Poacher's Son

By: Paul Doiron

Narrated by: Henry Leyva

Length: 9 hrs and 22 mins

Publisher's summary

Set in the wilds of Maine, this is an explosive tale of an estranged son thrust into the hunt for a murderous fugitive - his own father. Game warden Mike Bowditch returns home one evening to find an alarming voice from the past on his answering machine: his father, Jack, a hard-drinking womanizer who makes his living poaching illegal game. An even more frightening call comes the next morning from the police: They are searching for the man who killed a beloved local cop the night before - and his father is their prime suspect. Jack has escaped from police custody, and only Mike believes that his tormented father might not be guilty. Now, alienated from the woman he loves, shunned by colleagues who have no sympathy for the suspected cop killer, Mike must come to terms with his haunted past. He knows firsthand Jack's brutality, but is the man capable of murder? Desperate and alone, Mike strikes up an uneasy alliance with a retired warden pilot, and together the two men journey deep into the Maine wilderness in search of a runaway fugitive. There they meet a beautiful woman who claims to be Jack's mistress but who seems to be guarding a more dangerous secret. The only way for Mike to save his father now is to find the real killer - which could mean putting everyone he loves in the line of fire. The Poacher's Son is a sterling debut of literary suspense. Taut and engrossing, it represents the first in a series by Paul Doiron featuring Mike Bowditch.

©2010 Paul Doiron (P)2010 Macmillan Audio

Northern Maine people with thick Boston accents?

I really wanted to like this book. I am a big fan of North Woods Law and was eager to listen to a good warden mystery. It was fair. Henry Leyva's attempt at a Maine accent resembles a thick John F Kennedy Boston accent. If you are from Maine, and I am, we seldom find an "outta stateta" that can get it right. Best not to try.

interesting

Different. Listened to it while working, so didn't catch everything. Had I paid more attention to the beginning I could have figured the story line out.

Great book ruined by poor performance!

I'm really disappointed. Having recently moved to Maine, I was excited by the prospect of an 11 book series set in my new home. The story line was fantastic with excellent character development and dialog. Unfortunately, the narrator really misses the mark. It's not so much that cheesy Maine accents that I found so distracting as it was basic diction and understanding of how to emphasize words in a sentence to indicate meaning. I won't be continuing with the series.

Loved it

I enjoyed this book and will be continuing the series! The story kept me engaged and I have recommended this book to my friends! The only place that left room for improvement was the narrator. The local names of towns and rivers are hard to announce. While Henry Leyva did a good job overall, he missed pronounced a couple of them incorrectly. Likely only locals would have picked up in it.

Backwoods Maine location

Kept thinking this was a young adult novel. Not at all sophisticated, characters are pretty shallow, and it centers on a young game warden's relationship with his father and others he knew as a 15-year-old. The father is accused of a cowardly murder and of course the game warden sets out to prove his innocence. Doiron uses the upstate Maine location well. Leyva's narration is competent and he gets the deep New England inflection well enough. There's so much angst about whether Mike chose the right career or not that it was a disappointment not to get a revelation at the end. All in all it was worth the time and money I spent but will not be among the more memorable books of the year.

Love this series!

If you could sum up Poacher's Son in three words, what would they be?

Awesome cliff hanger series.

Who was your favorite character and why?

Mike Bowditch was my favorite character. The author did a good job keeping this character realistic.

What about Henry Leyva’s performance did you like?

Henry Leyva is perfect for this performance. He does a good job with the different voices and characters.

Was there a moment in the book that particularly moved you?

I loved the whole book.

Great story line.

Enjoyed the plot and enjoyed some of the narration, however as a native Mainer the Maine accents weren't quite there. Good job other wise.

What is a Maine accent!

I'm from Arkansas and not many readers do southern like a true southerner. The accent isn't the story, just a part of it. I don't understand people who get hung up on narrators and lose the thrust of the story! I liked this one. I like Mike and I was just as hurt as he was when he was trying to defend his father and others were running him down. I like the warden pilot and his wife too. Nicely done author and narrator. I will continue with these stories and couldn't care less if the narrator sounds like he is from 'Maine'. I applaud narrators for the ability to read out loud for a living!! What could be better than that?!

Preacher's Son

A really good novel liked it a lot another good game warden novel
Will look for more to come

This captures the Maine experience

I was born and raised in Maine. Having spent a lot of time in the areas where this story took place, the places and people were so accurate! It was a GREAT book and I am now going to read every single book by this author. My only “complaint” is that if someone is going to read a Maine book in a Maine accent, please find a Maine reader; make it legit. It was painful to listen to the mispronunciations but don’t let that stop you from choosing this book.