Skin and Bones is my introduction to the work of Paul Doiron, and I have found another favorite. Thankfully there are a lot to catch up on. Mike Bowditch is a ranger stationed in Maine, and it's a pleasure to read thrillers set in an area that doesn't get much attention. Many of these stories feature his friend Charley, a retired ranger who regales with stories from his past to explain events currently happening. Since these have been previously published, his fans may have read them elsewhere, but for those of us new to his work, it's a fine beginning.

These wonderful stories that fill in the "betweens" and "back stories" of Mike and Charlie. Unusual situations. Human foibles. A must read for Bowditch fans!

This is described as a collection of "short fiction". Some blurbs refer it to as short stories. For the most part, these stories are most reasonably characterized as being novelettes, i.e. stories of more than 10,000 words (30 to 40 pages). Not that it matters much. They are all engaging and can all easily be read in a leisurely afternoon, even by those of us who were branded back in junior high school as being able to read at only half the speed required for success in college.

Several of these stories don't much involve Main Warden Mike Bowditch, but rather feature his mentor and surrogate father, Charlie Stevens. So, one might say several of these stories provide a bit of backstory to the overall saga of Mike Bowditch's adventures.

Anyway, we have a bunch of fun stories involving the weird people in back-woods Maine. I don't mean to speak of Mainers pejoratively. I love Maine and have vacationed in Maine for the past quarter century. It's not clear that Mainers would think of me so kindly, they do, after all refer to my ilk as "Massholes" (although, I grew up a Baltimoron).

In one story, Mike Bowditch is a new ranger, and none of the locals know him. So, some wise ass decides to impersonate Bowditch so as to hit on the local teenage girls. In another, we have people breeding venomous snakes in captivity. Someone decides it would be fun to take one of the snakes out so as to use it as an instrument of murder. Then, they decide why not just release all the snakes and terrorize the locals? Then we have some guy into taxidermy who has shot a couple of bald eagles (totally illegal) so that he can stuff them. Another has as guy going rabid.

Whatever, they are all fun stories and well worth the time of those of us who love woodsy types in Maine.

#SkinAndBones #NetGalley

Paul Doiron is an amazing storyteller and this is a book of excellent short stories! He pulls the reader in quickly and doesn’t let go until the last sentence of each story. I have read several books by Doiron and he just gets better and better. Highly recommended.

Skin and Bones is a collection of short stories set in the world and life of Maine game warden, Mike Bowditch. The stories have been previously published but are in a new collection for the first time with one brand new story which takes place after the events of the latest Mike Bowditch, who is a fun character, novel. The stories vary in length but all are quick reads.

I read the author's latest full length book, Pitch Dark, before reading Skin and Bones. After reading this collection of stories I'm more excited than ever to go back and read the series from the beginning.

This is a great, well written set of stories. They are very effective at giving you an idea of what the full length novels are like. They also stand well on their own. A couple of them are creepy and a little spooky at times. Each story is

satisfying and you don't feel like you're missing out on anything.

I'm not always the biggest fan of short stories, especially collections because I often feel pressured to read them fast or straight through like a regular novel. Or sometimes I don't feel like I got much out of it. Not so with Skin and Bones. I didn't read it straight through because I was reading other books at the same time but I easily could have. I was excited to read every time I picked it up. It's clear that Paul Doiron is very talented and I can't wait to read more about Mike Bowditch.

Paul Doiron’s Skin and Bones, is an engaging collection of eight mystery stories. The tales are set in the world of Maine game warden, Mike Bowditch—Doiron has written fifteen Bowditch novels so far—but a few are told from the perspective of Bowditch’s mentor and retired warden, Charley Stevens. Many of the stories are closer to novelette than short story length, which allows Doiron the room to paint his characters with a rich hue and his rural Maine setting with vivid color. Even better, he does all this without an unnecessary word or losing the mystery for the trees.
“Bear Trap”—which is one of Charley Stevens’s tales—is a play on the impossible crime. As a young warden Charley is confronted by an almost mythical hermit—nicknamed Sweet Tooth because of his proclivity for stealing candy—with a knack for burgling camps and then disappearing like a ghost. When Sweet Tooth raids the stores of a summer camp for underprivileged boys, Charley decides it’s time to introduce Sweet Tooth to Lady Justice. But first he must discover how the thief comes and goes so easily.

In “Rabid,” Charley Stevens is called to the isolated home of John Hussey. Hussey, like Charley, is a Vietnam veteran but unlike Charley, Hussey’s post-war behavior has been erratic. When Charley arrives at the house, Hussey’s Vietnamese wife, Giang, says her husband was bitten by a bat. But Charley is more worried that Hussey is abusing his wife and daughter. Charley’s own wife gets involved in this one, and both she and Giang believe Hussey may have rabies. There is a nice surprise ending with a delicious slice of morality in the recipe.

Something of a Sherlock Holmes pastiche, “The Caretaker”—which is narrated by Bowditch—stars Charley as a Holmes-like detective and Bowditch in Dr. Watson’s role. Together Charley and Bowditch investigate a harassment complaint by a Boston couple while staying in their backwoods summer home. Charley does a fine job of detection—he seems to notice everything, no matter how small—and Bowditch is duly impressed with Charley’s almost supernatural powers. But it is the solution, while revealing a serious crime, that makes “The Caretaker” downright fun.

“Sheep’s Clothing,” which is the backwoods version of an English village murder mystery, finds the recently demoted Bowditch investigating what seems to be a murder-suicide of a couple living in poverty on a large patch of land. But Bowditch isn’t sure the husband killed his wife or himself. There are multiple suspects—the dead husband, an estranged son, his truly awful fiancée, the fiancée’s unempathetic brother are only four of them. There is more than one well-timed twist, which makes for bunches of fun.

Skin and Bones is my first experience reading Paul Doiron’s fiction. The high-quality of the writing, the tight plotting, and the subtle humor (especially when Charley Stevens is on the page) impressed me enough that I’m planning to find another title in the Bowditch series to read. And likely another one after that, which is assuming the novels are as good as the tales presented here.

This review will be published at darkcityunderground.blogspot.com and gravetapping.blogspot.com on May 12, 2025

Skin and Bones is a collection of short stories featuring Mike Bowditch, the Maine Game Warden and some feature his mentor, Charlie. If you have read the series, these are an added bonus. The stories will also stand alone if you have never read Doiron’s Mike Bowditch books before. The stories can be gritty in places, showing the dark side of Maine’s beautiful backwoods, but they are always told with compassion and a true love of the area.
Thanks to St. Martin’s Press and NetGalley for the ARC.

I'm a huge fan of the Mike Bowditch series, and I loved this collection of short stories! I always enjoy reading about the latest mystery Bowditch encounters as a Maine Game Warden. This collection of short stories fill in some on the untold history of the series. Skin and Bones is a great companion book to the Mike Bowditch series.

Paul Doiron is an amazing storyteller and this is a book of excellent short stories! He pulls the reader in quickly and doesn’t let go until the last sentence of each story. I have read several books by Doiron and he just gets better and better. Highly recommended.

Even if you are not a fan of the Mike Bowditch series, I think you will enjoy this collection of short stories. Paul Doiron is a master storyteller, and he draws the reader into his books. I feel as though I know the characters and can feel the emotions as they speak. The descriptions of the wildlife and woodlands of Maine are so crisp that you can see them in your mind. I always come away from one of Paul's books feeling like I have just experienced a vacation in Maine.

Thank you NetGalley, the author and the publisher for the opportunity to read an advanced copy of this book.

I love a good short story, and Paul Doiron is a master storyteller. Skin and Bones is a collection of short stories that feature game warden, Mike Bowditch, who is also the main character in a book series. The first three stories reveal some of the backstory of bush pilot, Charley Stevens, and the rest are about Mike. I've read two other books in this series and enjoyed them both, but one does not need to have read any of the prior books in order to enjoy this short story collection. Thanks to NetGalley and Minotaur Books for the ARC.

Skin and Bones is a collection of short stories by Paul Doiron, I enjoy the Mike Bowditch series so I was happy to receive the advanced copy of this book. I am not usually a fan of short stories but I enjoyed this book.
Thanks to NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for my ARC of this book.

Short stories snd novella for the Mike Bowditch series. Very entertaining. Thanks to Netgalley for the opportunity to read this book

Skin and Bones features a collection of eight gripping original short stories in the bestselling Mike Bowditch series—including one brand new, never-before-published story—from Edgar-award nominated author Paul Doiron.

Sooo ... there were eight stories but I loved only eight of them, haha! It's so rare for me to not be disappointed in at least 2-3 stories when reading this type of book, but that didn't happen this time. I was enthralled by all eight and I truly felt as though I were right there in Maine with Mike and Charley. (I was surprised by how hot it gets in Maine!)

One of my favorite things about Skin and Bones is the fact that the stories can be read without having read any of the full length novels.

I highly recommend Skin and Bones!

Thank you, #MinotaurBooks, for providing this book for review consideration via #NetGalley. All opinions are my own. Skin and Bones has an expected publication date of May 13, 2025.

#PaulDoiron #ShortStories #Maine #GameWardens

I loved it! These are excellent short stories that don't feel short at all. They are fully complete without missing any of the action or smart aleck and smart investigating as the full novels in this series. The piece actually called Skin and Bones stands out because early on I thought I knew why it was titled that but the full meaning didn't sink in until I'd started the next story. I had to set my reader down for a few minutes to get past that intensely dark realization. Amazing author!

It was a pleasure spending time with Mike again. This was a series of short stories revolving around a wisecracking, trouble stirring, refuse to back down forestry worker and the things he encounters in his daily travels. The stories are written in a folksy manner which works well in this setting. I was a bit disappointed that Charlie did not play a more prominent told in the majority of the stories since these two characters play off each other well.

I received an arc of this book and voluntarily provided a review.

Thank you NetGalley and Minotaur Books for the chance to read "Skin and Bones" in exchange for my honest opinion.

This is a collection of 8 short stories from Paul Doiron. All exciting and thrilling, out in nature as one expects from Mr. Doiron. Bats with rabies, snowstorms, rattlesnakes and bald eagles, along with killers and even someone posing as Mike Bowditch through identity theft. A great opportunity for the new reader of Mr. Doiron's books to be introduced to his brand of books.

Skin and Bones is an extraordinary collection of short stories from the Mike Bowditch universe of stories. It's a lot of fun because each of the stories is engaging. It offers us welcomed looks at some of the characters and events which have influenced the main character. I think the best thing about this collection is it can be enjoyed by readers who are already fans and also by those who are new to the series. It's a stellar starting point for the latter. Favorite stories? My personal favorites are The Imposter, The Caretaker, & Skin and Bones. But, you'll enjoy all of them. Thank you to St. Martin's Press, Minotaur Books, and NetGalley for the advance reading copy in exchange for my honest opinion.

I am thankful to Steve Erickson of St. Martin's Publishing Group (Minotaur Books) for giving me the opportunity to read an ARC of Skin and Bones. I have enjoyed the adventures of Mike Bowditch so far from the previous books that I have read, and this collection of short stories actually helps to fill in some background gaps in the series. Since not every story is told in Bowditch's point of view, you get a more colorful feel for the motley inhabitants of the Maine backwoods. The different stories also map out the lay of the land encompassing the warden's district. Mike's rebel character is more evident as his early days are recounted, as his personal code is still being developed under Charley's mentorship. The short story format allows for quick little mysteries to be solved without a deep dive into the action involved or the final outcomes - and I admit that I was unsatisfied with more than one of the conclusions. But such is the life of a Maine Game Warden, right? These stories also give little pointers about surviving the backwoods and the elements which I like to squirrel away in my mind should I ever find myself lost in the woods. Despite the stories being short, they are involved and have twists in their investigations - I enjoy when the wardens act 'hick' because you know they are peeling back layers of the mystery while they downplay their intelligence. Even if you haven't read the previous Bowditch tales, this book provides an afternoon of excitement and adventure as you solve mysteries of the Maine Backwoods!

Overall, I really enjoy the Mike Bowditch series, which I first read with book #14, Dead Man's Wake. I've got a lot of backlist titles to catch up on!

This set of short stories was a quick, engrossing read, and helped develop the characters in the series a bit more for me, having a limited history with them.

My biggest gripe with these books is how the female spouses tend to serve as an unpaid, behind-the-scenes sidekick to the job. For example,

"He appreciated his wife's willingness to serve as both a sounding board and a spur to action."

The skeptical feminist in me bristles at notes like these; it's as if the husband is pat-patting the little wifey on the head in a gesture of thanks for the unpaid emotional labor of listening to her husband word vomit his theories and investigative discoveries, all while the man gets the glory for solving the case.

I've noticed this formula used in multiple books in the series now and it's beginning to emerge as a trend I don't love. Other than that, I really do enjoy the storytelling and mysteries and twists.