BIOS:
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Leslie Budewitz writes the Spice Shop mysteries set in Seattle’s Pike Place Market and Food Lovers’ Village mysteries, set in NW Montana. She also writes stand-alone suspense as Alicia Beckman. A three-time Agatha-Award winner, a past president of Sisters in Crime, and board member of Mystery Writers of America, she lives in NW Montana.
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Leslie Budewitz blends her passion for food, great mysteries, and the Northwest in two cozy mystery series, the Spice Shop mysteries set in Seattle’s Pike Place Market, and the Food Lovers’ Village mysteries, set in NW Montana. As Alicia Beckman, she writes moody suspense, beginning with BITTERROOT LAKE and continuing with BLIND FAITH. A three-time Agatha-Award winner (for Best Nonfiction, Best First Novel, and Best Short Story), she is a past president of Sisters in Crime and board member of Mystery Writers of America. She lives in NW Montana.
Leslie’s books are “pure enjoyment” (Suspense Magazine) and “a treat for the senses” (Library Journal).
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Leslie Budewitz blends her passion for food, great mysteries, and the Northwest in two light-hearted mystery series, the Spice Shop mysteries set in Seattle’s Pike Place Market, and the Food Lovers’ Village mysteries, set in NW Montana. She made her suspense debut with BITTERROOT LAKE, written as Alicia Beckman, continuing with BLIND FAITH (October 2022). A three-time Agatha-Award winner (Best Nonfiction, Best First Novel, and Best Short Story), she is a past president of Sisters in Crime and board member of Mystery Writers of America. She lives and cooks in NW Montana.
Also a lawyer, she’s written a guide for writers, BOOKS, CROOKS & COUNSELORS: HOW TO WRITE ACCURATELY ABOUT CRIMINAL LAW AND COURTROOM PROCEDURE, winner of the 2011 Agatha Award for Best Nonfiction, making her the first author to win Agatha Awards for both fiction and nonfiction.
Leslie’s short stories have won Agatha and Derringer awards, been published in Ellery Queen, Alfred Hitchcock, and elsewhere, and recognized in Best American Mystery Stories of 2009.
A native Montanan, she lives at the foot of the Rocky Mountains with her husband, Don Beans, a musician and doctor of natural medicine, and their gray tuxedo cat, an avid birdwatcher.
Suspense Magazine calls her books “pure enjoyment.” Library Journal reviewer Lesa Holstine calls them “a treat for the senses.”
All cover art and photos on these pages may be used with a book review or an article about Leslie; please credit photos to Leslie except where otherwise noted.
See the About Leslie page for Q&A sure to whet your readers’ appetites!
Author photos:
Color web res
Color, print res
B&W print res
Photo credit: Brenda Ahearn
Malice 2011 
Agatha winner photo
Photo credit: Elizabeth Zelvin
Malice 2013 Agatha winner photo
Photo credit: Deborah Lacy
Additional photos:
Mr. Kitten, my supervisor
Ruff on desk
Edited manuscript page
My desk
The novels, in order:
The Food Lovers’ Village Mysteries:
Death al Dente (#1, 2013)
Crime Rib (#2, 2014)
Butter Off Dead (#3, 2015)
Treble at the Jam Fest (#4, 2017; reissued March 2021)
As the Christmas Cookie Crumbles (#5, 2018; reissued November 2021)
Carried to the Grave and Other Stories (#6, May 2021)
Erin and the Villagers also star in “A Picture of Guilt,” in Murder in the Mountains: A Destination Murders Short Story Collection (February 2022)
The Spice Shop Mysteries:
Assault and Pepper (#1, 2015)
Guilty as Cinnamon (#2, 2015)
Killing Thyme (#3, 2016)
Chai Another Day (#4, 2019)
The Solace of Bay Leaves (#5, 2020)
Peppermint Barked (#6, July 19, 2022)
Between a Wok and a Dead Place (#7, July 18, 2023)
To be continued!
Written as Alicia Beckman:
Bitterroot Lake (April 2021)
Blind Faith (October 2022)
The Spice Shop Mysteries and the Food Lovers’ Village Mysteries (books 1-3)
Editor: Thomas Colgan, Editorial Director, Berkley Group
Publicity: Roxanne Jones, Publicity Assistant
Berkley Prime Crime/Penguin Random House
The Food Lovers’ Village Mysteries, books 4 and up
Bill Harris, Publisher/Editorial Director
Beyond the Page Publishing
The Spice Shop Mysteries, books 4 and up
Dan Mayer, Acquisitions Editor
Seventh St. Books
Bitterroot Lake & Blind Faith
Terri Bischoff, Acquiring Editor
Madeline Rathle, Marketing Director
Crooked Lane Books
Books, Crooks & Counselors: How to Write Accurately About Criminal Law & Courtroom Procedure
Editor: Kent Sorsky
Quill Driver Books
Publicity: Jaguar Bennett