Minotaur Books and NetGalley provided me with an electronic copy of Knife Creek. I was under no obligation to review this book and my opinion is freely given.

Maine game warden Mike Bowditch has been tasked with dispatching feral pigs from his region, which leads to a disturbing discovery. When testing occurs on the remains of the baby found in a shallow grave yields surprising results, will Mike and the police be able to solve two crimes? Will Mike's zeal to find out the truth lead to more harm than good?

As part of a series featuring Maine game warden Mike Bowditch, I would not recommend the book as a standalone. Mike's personal story is heavily prevalent, which might be confusing to readers who do not know his history. Mike's predilection for the truth sometimes puts him directly in harm's way, which is both a repetitive and somewhat unbelievable part of the book series. Mike has the tendency to overstep his boundaries and, although he does get results, his real world counterpart would have been fired way back in the beginning. I do like the character and the way that the author describes the area in which he lives. Knife Creek is well paced and has a good overall plot. I would recommend the entire series to readers and I look forward to reading more by author Paul Doiron in the future.

Knife Creek by Paul Doiron Book Review
A woman missing 4 years, game wardens who make a grisly discovery in the woods & deep-rooted secrets among Maine's wilderness.

Mike Bowditch Series
Even though Knife Creek is Book #8 in Paul Doiron's Mike Bowditch series, I followed the story just fine. Mike is a game warden working in Maine. At times, he is a difficult person to deal with. Repeatedly, he finds his own path rather than listening to others. Because of this, he finds himself in rough situations. But his fearless intuition is what makes him a special type of law enforcement official.

Steady & Stable Mystery
Paul Doiron writes in a definite & consistent manner. While some mysteries ebb & flow with setting the scene & then add bits and pieces of action, Knife Creek is a steady mystery. The story moves without dragging. This type of pace keeps my attention because I am continually investing in the now rather than what's going to happen later.

THE VERDICT
I am Really Into This book! Knife Creek is a murder mystery with lots of twists. I also love the pivotal role of the setting. Paul Doiron adds so many details about Maine which perfectly into the mystery. Although initially skeptical to read a stand-alone book, I am glad I read Knife Creek. I really respect Mike Bowditch & his relentless focus & dedication to his profession.

Special thanks to Paul Doiron, St. Martin's Press, Minotaur Books & NetGalley for providing our copy in exchange for an honest & fair review.

Thank you NetGalley for this ARC of Paul Doiron's new book Knife Creek. I hadn't read anything by this author since his first book, and was looking forward to reading one of his books again. He did not disappoint! Excellent from page one to the end! Mike Bowditch, a game warden in Maine has his hands full with feral pigs, a dead baby, a missing girl, and roadblocks in his investigations. A thrill ride to the end.

Knife CreekKnife Creek by Paul Doiron
My rating: 4 of 5 stars


Knife Creek by Paul Doiron jumped straight into the action without any delay which is a great way to grab onto the reader's attention. Mike Bowditch, Maine game warden, and his girlfriend start hunting some feral pigs in their district. The pair immediately find themselves in a situation of finding the body of an infant, which gets Mike to looking into a missing girl's case. The local detectives have previous experience with Mike, and are mostly unhappy about his habit of overstepping into investigations. He is immediately told to stay out of their job, but like in previous books, he finds a way to gain information and look into a few things for himself. Despite being told to stay out it, Mike makes discoveries that open a whole new can of worms.

Often I do not like detective type books, but good writing and a good lead character can get me hooked. I liked that Mike was determined to use his knowledge and sense of duty to solve the case and to hopefully get to the bottom of the dead baby. He has a strong sense of what is right and insists on doing the right thing for the innocent needing help.

The book is quite humorous, and I also enjoyed the descriptions of life and nature in Maine.

Several other books by this author are listed and apparently have the same main character. Previous investigations and situations are referred to a few times establishing a bit of a back story on our character, but nothing distracting from this story.

I was given this book before it's release date in order to provide an honest review.

This is my favorite book in this series so far. I enjoyed that this book still focused on rural Maine and Bowditch's job as a game warden, but also included a real mystery with devious people, murder, and suspense. Great ending too. I gave this 4 stars on goodreads.

In this latest episode of the adventures of Maine Game warden Mike Bowditch, the author not only continues to develop Mike's character, but also gives us a more in-depth picture of the blossoming relationship of Mike and his biologist girlfriend Stacey. The setting is another new area of Maine, the job is a new job for Bowditch, and by incorporating returning characters with old, and showing us a maturing protagonist who is finally getting a grip on life, Paul Doiron continues to delight.

The story has sad, funny, gloriously redemptive, and downright scary scenes. The plot is easy to follow, but the mystery is not necessarily too easy to solve. It's another in this well-written, informative, descriptive, and entertaining series, loved by our readers. We're already looking for the next adventure.

There are authors for each of us who, when we pick up their latest book, remind us what it is to read a truly well-written book. These authors don't force us to make trade-offs between characterization, plot, setting, etc. Instead, their books fully engage us on all levels. Paul Doiron is one of those authors for me, and "Knife Creek" is another one of those books.

In this 8th in the Mike Bowditch series, Bowditch and his girlfriend Stacey are hunting wild hogs in the area around Fryeburg, Maine, when they discover the newly buried body of a baby. The rest of the book has Bowditch working with other law enforcement agents to find the mother of the baby and the killer, who may or may not be the same person. It also follows Mike and Stacey's push and pull as Mike waits to hear about a possible promotion and Stacey struggles with whether to stay in Maine with him or start a new life. There is nuanced characterization of both the heroes and the villains, a setting that is nearly a character itself, and a plot that keeps the reader turning pages late into the night.

The only disappointing thing about this book is that upon reaching the last page, the reader will need to wait for the next book to reconnect with Mike Bowditch and the Maine woods.

Thank you NetGalley for the opportunity to read KNIFE CREEK. This is my first read and I didn't realize this was a series.
The lead character is definitely one you can connect with - A game warden in Maine who solves crimes, etc. This is well written and fast paced. The novel pulls you in - fast paced and well written.
Good Beach Read...

Doiron is a favorite among my customers and in this outing he does not disappoint. Mike Bowditch has grown so much as a character. Doiron does a great job capturing the people and places of Maine. For my customers who finish reading CJ Box, I always steer them in Doiron's direction!

In the same way I never thought I'd get into Dick Francis' mysteries about horse racing in England, I never imagined mysteries about a Maine game warden would capture my imagination. But they have.

Knife Creek, featuring rascally, impetuous, and often right Mike Bowditch, is a wonderful mystery about scary topic -- a serial sex-slavemaster who abducted a young girl, long presumed dead and found to be alive. But where? I had my suspicions about who the villain was -- and was wrong, and pleasantly (or is that unpleasantly?) surprised by who the baddie really was.

A good read for mystery -- even if not Maine game warden -- fans!

Thank you to NetGalley and Minotaur books for a review copy of this book.

This is the eighth book in this series and the 4th that I have read. I enjoy the character of Mike Bowditch and the way he gets into and out of trouble. He is not the typical hero, being a Maine game warden; nor is he the typical law enforcement officer. He makes hasty decisions, often putting himself and others in danger. He often challenges authority, but is sometimes on shaky ground. Overall, a very likable, human character. Although Doiron seems to think that there must be a "love interest" in all of these novels (unnecessary), they are not terribly distracting.

Looking forward to more adventures with the Maine game warden.

Strike the match........

'Cause this one is on fire.

Mike Bowditch is back as the Maine game warden with an explosive attitude. "My methods might have been unorthodox, but they yielded results." And the means to get to those controversial results have always had Mike pushing the boulder up the hill.

Feral hogs have been making their way across certain parts of the country with vastly destructive results in their wake. Mike and his girlfriend, Stacey, are crouched down on a trail near Knife Creek. Stacey is a biologist with the Department of Fisheries and Wildlife. Both Mike and Stacey have taken safety precautions on this hog hunt. As they survey the area, their eyes come across a shallow grave with the remains of an infant wrapped in a pink shirt. Suddenly, this hunt has turned into a shocking crime scene.

And our guy Mike doesn't leave any stone unturned. He makes a point of knocking on doors in the locality. Someone must know something. When he enters a trashy cabin nearby, the two red-headed women inside seem suspicious. One of them resembles a University of New Hampshire girl who had gone missing from a canoe trip down the Saco River some time back. Could this be even remotely possible?

Mike has been told to back off as the state police take on the investigation of the baby. He's also been given orders not to pursue the missing girl. Mike has been burdened with a heightened sensitivity for all things curious and out of the ordinary. Makes for a good game warden, but will definitely elicit a sizzlin' charge of electricity from those in command.

Paul Doiron presents #8 in the Mike Bowditch series. This one may top his long line of successes. Doiron brings in timely issues in Knife Creek which seek attention in the headlines nowadays. Any in this series can be read as standalones because Doiron surrounds his characters with just enough backstory to propel the story forward. That's how good the writing is. There seems to be more "wildlife" in the human species than meets the eye. Can't wait for the next, Doiron.

I received a copy of Knife Creek through NetGalley for an honest review. My thanks to Minotaur Books and to Paul Doiron for the opportunity.

Typical Joe Pickett and his friend Nate going after the bad guys. Fast paced. Good reading.
Very enjoyable. Wish there was more about Nate and his Falcons.

Maine game warden Mike Bowditch returns in the next installment of this popular series. This book, I believe is the best in the series, thus far. Mike makes a horrifying discovery, the remains of an infant in a shallow grave. Strangely, all signs point to the child belonging to a woman who disappeared from a rafting trip four years before. Doiron writes with authority, he knows Maine and the Warden Service well and in Mike, has created a protagonist that reader’s can both identify with and admire