The Poacher's Son (Mike Bowditch Series #1)

More than a Mystery

As a reader that never reads mysteries I found Paul Doiron's "The Poacher's Son" to be fascinating. The characters were well developed and not all likeable. Some were down-right incorrigible. The plot had plenty of twists and turns, but I was never lost. The setting in the woods of Maine was lovely. But most importantly, the mystery and crime were plausible. Even though our narrator was young and naive, the supporting characters gave credibility to the entire story. A great week-end read!

5 out of 5 people found this review helpful.

A Solid Mystery..

Maine..Rural setting,areas that are unknown,but close enough for developers to want in..Mike 24 a Game Warden,college grad, will he remain in this field?His Vietnam Vet father Jack,with many issues of his own.I was drawn in on the first page,and this tightly written mystery,characters that are real,developed but still with many questions of my own .We can all become a part of their lives for a short time,has opened up my own spin on the next in this series of "The Poachers Son"#2.Paul Doiron has showen many the beauty of Maine,but also with secrets and intrigue that are hidden deep in the woods..I look forward to 2011 and beyond ,for this Mike Bowditch series to continue..

3 out of 3 people found this review helpful.

Loved it!

c j box make room for a new series that is likely to keep readers enthralled for years to come! What an exceptional, brilliant debut! I absolutely loved the book and cannot wait for doiron's next story. Not to be missed.

2 out of 3 people found this review helpful.

Trapped In Maine

A great first novel by a very knowledgeable writer, whose roots are deep in the New England soil. The Poachers Son hits you at once, like a nor'easter, and holds you in it's grip till the last pages. Mike Bowditch has become a Maine Game Warden, in spite of, or perhaps, because of his poacher father. When his dad becomes the prime suspect in the murder of a local police officer, Mike offers to help track him down, hoping to protect him and clear his name. This exciting story unfolds across the spectacular panorama of backwoods Maine, which is richly and lovingly described by the author. The characters are full of life and the book seems to cry out for a further installment. If you are looking for a fresh, summer read full of action and mystery in the great outdoors, this is the book for you.

2 out of 2 people found this review helpful.

Fun mystery

This is a fun, entertaining mystery. The main character, Mike, is a game warder who gets caught in trying to unravel a murder. Could it really be his estranged father who has murdered two men? Mike puts his job in jeopardy while he tries to clear his father's name. Good novel to read when you want to be absorbed by a story without the story line being heavy. With summer coming up, would definitely recommend.

2 out of 2 people found this review helpful.

Great Book!

This book has such strong characters that get us emotionally attached. This has enhanced the mystery part of the book. In the discussion of the advanced reading copy people were rooting for, defending, upset with the characters. This book did not end up the way I had predicted. And that is good. I like a book that takes me on that ride of thinking you know what is coming, then the next chapter will change my mind. The Poachers Son also introduced me to Maine, very good descriptions. Thank you for a great book. I am looking forward to the next book in this series.

2 out of 2 people found this review helpful.

Poacher's Son - a great Father's Day gift

The Poacher's Son is wonderful mystery with a great new character in Game Warden Mike Bowditch. It gives a wonderful perspective of the Maine woods. The mystery is compelling and keeps the reader engaged and interested. Men especially will enjoy the 'manly' aspect of the characters and the action involved in the plot. Since the author has stated that it will be the first in a series, it would make a great Father's Day gift. Dad will enjoy the story and be ready for the next book.

2 out of 2 people found this review helpful.

Like a Good Cup of Coffee!

A thrilling, character-driven novel of suspense that will no doubt keep you entertained. Set in the wilderness of Main, a search ensues for a cop killer and the prime suspect is game warden, Mike Bowditch's father and Mike is the only man who believes in his father's innocence. Has his father's brutal past caught up with him? Is he a killer or will Mike be able to prove his father's innocence? Enjoy the excitement learning the truth alongside Mike as he follows a trail of clues in search of a cop killer who just may be his own father. This is a wonderful debut novel and the first of what is certain to be a riveting series starring a soon to be favorite character, Mike Bowditch. "The Poacher's Son" is like a good cup of coffee. A jolt to get your heart started and good to the last drop.

1 out of 1 people found this review helpful.

A good mystery and hard to put down.

The mystery and description of places and events was great. I would have liked to had a map to see where each place was. It was in Maine and I was able to imagine all the events and places well. I didn't like the language well, but the author needed to do it to make you feel at home in the back woods. Held my attention all the way through. What an ending!

1 out of 1 people found this review helpful.

An exceptional mystery.

This book has a complicated plot which leads to a surprise ending. It's not your everyday run-of-the-mill mystery. This is a very contemporary mystery set in the wilderness of Maine. I enjoyed the writer's style and hope to read his second book which is a series based on the main character.

1 out of 2 people found this review helpful.

SMS

I thought it was a good story although I only gave it three stars a I was not sure if I recieved the complete book, I will have to look for a hard copy to know for sure.

Highly Recommended

This is a great book,can't wait to read the next one!!!!!

Had to struggle to keep reading at times

This book alternated between being very interesting at times to being dull at times. Just when I decided to put it down and stop wasting my time, it would get interesting for a while.

A thrill ride

Author Paul Doiron did a great job setting up the characters and the Maine landscape. With the great visual of Maine, it allowed me to 'see' the action within the pages of the book.

The beginning of the book was a little slow, but in the end, it was worth it as we needed the background of each character so that we knew the characters in great detail. Knowing their backgrounds, it allowed us to speed through the story at a quick pace and with lots of hairpin turns.

This whodunit was a great ride with an end that I didn't NOT see coming.

I thought it was a great story...

I came across this book online when I was searching for a reason to spend a Barnes and Noble gift card. It caught my attention because the setting is in my home state of Maine; when I learned that the author was also from Maine and the story was of the mystery genre I was sold. With that said, I thought it was a great book. I really liked how the author told the story of the main character's past throughout the book; instead of boring the reader for the first five chapters. I despise the thought of any animal dying -regardless of the circumstance- so I had a bit of a struggle through a small portion of the book and found myself to be reading with one eye closed during those parts of the story! I just recently started to become an avid reader (having cut off my cable television five months ago) and up until this book the only novel that I wanted to get home and read was the seventh installment of Harry Potter (of which I have read at least 20 times!). I thought that the characters and plot were developed well and I was really able to follow the narrator's feelings without the story having to become to graphic. I'm not claiming that it is the best novel out there, and I am a little bias as I grew up in Scarborough, but overall the book was well worth the spend and would be a great weekend read.

Not my taste

Not my favorite book at all. Before I was half into the book I was saying, "In real life that would not happen like that." Granted it is a fictional story but if it is something that could really happen then I need it to sound realistic. I also felt there was a lot of details that did not matter a whole lot to the story. To me it seemed Doiron needed to meet a word count. Half way into the book I skimmed to the end just so I could finish it. I thought the killer was a surprise and I cannot say why without giving the ending away. When Doiron ended the story he did a good job at not leaving any question unanswered.

A Solid Mystery

The Poacher's Son is a good book. The story and writing made me want to continue reading it. It didn't keep me on the edge of my seat, but it's a solid contribution to the mystery genre. And since it appears that it might be a series, I'd certainly read the next installment.

Mike Bowditch is a 24 year old forest warden. His parents divorced when he was nine and he lived with his mother. His father lived in the woods of Maine, making a living however he could.

A paper company owned much of the forested land where Mike's father lived and worked. As an accommodation to the town it let residents lease certain land to build homes and resorts. A new com;pany has just bought the land and ultimately the residents will be evicted. After a heated town meeting, a policeman and a company representative are murdered as they are driving a back road away from the meeting. Mike's father is the prime suspect. As he is being driven to jail, he overpowers his driver and escapes, adding to the aura of guilt.

The Poacher's Son is nicely written. It's got some good characters in Mike, Kathy (his boss), Sarah (his estranged wife) and Charley (a retired warden and pilot). The story moves along well. There is less action (but there is some) and more description in this novel. It's a fast read--3 days. So go for it.

Uniquely Nuanced Thriller that Ultimately Disappoints

Having cut my adult reading teeth on the thriller/mystery masters, it takes a lot to impress me these days. Going into "The Poacher's Son," I thought I might have discovered that something extra that would set this book apart: the intricate psychological tapestry between an estranged father and his son. Could being accused of a crime he didn't commit mend the rift between a firmly entrenched loner and the son he left behind years ago? Could the son's desperate acts to save his undeserving parent illuminate the wedge that drove them apart? At the very least, could the reader walk away from this novel cheering, "Job well done" for at least one of the characters? For this reader the answer was a resounding no all on three counts. Although I'll concede that the author came up with a totally unexpected ending, the culmination left me scratching my head and thinking, "That's it? What a letdown." To be fair,"The Poacher's Son" kept me turning the pages, but that's probably why its unfulfillment left such a lingering sour impression.

Surprisingly Good Read

I found it a little difficult to get into this book at first & didn't feel like I really got to know the characters outside of the main one for quite some time if at all. But midway through this book I could not put it down. I found myself staying up late, reading at work & using play time in the yard with my kids for reading until I reached the end. Though not completely surprised by all of the outcomes, the ending was still not expected, nor was it a disappointment. I have passed this along to another mystery reader, who thoroughly enjoyed it also. This author has potential for more, that will most likely just keep improving his writing.

Didn't connect with Main Character

The Poacher's Son is a story of a game warden in Maine who is dealing with his father's connection to an investigation. I did not really ever connect with Mike's character while reading this story. The first half of this book moved slowly for me until another character became more central to the story.

I do enjoy a good suspense story/mystery, but this one never really got my attention. I'm not really sure why I struggled with this and was a bit disappointed because I had really been looking forward to reading it.