The Poacher's Son came to my attention via my membership in the Maine Writer's and Publisher's Alliance. Granted I don't live in Maine but I summer there and (long story short) I incorrectly thought I had to sign up for the group in order to attend one of their events. It’s been a boon, however, because otherwise I won't have had a chance to read this unique and thrilling novel. The Poacher’s Son is Paul Doiron's first in a series of future novels about a Maine game warden whose father is a reclusive animal trapper living deep in the backwoods of Maine. If you’ve ever been to Maine, this novel will bring back all those hikes through the tall trees and ruddy paths. The descriptions draw the reader into the heart of the forest where crazy characters live, breathe, and (mostly) drink. The weather, the seasons, and the Maine state of mind are living characters in this novel. In the middle of the Northern woods of Maine, Mike Bowditch, the game warden, is living a fairly ordinary life until one night he gets a startling midnight phone call from his father whom he hadn’t seen or spoken to in years. The message is cryptic and, for Mike, it brings back memories of nights spent in bars with his violent, drunken Dad. It’s a time he thought he had gotten past but when Mike learns that a real estate developer and a local policeman have been murdered in the Northern town where his father lives, Mike is quick to come to his father’s rescue. As Mike struggles to keep his past behind him while struggling to free his father from suspicion, he is never quite certain of his father's innocence. There are twists and turns throughout this novel. At one point I believe I literally said out loud on the train "Oh my God he can't be dead!" I won't share who I'm talking about or whether the person was really dead but I was so wrapped up in the book I forgot where I was (which I LOVE).
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