(Reviewed by JD Jung)
Clare Carlson, news director for Channel 10 News in New York City is experiencing a mid-life crisis. She’s about to turn fifty years old, three times married, and still looking for Mr. Right. Let’s also not forget that she is trying to repair a relationship with her adult daughter.
Added to that, the TV station is about to be sold to a media conglomerate, where ratings are king as opposed to responsible reporting. Clare has a close professional relationship with the current owner, who allows her to go after the big stories and appear on the news. She has a terrible relationship with her new boss, Susan Endicott, who backs up the new owners who believe that a news director should just do that—direct and stay out of the weeds.
When the car of a former NYPD officer turned private investigator, Wendy Kyle, is bombed, Clare wants to investigate. Wendy specialized in exposing cheating spouses, mostly high-profile individuals, so there are many who would want her dead. She also had enemies in the NYPD, including top brass, as she would carry on about department wrongdoing, coverups, and corruption.
There appears to be a coverup brewing in this murder case and Clare refuses to let it go. This could get dangerous, as it may not only involve those from the NYPD, and affluent individuals, but even a candidate for governor.
Broadcast Blues will take readers through a wild ride with so many twists and turns that you’ll be in complete suspense as to how the story will end. Add to that, the quirky supporting characters that add depth and humor to the story. For instance, there are the married co-anchors who bring their personal lives to work and the female sports reporter who really doesn’t care for sports and instead politicizes her stories. Author R. G. Belsky reveals that the newsroom scenes are based on his years of experience working in New York City newsrooms.
This is the sixth installment in the series. Though I enjoyed Broadcast Blues, I don’t think that I’ll read the others. I have a personal preference for dark and gritty crime fiction. I can overlook that if I find myself truly invested in the protagonists, which I was not.
However, for those who don’t share my partialities, but still enjoy a strong plot, this series may just be what you’re looking for.
