The Poacher's Son (Mike Bowditch Mysteries)

Having been a Maine Game Warden myself, now retired - and having written my own memoirs, I'm totally consumed by Paul Doiron and his writings. The Poacher's son, Trespass, Bad Little Falls, and Massacre Pond have a real sense of reality involving some of the coincidental descriptions of the real wardens within the areas Paul describes.
I've personally met Paul and admire his down to earth attitude as much as his writing skills and his superb knowledge of the outdoors, including his knowledge of the very department I once worked for.
Paul captivates the reader into following along in the mystery of the time - and I find it as almost impossible to put his book down once I've started reading it.
If you enjoy a good mystery - and a realistic taste of Maine wildlife adventures, Paul's books are a must read. I highly recommend his writings. I'm sure there will be more to come - at least I hope so.

I enjoyed the audio version of Paul Doiron's "The Poacher's Son", first in a series about Maine game warden Mike Bowditch. Bowditch puts his career on the line after he tries to determine the truth about his father, who has been accused of killing a police officer and another man - and prevent any vengeful law enforcement officers from shooting first and asking questions later.

My prediction as to the murderer was wrong. My assumptions as to the motive were wrong, too. BUT, while I'm not usually a fan of barking up the wrong tree, I DO enjoy it in a good murder mystery - as long as the rationales for what & why (and what not and why not) are clearly explained, so you can see how the writer misdirected you. This one certainly met my hopes on that front.

And ... the descriptions of the settings. I could almost smell the trees as I drove to work listening to the book, and no, I don't have one of those pine air fresheners in my vehicle!

However ... (what a loaded word!) I think I could have enjoyed it more.

a) The book is told in the first person. I had a LOT of trouble listening to narrator John Bedford Lloyd's rich baritone and envisioning it coming from a man in his mid-20s. I felt it would have worked better had the book been in the 3rd person, BUT you don't write a novel around a potential narrator! (His command of other characters was up to par with other narrators.)

b) The pacing of the action was not what I usually like to see. I kept waiting for something more to happen ... to happen ... then, OMG, it sure did! (I will say, the moments leading up to the main action were drawn out to attain a suspense, which is different than drawn out because we're cramming too much exposition into the narrative.)

Yes, I DO look forward to reading or listening to the next book in this series. However, if I want to read wilderness noir, I have to rank this series behind C.J. Box's Wyoming game warden Joe Pickett.

Aside: I would rank this at 3 1/2 stars, but most reviews do not allow the option of the partial star. Rounding upward.

I enjoyed listening to this book. It was a good plot, and captured many facets of Maine topography and ruggedness. Mike Bowditch is likeable, and the reader brings him to life along with the other colorful characters. I've already begun the sequel.