An interesting premise - an Alex Jones style character dies suddenly and on air. A TV journalist is interested in trying to break the story and find out what happened, but she is continually being stymied by various things. The story was interesting, and the twists were certainly fun. Was it the most thrilling book I've ever read? No. But was it fun and took my mind off of things? For sure! I would recommend this if you want something fairly low stakes, but you want a mystery to try to figure out, and enjoy a quick read. I would definitely pick this up for a fun weekend getaway for sure!

This ebook was provided by NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Have you ever wondered what the life of a TV news reporter is like? Honestly I haven’t, but I have a pretty good idea after reading Off the Air.

Jolene is a reporter in the cut throat world of Phoenix TV news. When news breaks about a death at a local radio station, she recognizes the importance of getting the story first, but more importantly getting it right. With mounting pressure from her higher-ups and competition from local and national news outlets, Jolene continues to push herself to follow every lead and solve the mystery.

First off, Estes provides so many details of Jolene’s work world that at times I forgot I was reading a mystery. I ended up really appreciating the details and the novelty of the situations she provided. The mystery itself was entertaining, and even though I didn’t really relate to Jolene, I was definitely rooting for her. I think Estes has a talent for writing complex mysteries, and I would love to read more from her–maybe in the form of a sequel, but also in a non-reporter themed story.

Thank you Netgalley and St. Martin's Press on giving me an opportunity to read Off the Air for an early review. Off the Air follows Jolene who is a reporter at a news station. Fellow radio host Larry collapses mid show and is confirmed dead. All of the reporters near Larry's radio station race to the scene to see who actually died and to get the "scoop". Overall, Off the Air was okay. I was expecting more of a cozy mystery with humor. Instead, I feel like I got just a "mystery" with so much radio knowledge. However, I do feel as the author has potential to grow and I will probably give her another try.

withholding review due to the SMP Boycott. thanks for the ARC,and I'll be happy to review it post-boycott, but for now, no.

To be honest, this storyline didn't really appeal to me. It was very slow moving and even halfway into the book I wasn't really invested. I didn't want to figure out who the killer I was, I just wanted to be done.

Using her award-winning background in journalism, Christina Estes has written her debut novel set in the world of Texas television news. When a local, conservative shock-jock drops dead in his studio, Jolene Garcia is sent to chase the story and use her local contacts to investigate the mystery surrounding his demise. As a television news story, this novel is very good. The insider knowledge is credible and following Jolene as she runs around in the news van is entertaining. Her interactions with both network executives and competing journalists ring true and give the reader a sneak peek into the politics of news. Unfortunately, with all that focus on the intricacies of a newsroom, the mystery aspect of the story seemed to lag. Suspects were more important for soundbites than for motive and Jolene was definitely more focused on forwarding her career than on solving the murder.

Enjoyed this book. It was a really good mystery fiction read. Great debut novel for the author. I enjoyed the main character even when her determination got to be a bit much for some. :) I think it was an easy relatable read and made one be able to connect with the main character and host of character.

I originally started reading this book a couple of months ago but I couldn't get into it so I gave it another try. Although I really liked that it was set in Phoenix and it actually talked about specific places that I frequent, I feel like the main character just came off as desperate to the point where it was just annoying. There were times where I was confused on what my setting was because it switched from one to another without really explaining?

I feel like Oliver and Rosie's characters were supposed to be red herrings, they just had absolutely no significance to the overall story, it would have made more sense if they added something to it. Lastly, the obsession with being better than JJ was too much, like girl, get it together and worry about yourself. At the end, I didn't even care who killed Larry or why.

In Off the Air, Jolene is a news reporter and is trying to get the scoop on a radio host that randomly died. She consistently tries to call in favors from her 'source' who is a cop but she is not having any luck getting to new information first so she runs around town trying to figure something out. By the end everyone is annoyed with her for either asking so much or acting out of impulse from desperation.

Thank you to the author and publisher for providing an e-ARC via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

Off the Air was generally interesting and compelling with many memorable characters and a cozy mystery vibe. It was a cute mystery and I enjoyed it.

One of my new favorite fictions reads. This book got me out of one of the longest books slumps I was in. The story and characters were remarkably well written and the storyline drew me in from the first few chapters. It got slower toward the middle parts but the ending really wrapped it up in great way.

Reviewed for NetGalley:

I will start by saying the premise was interesting, a controversial TV host found dead, and the main character trying to break the case and make a name for herself.

I tried to get into this one and after multiple attempts, no success.

Thank you to Netgalley for the ARC of this debut novel! I enjoyed the premise of a news station covering a mysterious death of a talk show host. The scramble to find out how he died is intense! There's a lot of digging in the middle, perhaps a bit much but nevertheless, entertaining. A good spin to find the person responsible for the mysterious death and a happy ending for the news reporter!

Loved this book. So glad I read it and I can’t wait to see what future books will come from this author.

This is a very niche sort of read. You’ll enjoy this if you’re interested in a sort of investigative journalist vibe. It shows good insight into the world of journalism and the way it’s evolved over the years, but almost too much so. It felt very educational, which to me, I’m not looking for when I pick up a work of fiction.

It really depends on what you’re looking for if I would recommend the read. A story focused heavily on the specific job of journalism? Yes, go for it. A mystery that’ll keep you on your toes? Well… maybe pass.

Thank you to the publisher for the gifted (free) ARC

I received a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

The premise of this book intrigued me… A radio celebrity is murdered and Jolene, an up and coming journalist for a local news station is assigned the chance of a lifetime to find the murderer before the competition.

The problem is, Jolene isn’t likeable. In fact, no one really is. She has rude nick names for everyone and she is overall annoying and the perpetual mention of her fear of dogs is overkill.

I was so close to not finishing this book but I had to know if I could change my whole viewpoint of the boring diatribe about scummy news journalists. Unfortunately, it is my belief that a real mystery has to have woven threads throughout the story so you’re either surprised or relieved. I was neither. The killer is probably the most likeable character, in a weird way.

Ultimately this books didn’t align with my interests or keep me interested.

The set-up for this book sounded like it would be perfect for me. I was so excited to dig in. I did learn a lot about TV journalism, the challenges that technology has introduced to that entire industry, and some of the behind the scenes details about putting a news show together. But I could not get past the very unlikable protagonist. Jolene is a self-serving, selfish, heartless individual who would do just about anything to get an “exclusive.” Perhaps I’m naïve, but I cannot imagine living like that every day. The only character I found likable was her cameraman Nate. And he got tired of her quickly too. I don’t mind a controversial protagonist, or one that stretches the limits. I just couldn’t find anything about Jolene to root for. And I know that affected my reading experience.

Thanks to NetGalley for a an advance copy in exchange for an honest review.

I really enjoyed this book!

Jolene is a TV reporter who is bound and determined to solve the case of who killed the very controversial talk show host. You get an inside look at what journalism is really like and the ethics of investigative journalism. Is it ethical, or is it just for the story?

For a first novel, this is a home run!

Overall, let me say I did enjoy this read! That being said I found the reporter and news lingo a little hard to follow but still enjoyed the read!

Jolene, a TV reporter, is determined to find out who killed a controversial talk show host. Meanwhile, her TV station is determined to expand into social media.

Off the Air was a real struggle for me and ultimately ended up as a do not finish after about a third of the way there. There are police procedurals and this novel is unique in it could be described as a news reporting procedural with a whole lot of information about the news industry. Unfortunately I find most of that information boring. A local, controversial celebrity is found dead and local news reporter, Jolene wants to make her name with this news reporting but the news world is very cut throat and competitive. The actual mystery that I am interested in takes a backseat to all the news jumble. I just got bored but people interested in the actual news making process would probably really enjoy this book. This book did not turn me off from this author and I would try another book that has a different basis but this book is not my cup of tea. My voluntary, unbiased, and non mandatory review is based upon a free review copy from NetGalley.