders who expect returns on their investments”.

As Jolene works to identify suspects and motives, her methods are not particularly popular and she steps on a lot of toes such that she, and others in the book, were not particularly sympathetic or likable. The pacing was very slow. The story might make for a good TV one hour drama.

This book was not my favorite. It was not a bad book but it just seemed to drag on and on with the main character always rushing off to get to the story first. Jolene is a tv reporter. She was on the story of the death of a famous podcaster and radio host Larry Lemmon. His character reminded me of a Donald Trump type follower. Jolene was in competition with JJ from another station. JJ always dressed to the nines and wore heals and was a flirt. She did get more action on her stories!! Jolene on the other hand was always trying to be better than JJ. The story goes into how Larry could have been murdered but if he was who would do it. They interview different people of interest. That is the gist of the story. I tried very hard to like Jolene and find some good qualities in her but I just could not. She was just not a nice person. Granted I would never want her job but she could have been a nicer person. I think because of that I didn't care for the story. It did have a nice ending but you had to get to the end to find out about Larry Lemmon. I was asked to read this book for an honest review. That is the only reason why I finished it.
Thanks to #netgalley #minotaurbooks and #christinaestes for an ARC of this book

As a murder mystery fan, this was a letdown in every way. Undeveloped characters, unbalanced pacing, and a lack of urgency killed any building suspense for me.
The main character, Jolene, is jarringly one-dimensional. In the span of one week, her morals and values seem to fly from one end of the spectrum to the other, with no explanation. There are mentions of a traumatic background that seem to be sprinkled in to create depth, but instead created a feeling of disconnect.
The description of the newsroom environment and journalists chasing a story was fun, and provided the suspense I was expecting. However, that dynamic quickly shifted into Jolene just complaining about how hard it was to be a journalist, which isn't fun and doesn't move the plot along at all.
This was a unique premise, and I was really excited to receive a copy. Unfortunately, the lack of development overall knocked away at any enjoyment I was experiencing.
If you really love Phoenix or local newsroom drama, I think you could really enjoy this book. But if you're looking for a quick-paced murder mystery, I would look elsewhere.
Thanks to NetGalley and Minotaur Books for the free advanced copy in exchange for an honest review!

In Christina Estes' debut, Larry Lemmon, the most popular radio host in Phoenix, is murdered, perhaps by cyanide laced cookies. Who gave him the cookies and why? Jolene Garcia, TV Reporter, interviewed him the week prior. Her boss wants her to get the story and beat the competition to it. The competition being Emmy-winning rival reporter, Jessica “JJ” Jackson and the new network reporter, Jeffrey Cooper.

The author brings her journalism background into play with "behind the scenes" insight. Jolene is ambitious, wanting to get the scoop, and an Emmy for her reporting. There were many references to the current state of journalism, the politics that surround it, and the social media's part. At times the plot of "whodunit" felt like a backdrop to what the author really wanted to discuss, journalism today. There is a Content Advisory warning that the tale “contains references to abandonment, ageism, animal cruelty, child neglect, classism, homelessness, racism, sexism, sexual coercion, and substance abuse.”

I am interested in reading the next in the series, with the hope of more mystery and less a lesson in journalism.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher, St. Martin's Press, for an ARC. The review is my own.

This is an interesting cozy mystery. It was fun to peek into the worlds of local news and radio. As a Midwesterner currently living in Arizona, I liked reading about all the little tidbits about Phoenix. I feel like I learned a lot about a lot of random things. The mystery itself was interesting and engaging.

I don’t think I’ve ever read a cozy mystery starring a reporter before. It makes the premise a little more believable. In real life, a journalist in search of a story is a lot more likely to try and solve a murder than a cupcake baker is. The story has an air of authenticity, which makes sense since the author is a radio news reporter based in Phoenix.

Unfortunately I didn’t love this one. It felt extremely slow and took so long to pick up for the action that I had lost interest. Less of a thriller and more of a journalism experience?? Idk how else to describe it!

Jolene Garcia has made mistakes in her past and lost out on an Emmy for her work as a reporter. When Larry Lemmon, a controversial radio host, dies at his studio she sees it as a make it or break it moment for her career. Jolene was the last person to interview Lemmon before his death, which puts her ahead of her competition. She is under pressure to provide daily updates to keep the story fresh for her station and increase ratings. However, she is up against the woman who beat her for the Emmy, a reporter who can sweet talk her way into exclusive interviews. When national outlets pick up the story, she loses out on some important updates and her source at the police department is reluctant to share she is frustrated and desperate to solve the murder. She finally gets a break, but it puts her in the killer’s sights.

Christina Estes gives you an inside look at the newsroom and the pressures to produce a show that will capture the audience’s attention. It is the producers, reporters, cameramen and anchors that work together to make it happen. There is a mutual respect between Jolene and her co-workers, but there is also competition for stories and air time. Estes not only nails the feel of the newsroom, but also gives you a mystery filled with red herrings and a touch of humor that makes Off the Air fun to read. I would like to thank NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press - Minotaur for providing this book for my review.

They say you shouldn't judge a book by it's cover. In the case of this book that is true.

I was expecting a fun cozy mystery with a little journalism thrown in. What is actually was is a lot of journalism, a lot of dialog, some mystery and a tiny bit of fun.

I was not expecting so much of the journalism aspect. I did find the parts about how a story is created and the work that goes into making it interesting. I think people with more of an interest in journalism would enjoy this much more than I did. I don't have an interest in that field.

I take responsibility for misjudging what the book would entail. It just isn't the book for me.

Thanks to netgalley and St. Martin's Press, Minotaur Books for the arc.