Critically-acclaimed mystery novelist Bill Cameron is the author of the dark, gritty mysteries County Line, Day One, Chasing Smoke and Lost Dog—featuring irascible Portland homicide cop Skin Kadash. In a starred-review of County Line, Publishers Weekly said, “Contemporary sharp-edged noir doesn’t get much better than Cameron’s mournful novel featuring ex-cop Skin Kadash.” And Library Journal called County Line, “A perfect fit for Archie Mayor and William Kent Krueger fans.”
New York Times Bestselling Portland author Chelsea Cain described Day One as "an utterly engrossing page-turner." In the Vancouver Voice, Carolyn Schultz-Rathbun said, “The body count is positively Shakespearean, but in Cameron’s vision of P-town’s dark underbelly, love really is strong as death. Maybe stronger.” Day One was a finalist for the 2011 Spotted Owl Award for best Northwest mystery.
Chasing Smoke received a starred review from Library Journal, and Booklist declared, "it engages the reader on an emotional as well as literary level." It was a finalist for the 2009 Spotted Owl Award. Lost Dog was nominated for the 2008 Rocky Award and was a finalist for the 2008 Spotted Owl Award. Cameron’s short story, “The Princess of Felony Flats,” was nominated for the CWA Short Story Dagger 2011.
Cameron's short fiction has appeared in Portland Noir, Spinetingler, the Killer Year and First Thrills anthologies, as well as on Lit 103.3: Fiction for the Ears. In 2011, a pair of Skin Kadash stories appeared in the anthologies West Coast Crime Wave and Deadly Treats.
Bill lives with his wife and poodle in Portland, Oregon, where he also serves as staff to a charming, yet imperious cat. He is an eager traveler and avid bird-watcher, and likes to write near a window so he can meditate on whatever happens to fly by during intractable passages. He is currently at work on his next mystery.
Bill tweets at twitter.com/bcmystery. He is a member of Friends of Mystery, Mystery Writers of America, Sisters-in-Crime, and International Thriller Writers.
Whatever Happened to Death With Dignity?
On the page opposite the title page of Lost Dog (Midnight Ink, 2007) you’ll see the note, “Forthcoming from Bill Cameron: Death With Dignity.” I’ve received a number of queries asking, “Will we ever get to read Death With Dignity?” The answer is yes. Before release, Death With Dignity became Chasing Smoke.
Past News
- County Line gets a nod on the Nook Unbound blog.
- I am interviewed by Teresa Bergen for Sparkle: The Creativity Hour, a weekly broadcast on Health Beat Radio. Listen to the podcast here.
- "The Princess of Felony Flats" is one of many fine stories in First Thrills to get a nod from The Independent UK.
- In the year-end edition of the Portland Mercury, Gabe Barber of Reading Local selects Day One as one of the best books of 2010. See the complete list at the Portland Mercury.
- Ryan Pfeil of the Klamath Falls Herald & News writes about Day One and its southern Oregon settings.
- A chat with Toni McGee Causey at Murderati.
- Day One release day: The Big Thrill. Also, read a review by the witty and hilarious Harley May! I join Simon Wood and Jan Burke at Jen's Book Thoughts to offer my 6-Word Memoir.
- Tasty mention of my Portland Noir contribution "Coffee, Black" at Rose City Reader!
- Listen to the Podcast from Caffeinated Art at Three Friends Coffee House on September 21, 2009. I read an excerpt from my story, "The Princess of Felony Flats," which will appear in the forthcoming anthology First Thrills from Tor. Also reading were Teresa Boze and Liz Grover.
- April 2009: CHASING SMOKE is first runner-up for the 2009 Spotted Owl Award.
- January 2009: CHASING SMOKE is an IndieBound Notable List Next pick for January 2009.
- CHASING SMOKE takes the Page 69 Test.
- October 1, 2008: ★ CHASING SMOKE receives a Starred Review from Library Journal!
- March 26, 2008: as announced in Publisher's Lunch: “Lost Dog author Bill Cameron’s CHASING SMOKE, in which the hero finds himself investigating four suspicious ‘suicides’ of men linked only by their doctor, who is also the hero's doctor while he struggles to recover from cancer, to Ben Leroy at Bleak House, in a nice deal, for publication in Fall 2008, by Janet Reid at Fine Print Literary Management (world).”
- Lost Dog is described as “not so easy to forget” by Richard Krauss at Midnight Fiction. Read the review here!
- The Chicago Tribune describes “Slice of Pie” as “an irony-filled gem” in its review of Killer Year.
- Read “Bill Cameron’s Portland Noir” by Jeff Ayers (PDF). This profile appeared in the May/June 2008 Issue of The Northwest Magazine.
- Read about Bill's stint "moderating" the Left Coast Crime Sex and Violence panel at The Rap Sheet. Thanks to Tasha Alexander, David Corbett, Marcus Sakey, and Eric Stone for being such great panelists!
- Lost Dog is a runner up for the 2008 Spotted Owl Award and named a great read for 2007 by Friends of Mystery.
- Lost Dog is a 2008 Rocky Award Nominee.
- Lost Dog makes the 2007 Top 25 Bestsellers List for Trade Paper at the Seattle Mystery Bookshop!
- Lost Dog, The Movie — a boy can dream, right?
- Battles and Browne Talk Writing: In Episode Four of this podcast series on writing, Brett and Rob talk with Bill about Lost Dog, process, theme, and much more. Listen online.
- Benetech Bookshare.org adds Lost Dog. Bookshare.org provides access to books for the community of visually impaired and otherwise print disabled individuals. Learn more here.
- August 24, 2007: Fiction Nation host, Kim Alexander interviews Bill and Toni McGee Causey in a fun, free-wheeling conversation about books and the experience of being members of Killer Year. About Lost Dog, Kim says, "Its damaged characters and cold locale make Lost Dog extremely compelling." Even if you're not an XM subscriber, you can read her complete review here.
- Chris Well interviews Bill as part of his Killer Year series. Check out the other interviews.
- Event, July 11 , 2007: Literary Cage Match: WHO’S THE MOST CHILLING THRILLER WRITER: CHICAGO NEWSHOUND, NEW YORK EDITOR, OREGON ARTIST?
- April 17, 2007: Lost Dog takes the Page 69 Test.
- April 14, 2007: Coffee shop blurb: "[Lost Dog] looks like a great book for my fiancé to read while he's in jail."
- April 2, 2007: Lost Dog included in the April ITW Win Books giveaway at BookBitch.
- April 1, 2007: The official release date for Lost Dog.
- Feb 22, 2007: "Lost Dog is an excellent debut filled with suspense, surprises, and memorable characters—and it captures Portland's quirkiness particularly well. I predict we'll be hearing more from the talented Bill Cameron." — Alafair Burke, author of Dead Connection.
- Feb 2007: Bill profiled in the January/February 2007 issue of Crimespree Magazine.
- 27 Dec 2006: Bethany Warner at Word Nerd interviews Bill.
- 8 Dec 2006: Bill's story, "A Tall House," has won Spinetingler magazine's Cozy Noir Contest.
- 4 July 2006: Julia Buckley interviews Bill.
