Betty Webb is a former journalist and the author of a series of detective stories set in

Arizona Arizona ( ; nv, Hoozdo Hahoodzo ; ood, Alĭ ṣonak ) is a state in the Southwestern United States. It is the 6th largest and the 14th most populous of the 50 states. Its capital and largest city is Phoenix. Arizona is part of the Fou ...

. She has stated that each book has been inspired by a real case.

Writing

Desert series

The ‘Desert’ series features Scottsdale-based private eye Lena Jones, a former policewoman. Lena was raised in foster homes and knows little about her own background, but learns more as the series progresses. Betty Webb is one of a number of successors to authors such as

Sue Grafton Sue Taylor Grafton (April 24, 1940 – December 28, 2017) was an American author of detective novels. She is best known as the author of the "alphabet series" (''"A" Is for Alibi'', etc.) featuring private investigator Kinsey Millhone in the fic ...

Marcia Muller Marcia Muller (born September 28, 1944) is an American author of fictional Mystery (fiction), mystery and Thriller (genre), thriller novels. Muller has written many novels featuring her ''Sharon McCone'' female private detective character. ''Va ...

Sara Paretsky Sara Paretsky (born June 8, 1947) is an American author of detective fiction, best known for her novels focused on the protagonist V. I. Warshawski. Life and career Paretsky was born in Ames, Iowa. Her father was a microbiologist and moved the f ...

and

Liza Cody Liza Cody (born 11 April 1944, in London) is an English crime fiction writer. She is the author of 13 novels and many short stories. Her Anna Lee series introduced the professional female private detective to British mystery fiction. The entir ...

and their female private eye series. Her books have some similarities to those of Muller, and of

Nevada Barr Nevada Barr (born March 1, 1952) is an American author of mystery fiction. She is known for her Anna Pigeon series, which is primarily set in a series of national parks and other protected areas of the United States. Early life Although Barr w ...

. The frontier quality of the southwestern region fits well with the traditions set by Californian noir. ''Desert Noir'', the first in the series, had themes related to development of Arizona such as the destruction of the environment and of cultural heritage by developers; issues of Native American rights and cultural displacement; corruption and greed in the art world; the effects of tourism, etc. Much of Webb's writings are controversial. "Desert Wives" and "Desert Lost" deal with the

polygamy Crimes Polygamy (from Late Greek (') "state of marriage to many spouses") is the practice of marrying multiple spouses. When a man is married to more than one wife at the same time, sociologists call this polygyny. When a woman is married ...

sects in Arizona; "Desert Cut" deals with

female genital mutilation Female genital mutilation (FGM), also known as female genital cutting, female genital mutilation/cutting (FGM/C) and female circumcision, is the ritual cutting or removal of some or all of the external female genitalia. The practice is found ...

. One reviewer commented that the content of "Desert Wives," about ‘wholesale enslavement of women and rampant swindling of the state welfare system’ was ‘eye popping’ and if written as investigative journalism would be a contender for the Pulitzer Prize.

Cozies

Betty Webb has also begun a series of ‘ cozies’ (consciously lightweight, humorous mysteries) about a California zookeeper who solves crimes. She is retired from full-time work as a journalist on a

Phoenix Phoenix most often refers to: * Phoenix (mythology), a legendary bird from ancient Greek folklore * Phoenix, Arizona, a city in the United States Phoenix may also refer to: Mythology Greek mythological figures * Phoenix (son of Amyntor), a ...

newspaper, and now reviews for

Mystery Scene Magazine ''Mystery Scene'' is an American magazine, first published in 1985, that covers the crime and mystery genre with a mix of articles, profiles, criticism, and extensive reviews of books, films, TV, short stories, audiobooks, and reference works. E ...

and teaches

creative writing Creative writing is any writing that goes outside the bounds of normal professional, journalistic, academic, or technical forms of literature, typically identified by an emphasis on narrative craft, character development, and the use of literary ...

. She is a resident of Scottsdale; her family is originally from Alabama.

Books

Published in hardcover and paperback by

Poisoned Pen Press Poisoned Pen Press is a publisher of mystery fiction based in Scottsdale, Arizona, US. Poisoned Pen Press typically publishes thirty-six new hardcover mysteries per year, thirty-six new large type editions of those hardcovers, and between thirty a ...

, Scottsdale, AZ. * Desert Noir (2001) * Desert Wives (2003) * Desert Shadows (2004) * Desert Run (2006) * Desert Cut (2008) * The Anteater of Death (2008) * Desert Lost (2009) * The Koala of Death (2010) * Desert Wind (2012) * The Llama of Death (2013) * Desert Rage (2014) * The Puffin of Death (2015) * Desert Vengeance (2017) * The Otter of Death (2018) * Desert Redemption (2019) * The Panda of Death (2020)

Memberships

*National Federation of Newswomen *

Mystery Writers of America Mystery Writers of America (MWA) is an organization of mystery and crime writers, based in New York City. The organization was founded in 1945 by Clayton Rawson, Anthony Boucher, Lawrence Treat, and Brett Halliday. It presents the Edgar Award ...

*Society of Southwestern Authors *

Authors Guild The Authors Guild is America's oldest and largest professional organization for writers and provides advocacy on issues of free expression and copyright protection. Since its founding in 1912 as the Authors League of America, it has counted among ...

References

External links

*
Zoo Mystery series website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Webb, Betty Living people 21st-century American novelists American mystery writers American women novelists Novelists from Alabama Novelists from Arizona Women mystery writers 21st-century American women writers Year of birth missing (living people)