Fans of zippy mysteries – light on gore and forensic detail, heavy on quirky characters and peeks into a niche world – will relish KJZZ senior field correspondent Christina Estes’s debut novel, Off the Air (Minotaur Books, $28). Estes drew from her own experiences as a TV reporter to craft her whodunit (the first in a planned series), which is not only set in Phoenix but also entertainingly name-checks countless local landmarks, from Camelback Mountain to Welcome Diner to PHOENIX magazine. (Some references are obscured, but savvy readers will be able to sleuth their inspirations.) Our heroine, reporter Jolene Garcia, races against her TV rivals to get the scoop on who killed lightning-rod conservative radio host Larry Lemmon at his own station. The window into the competitive world of local news is as fascinating as the murder mystery. christinaestes.com
