Hatchet Island: Mike Bowditch #13    by Paul Doiron Order:  USA  Can Minotaur, 2022 (2022) Hardcover, e-Book      Reviewed by Hilary Williamson Hatchet Island follows Dead by Dawn as the thirteenth in Paul Doiron's exceptional series starring Maine game warden Mike Bowditch. The author brings the Maine wilderness to life around the reader, this time its coastal islands and waterways. The story opens on a young man's suicide, his motivation unknown until the end of this mystery. Mike renewed his romantic relationship with bush pilot/biologist Stacey Stevens in the last episode and this one opens on a sea kayaking trip they take together to Baker Island far off the coast, where Stacey had interned. It is a sanctuary for endangered seabirds. Stacey's college roommate Kendra has emailed her asking for help. The sanctuary's founder, Dr. Maeve McLeary has gone missing and 'Other weird shit is happening too.' The biologists on the island (Kendra, Hillary and Garrett) have been harassed by boatmen. After camping overnight on a nearby islet, Mike and Stacey return to find two of the three brutally murdered, the other missing. Their search leads them to nearby Hatchet Island, which is owned by photographer Clay Markham - he's world-renowned though his subjects are macabre. Markham's kingdom includes a small village whose inhabitants are reluctant to share what they know. As we expect, Mike and Stacey do find answers - to all the deaths, including the one that opened this story. And, as always, Doiron wrote an engrossing thriller, highly recommended. Note: Opinions expressed in reviews and articles on this site are those of the author(s) and not necessarily those of BookLoons. Find more Mystery books on our Shelves or in our book Reviews