Blood-Letter #97 Now Available!

Check out the May 2008 issue of the Blood-Letter, #98 now. Featuring a preview of our May Bloody Thursday with Jessica Morrell, Murder in Translation Part Two by Harriet Stay, and more!

Blood-Letter #98 | 2009 Member Books

Spotted Owl Awards Announced

Congratuations to Phillip Margolin, winner of the 2009 Friends of Mystery Spotted Owl Award for Executive Privilege.

For the complete list of 2009 Spotted Owl finalists, as well as previous winners, check out our awards page.

Oregon Writers Colony Annual Contests

The Oregon Writers Colony annual writing contest in both fiction and poetry is now open to submissions. Prizes include cash and publication. Enter by August 15, 2009. Visit the Oregon Writers Colony website for more information.

Upcoming Events at Murder by the Book

Portland Noir
Portland Noir vs. Seattle Noir: featuring editors Kevin Sampsell and Curt Colbert, Portland Noir contributors Bill Cameron and Kimberly Warner Cohen and Seattle Noir contributors G.M. Ford and Skye Moody.
Date: Wednesday, July 15, 7:30 p.m.

Author: Eric Stone
Book: Shanghaied
Date: Wednesday, July 29, 7:00 p.m.

Get the details about these events here.

Friends of Mystery Reading Group

In 2009 we're experimenting with a slightly new way of choosing books; we are working our way through the subgenres at Murder by the Book. The upcoming choices are:

June: The Black Echo by Michael Connelly [hard-boiled heroes]

Learn more at the Reading Group page.

2008-2009 Bloody Thursdays!

Thanks to everyone who joined us for the 2008-2009 Bloody Thursday event season. Check back soon for the 2009-2010 event schedule, taking place at our new location, Terwilliger Plaza. Phillip Margolin will be receiving his Spotted Owl Award, as well as other exciting speakers.

Sept. 25, 2008: Thank you to Chelsea Cain for a delightful appearance in Kate Wilhelm's stead, who is recovering from a broken hip. We wish Kate the best for a quick recovery and hope to see her at a future Bloody Thursday.
Nov. 20, 2008: Det. James Lawrence - Portland Police Cold Case Unit
Jan. 22, 2009: Larry Rosson - Fingerprint Expert (moved from May)
Mar. 26, 2009: Barbara Pope - Debut Author of Cezanne's Quarry
May 28, 2009: Jessica Morrell - Author/Lecturer on Villains and Anti-heroes (moved from January)

About Friends of Mystery

Friends of Mystery is a non-profit literary/educational organization headquartered in Portland, Oregon. Its purpose is to promote educational study in all realms related to mystery. Members are interested in fiction, true crime, how mysteries are solved, and many other aspects of knowledge that can be included in the term "mystery".

We sponsor a series of public meetings, called Bloody Thursdays, publish a newsletter, The Blood-Letter, give an annual award, the Spotted Owl, for the best mystery by a Pacific Northwest author. And, we also sponsor a local reading group.