Eight short stories from the Mike Bowditch series. If you're not familiar with the series, the main character is a Maine game warden with a wide range of adventures and an excellent supporting cast of characters. The stories give a glimpse into the pressures the wardens face while trying to enforce the laws of Maine and keep the peace in an area concentrated with individuals living their lives off grid and outside civilized conventions. As in any book of stories, some are better than others, but all of them are 5 star reads. If you love CJ Box's Joe Pickett, you will definitely want to read the entire Poacher's Son/ Mike Bowditch series.

Skin and Bones by Paul Doiron fills in the gaps of the longer novels with short stories about Charley Stevens and Mike Bowditch, Game Wardens in Maine. These are intriguing tales as they cover many years of their personal and professional lives together.

This one wasn’t for me . I love Paul Dorion but I’m not for short stories . This one was a no for me
Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for letting me review this book

Captivating stories in the dark woods!

I thoroughly enjoyed reading the eight short stories in Paul Doiron's Skin and Bones collection. I had read many of them before, but they are so well-written that re-reading them is a pleasure. The interactions between Mike Bowditch and retired game warden Charley Stevens are so entertaining. From “The Bear Trap” in which Stevens tackles a woods legend with sinister results, to “Snakebit”, they all have surprising twists.
In the new story “Sheep’s Clothing”, we discover the consequences for Mike of the events in Pitch Dark. Mike's wellness check on a dirt-poor family in the Maine backwoods turns up two bodies. Mike’s habit of finding trouble finds him again. He can’t help investigating even though his superiors have told him to stay away.

These stories are like sitting around a campfire and having a favourite uncle telling tales. Some are scary, some intriguing, but all are captivating. I like visiting with old friends: Mike and his wife Stacey, Charlie and his wife Ora and Mike’s wolf-dog Shadow. This collection read alone but I highly recommend the whole Mike Bowditch series.

Thank you to St. Martin's Press | Minotaur Books and NetGalley for a digital ARC.

Wow! Fantastic read. A great compilation of short stories with some of my favorite characters. I'd read a few but most were new to me and I very much enjoyed the stories and how they filled in a few things and also kept me engaged in the storylines. One of the stories ended rather abruptly but it didn't detract from the overall story. I truly look forward to any new stories with Mike Bowditch and can't wait for the next installment. Many thanks to the Author, publisher, and NetGalley for an ARC in exchange for my honest review.

This was a strong collection of short stories, it had that concept that I was hoping for and thought worked well with the genre. Paul Doiron was able to weave strong stories in this collection and was glad I got to read this.

I am nor a fan of short stories but am a fan of the series. The stories were entertaining and built on the series characters

Another great read by Paul Doiron, a compilation of short stories. Easy h one was suspenseful and action packed. I highly recommend!

I was delighted to receive an advanced reader’s copy of this book from NetGalley. Paul Dorion is one of my favorite authors. He is an amazing writer and his Maine game warden Mike Bowditch is a very interesting character. This book is a series of short stories that provide additional background for Mike and the other characters in the novels. While some of these stories had been previously released as stand alones, it was fun to read them again and I greatly enjoyed the new ones. Hopefully, this taste of Doiron’s great writing will make you want to read all his books. It will be a fun journey! While I have NetGalley to thank, this opinion is my own.

I was a little disappointed to see Paul Doiron's 2025 release be a collection of short stories. Don't get me wrong -- I love Paul Doiron. His Mike Bowditch series has become of one my favorites series ever. From the location to the characters, it sticks out to me as something special. So much so that I read everything he writes as soon as he publishes it. So, that being said, I'd already read 80% of this book before. The stories range from good to great (with the better ones for me starring Mike himself, although I love Charley as a character). The best news about this collection, though, was the last story. It's brand new and picks up right where the last book left out. If I had one complaint about it, it's just that it's too short (though it's absolutely better than him not being around at all for a year). I want to spend more time with Mike and company. Every year I miss him being around. But that's not Paul's fault. He just needs to learn to write faster.

This is a collection of eight short stories featuring Mike Bowditch and Charlie Stephens. I am always surprised when reading one of his books that the people that the wardens encounter are frequently not vacationers, but people who live there year round, in a place where the depth of the snow may be measured in feet.

The short stories are fabulous, surprising me by the variety of the stories. The first story features a hermit who managed to stay hidden for decades, living by breaking into cabins and stealing food, propane, blankets, and other needed items. Other stories involve a rabid bat who may have infected a human, a hunter missing in a blizzard, a dead man with Mike's name, and more. I received an e-arc of this book from publisher St. Martin's Press, and voluntarily read and reviewed it.

Paul Doiron has delivered yet again with Skin and Bones: And Other Mike Bowditch Short Stories! This is a gripping, wonderfully written, vividly detailed, and entertaining short story collection featuring Mike Bowditch and Charley Stevens. Some were new to me and a few I had read previously. For fans of the Mike Bowditch series, this short story collection will be a gripping and entertaining read. This book shows both Charley and Mike doing what they do best. Readers will get to see a younger Charley in some of the stories as he began his career.

The short stories in this book are: THE BEAR TRAP, RABID, BACKTRACK, THE IMPOSTER, THE CARETAKER, SKIN AND BONES, SNAKEBIT, and SHEEP’S CLOTHING. With short story collections there will always be some that readers enjoy more than others. That is true with this book as well. My two favorites were THE BEAR TRAP and RABID. Having said that, all the short stories are enjoyable and wonderfully written.

If Paul Doiron writes it, I am going to read it! The Mike Bowditch series is one of my favorite book series of all time.

I absolutely loved this culmination of short stores and Skin and Bones was exceptionally good! I’ve read most of Paul Doiron’s books and Skin and Bones is in the top 5, and I honestly wish it was a full story!

I am going to jump right into the short story for which this collection is titled, “Skin and Bones.” It all begins with an eagle that has been shot and killed and brought to Maine Game Warden, Mike Bowditch. Mike, in turn, shows the tragically shot majestic bird to his friend and mentor Charley Stevens, a retired Maine Game Warden. At this point, Charley regales Mike with a memory from his own experience as a young warden and another eagle that had been shot dead. Unfortunately for Mike, this story includes the character of Jack Bowditch, Mike’s father, who is a known poacher and criminal to the Maine Warden Service. As Charley’s story unfolds, it’s fast-paced, compelling, followed by shocking discoveries, and downright grisly! This story is by far some of the best writing by Paul Doiron!
While “Skin and Bones” was the major short story in this collection, there were some very interesting and informative other stories as well. In these stories, Doiron gives the reader an intriguing glimpse of the character development of Charley Stevens, retired Maine Game Warden. Doiron really peels back the layers that creates Charley, and he indicates how Charley has gained so much experience and wisdom in his years of service to the State of Maine.
Throughout the entire Bowditch series, Doiron takes the reader to a specific location in Maine during the different and ever-changing seasons. His description of the vast woodlands, rocky coastline, and most recently in the novel Pitch Dark, the Canadian border. The story “Sheep’s Clothing” takes place after Pitch Dark and shows Mike dealing with the consequences of his actions. With this little story one can only hope and possibly presume that Doiron is already composing his next Bowditch novel.
Many thanks for this ARC from NetGalley, Paul Doiron, and St. Martin’s Press. I leave an honest and voluntary review and rate this collection a high 5 out of 5 rating.

Thank you NetGalley and publisher for this arc!

WOW!!! What a great book!! This one had me hooked from page 1! This was a first for me from this author and I will not be my last? I am a huge fan of thrillers!! This one was a win for me!