5-STAR REVIEW: MURDER, LOCAL STYLE by Leslie Karst

About The Book

An Orchid Isle Mystery: Book 3
Publication Date: April 7, 2026

Retired caterer Valerie Corbin investigates a suspicious poisoning in this Orchid Isle culinary mystery, featuring a feisty queer couple who swap surfing lessons for sleuthing sessions in tropical Hilo, Hawai‘i.

A dinner to die for!

It’s been an eventful transition, but retired caterer Valerie Corbin and her wife Kristen are finally settling into life on the Big Island of Hawai’i. Val’s even joined the neighborhood orchid society to make some new friends. So when she’s asked to step in to cater their latest social event, as the newbie of the group she can’t exactly say no.

But what should have been a straightforward gig is soon a dining disaster when the food from the event poisons and kills the society president. As Val herself becomes a suspect in the murder investigation, she’s determined to uncover the truth. Who would want to kill the mild-mannered president of the orchid society?

Turns out the list is longer than a celebrity chef’s tasting menu. Apparently some of the residents did not “love thy neighbor.” Can she reveal the killer’s identity before they strike again?

This mouthwatering cozy mystery is perfect for fans of Ellen Byron, Jennifer J Chow, Lucy Burdette, and Raquel V Reyes, and includes a selection of delicious Hawaiian recipes to cook at home.

Excerpt

The Review

Moving to the Big Island of Hawaii with her wife, Kristen, should be a dream come true for retired caterer Valerie. But when the society president is poisoned, seemingly by the catered food she provided at a social event, things turn sour, and Valerie seeks to clear her name in Leslie Karst’s Murder, Local Style, the third book in her Orchid Isle Mystery series.

With Val as the lead suspect in the mild-mannered president’s murder, she is bound and determined to uncover the clues and find the killer before she is pinned for a murder she didn’t commit.

This book was the perfect read for my Caribbean cruise. Talk about the perfect setup! With food, mystery, and a little bit of mayhem on the menu, I thoroughly enjoyed this read from cover to cover. The author writes realistic characters who lead happy, fulfilling, committed lives together, and the supporting characters make for a very entertaining read! The story was plotted perfectly, and the pacing was steady with crescendos in all the right places.

Because the setting was Hawaii and I was on a Caribbean cruise, I could literally feel, smell, and taste the tropics. However, the author described the setting perfectly, and those landlocked readers will appreciate the attention to detail describing the picturesque tableau.

The tropics, cuisine, and murder all combine to make Murder, Local Style a thoroughly entertaining read.

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About The Author Leslie Karst is the Agatha, Lefty, and Macavity Award-nominated author of the Orchid Isle Mysteries, the Sally Solari culinary mysteries; and the IBPA Benjamin Franklin and IPPY award silver medal-winning memoir Justice is Served: A Tale of Scallops, the Law, and Cooking for RBG. After years waiting tables and singing in a new wave rock band, she decided she was ready for a “real” job and ended up at Stanford Law School. It was during her career as an attorney that Leslie rediscovered her youthful passion for food and cooking and once more returned to school—this time to earn a degree in culinary arts. Now retired from the law, in addition to writing, Leslie spends her time cooking, cycling, gardening, and observing cocktail hour promptly at five o’clock. She and her wife and their Jack Russell mix split their time between Hilo, Hawai‘i and Santa Cruz, California.