If you're a mystery lover, you should be listening to the Speaking of Mysteries podcast (which has featured great authors like Jo Nesbo, Alan Furst, and Megan Abbott). I recently spoke with interviewer Nancie Claire about The Bone Orchard and how I see the Mike Bowditch novels reflecting the cultural divisions within Maine. Have a listen.
Library Journal: Mike Bowditch Is a Maverick
Library Journal has also now weighed in on my new novel. The verdict? The Bone Orchard "continues to deliver vivid local characters and wild Maine landscapes, as well as a satisfying mystery to solve. Recommended for readers who appreciate maverick backwoods investigators like Steve Hamilton’s Alex McKnight."
My verdict? Any day someone compares me to the great Steve Hamilton is a good day.
Listen to the First Chapter of The Bone Orchard
I've been fortunate that Macmillan Audio has released the entire Mike Bowditch series as audiobooks. There are so many readers who prefer to listen to "books on tape" (both the CD and digital versions) or simply have visual impairments that make reading text on a page prohibitive. I get a lot of mail from people who have discovered my novels through the audiobooks, narrated almost entirely by Henry Levya.
June is national audiobook month (I'm not sure if that's an official designation so I'm not capitalizing it), and to honor the occasion my publisher has made available the first chapter of my forthcoming book, The Bone Orchard. Just click the link below and enjoy:
The Maine Woods National Park Debate — One Year Later
The paperback edition of Massacre Pond hits stores today which seems as good a time as any to revisit of one of the inspirations for the book: the controversy surrounding a proposed Maine Woods National Park. The plan—which was briefly tabled in 2013— has received new life since my novel went to press.
While the idea remains toxic in certain communities (especially around Millinocket and East Millinocket), it is undeniable that the conversation has changed in tone over the past twelve months, due in large part to Lucas St.Clair, the son of environmentalist and philanthropist Roxanne Quimby.
St.Clair is a fishermen and bird hunter, and after becoming the new public face of the campaign, he has worked hard to change perceptions about his family's plans for the newly named Katahdin Woods & Waters Recreation Area. The report his organization commissioned makes a strong case for the economic benefits of a federally managed preserve on the land east of Baxter State Park.
Meanwhile, the woods product industry continues to face an uncertain future in the Katahdin region. The owner of the former Great Northern Paper mill entirely retooled its plans for the property, proposing to transform the facility into a steam-thermal pellet plant. The new facility would employ fifty workers: a far cry from the many thousands that were employed during the heyday of the Millinocket area mills.
Over the course of the most recent legislative session, St.Clair's renewed public relations efforts received pushback from business and other interests in Augusta. Park opponents introduced a bill in the Maine Legislature that would have made it all but impossible for the Katahdin Woods & Waters Recreation Area to be turned over to the federal government — but the bill died in both the House and the Senate.
Whether that vote will eventually be viewed as a turning point in the debate remains to be seen. What is clear is that changes are overtaking the Maine North Woods more quickly than anyone — myself included— predicted.
