The Precipice by Paul Doiron, Mike Bowditch series #6

I seem to bounce around on my feelings about the books Paul Doiron writes for his Mike Bowditch series. His last book, The Bone Orchard was not as good as some previous books, but The Precipice is his best book yet, in my opinion. Paul did a really good job in all the areas of this book and kept my interest peaked the entire book.

Fact.  The Appalachian Trail goes through Maine, and include a stretch called the Hundred Mile Wilderness.

There is a sign at the southern entrance to the Hundred Mile Wilderness. It is made out of rust brown wood and painted with white letters, and it sends a stern and unmistakable warning to all who enter:

Caution. There are no places to obtain supplies or help until Abol Bridge 100 miles north. Do not attempt this section unless you have a minimum of 10 days’ supplies and are fully equipped. This is the longest wilderness section of the entire Appalachian Trail and its difficulty should not be underestimated.

Now for the review.  Two young women fresh out of college send a picture of themselves at the beginning of the trail and send it to their parents.  They say they should be through this leg of the journey in 10 days and they would contact their parents again when they have completed the Hundred Mile Wilderness trail.  After thirteen days the well to do and well-connected parents contact powerful people in high Maine government offices and the search begins.  Insert Warden Mike Bowditch.

As always Mike Bowditch thinks outside the box and with the help of his new girlfriend he gets started in the search and rescue.  Without giving away spoilers more deaths happen to make matters more urgent, both professionally and personally, Mike Bowditch gets the job done. As with all the books with one exception Mike Bowditch always gets his man or woman person. 

Sit back and read or listen to a very good story.  I've read some people suggest that The Precipice can be read as a stand-alone book but I really suggest that you start the series from the beginning.  I may be critical of a couple of books and have an issue with how he had described his sex scenes in the past books but this still is a good series.

I give this a 7 of 10, still a great book.

The Precipice by Paul Doiron

Mike Bowditch series, book 6