Rabid

Mike Bowditch #8.5

by Paul Doiron

In this Edgar Award-nominated short story in the Mike Bowditch mystery series from bestselling author Paul Doiron, Mike is drawn into the story of a gruesome case from his mentor Charley Steven’s past.

Maine Game Warden Mike Bowditch accompanies his old friend and mentor, retired bush pilot Charley Stevens, as he pays a visit to a mysterious woman, the widow of a Vietnam vet, living in isolation in the Maine wilderness. Many years earlier, she had called Charley, then a young game warden himself, for help. She claimed that her badly bleeding husband had been attacked by a rabid bat. But in the succeeding days, despite her husband's increasingly erratic and aggressive behavior, his wife resisted Charley's attempts to help, arousing his suspicions that more was going on than met the eye. Was the husband the victim of rabies, or was he suffering from post traumatic stress disorder? The situation finally erupted into horrific violence, leaving everyone involved deeply scarred. In the devastating finale to RABID, Charley reveals to Mike how he uncovered the awful truth about what actually happened in their home so many years before.

Genres: Mystery, Fiction, Short Stories, Audiobook, Thriller, Mystery Thriller, Novella

62 pages, Kindle Edition

First published June 5, 2018

About the author

Paul Doiron is the best-selling author of the Mike Bowditch series of crime novels set in the Maine woods.

His first book, The Poacher’s Son, won the Barry Award and the Strand Critics Award and was nominated for an Edgar for Best First Novel. His second, Trespasser, won the 2012 Maine Literary Award. His novelette “Rabid” was a finalist for the 2019 Edgar in the Best Short Story category. Paul’s twelfth book, Dead by Dawn won the New England Society’s 2022 Book Award for Fiction, as well as his second Maine Literary Award. It was also a finalist for the Barry Award. His books have been translated into 11 languages.

Paul is the former chair of the Maine Humanities Council, Editor Emeritus of Down East: The Magazine of Maine, and a Registered Maine Guide specializing in fly fishing.

Reviews

[Wendy · Rating 4 out of 5]

I thoroughly enjoyed this novella (#8.5) in Paul Doiron's "Mike Bowditch" series!

[Kevintipple · Rating 5 out of 5]

As Rabid: A Story by Paul Doiron begins; retired Game Warden Charles Stevens is riding with Game Warden Mike Bowditch as he has done most of this June day. It is now early evening and finally the old game warden is going to explain why he put a large brown package in the bed of the patrol truck that morning. Mike Bowditch never asked him about the package as he knew that when his longtime friend would talk about it when he was ready.

While this particular story takes place several years ago when Mike Bowditch was stationed “Down East” the actual events that Charlie tells and later is explained in further depth by Charlie’s wife, Ora, happened decades ago. It is a situation that has long haunted both Charlie and his wife and one that is very hard for them to talk about even today.

Author Paul Doiron has incredible story telling skills as first showcased in The Poacher’s Son which begun the Mike Bowditch Mysteries series. He is at his peak performance in this intense and captivating short story. A tale that is incredibly intense and weighty despite is length as it has the impact of a novel. There is quite a lot packed into the sixty-two page read. Rabid: A Story is one of those reads that can be savored by those of us who have been onboard since the beginning as well as by readers who know nothing about this great series. Paul Doiron is one of those talented authors who, for whatever reason, do not get the national recognition he so richly deserves. Rabid : A Story is a very good read and one that is worthy of your time and your attention.


Rabid: A Story
Paul Doiron
http://www.pauldoiron.com
Minotaur Books
http://www.minotaurbooks.com
June 2018
ASIN: B07CWRHJ3W
eBook (also available in audio format)
62 Pages
$1.99

While awaiting the next novel by way of the Dallas Library, I saw this come up on an ad and picked it up using funds in my Amazon Associate account.

Kevin R. Tipple ©2018

[Sharon Mensing · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a short story, at only 62 pages. Although it's identified as #8.5 in the Mike Bowditch series, Mike plays no real role in the plot. This is the story of a troubled family that Charley Stevens became involved with during his days as a game warden. Charley was called to a home deep in the back woods by a woman claiming that her husband had been bitten by a bat. When he got there, Charley discovered an elegant Vietnamese woman and her brutish veteran of a husband. The husband refused treatment, but over time the wife became obsessed with the notion that he had contracted rabies. In the end, the husband and wife battle and only one lives to benefit from Charley's and his wife's ongoing care.

This short tale has the trademark Doiron backwoods detail and keeps the reader immersed in Maine for an hour or two. It's not really a Mike Bowditch book, however.

[Kathryn · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really enjoy these short stories, which is usually Charley telling Mike and old story from back in the day. This particular one takes him back to the mid 80s, to a possible rabies infection from a bat to man. This really is a story about Charley’s wife, Ora, doing a little investigating, and of desperation for the well-being of a mother and her daughter. Really good short story and I loved getting another glimpse into the Stevens family decades earlier.

[Laur · Rating 4 out of 5]

A short story where a Vietnam woman claims that her husband was bitten by a rabid bat and says she thinks he has rabies. She buys a book on rabies to check what the symptoms are in a human. But is more going on than meets the eye? Closes with a twisted, violent, surprise ending.

[Deanna · Rating 4 out of 5]

From the first introduction to Charley Stevens, it's obvious that there is more than meets the eye. Charley has a knack for chatter, something that annoys Mike on more than one occasion throughout the series. But Charley's conversational habits provide the most important weapon a rural law enforcement officer can have; information. How he or she deals with a situation is often based on the information at hand, and the more intel you have, the better.

I appreciate this short story for what it provides; insight into the dynamic relationship between Charley and his wife, Ora. Unarmed, Ora willingly goes into harm's way to try and stop violence; it's no wonder where their daughter, Stacey, gets her strong will and fearlessness.

[Cathy Cole · Rating 4 out of 5]

A masterful little short story that relates something in Charley and Ora Stevens' past before Ora's accident. As game warden, Charley is called out to a cabin deep in the woods where a man has supposedly been bitten by a bat. He meets a very disturbed Vietnam vet and his beautiful Vietnamese wife and daughter, all of whom refuse his help. Doiron does an excellent job building a sense of foreboding as the story unfolds. This is a nice little addition and/or introduction to Doiron's writing and the characters in the Mike Bowditch series.

[Magdalena aka A Bookaholic Swede · Rating 4 out of 5]

I listened to the audio version of this novella and found the short little story to be both enough as a story but at the same time did I want more. But, that's perfectly understandable since the story is just 50 pages long, enough to tell the tale, but I loved getting a story from Charley Stevens' past.

The narrator was very pleasant to listen to. This novella is perfect for fans of the series!

[Capt. H. Hornblower Of His Majesty’s Navy · Rating 5 out of 5]

Rabid
Mike Bowditch #8.5
By Paul Doiron

Warning ⚠️ This review may contain plot-sensitive content.

Overview 📝
A story that showcases Charlie and his wife Aura (sp?) from decades ago in the 1980’s. Charlie has several run-ins with a Vietnam-vet who married and lives with an Asian woman out in the Maine boonies. He is very stand-offish and suspected to abuse his wife. The story is about how the man’s wife escapes the abusive relationship, and the lengths she had to go in order to do it.

The Good 😊
1. A very sobering read that dives into the gender-biased culture of how law enforcement agencies deal with domestic dispute matters, either preferring to stay out of disputes altogether or take the husbands’ side.
2. The story has a strong equal gender rights vibe going and I applauded Aura’s preternatural efforts to help a fellow woman in distress.
3. Charlie of course continues to have a Sixth Sense in knowing exactly what to do in any given situation and I really enjoyed learning more about his training in these kinds of novels. It’s explained that he gains a profound sense of calm and clarity when under duress, a trait that became life-saving during his Vietnam War days and one that continues to support him as a Game Warden.
4. The tie-in at the end with the trapped animal analogy was again very sobering and thoughtful. The author has a knack for relating examples of nature or wildlife predilections to explain human behavior.

The Meh 🫤
1. There is a profound sadness that is left to the reader towards the end, despite how the story was concluded. It’s not a complaint per se. The author could’ve made the ending a happy one, but chose not to.

Final Thoughts 🤔
A very beautifully written short story with a sobering moral and a thought-provoking ending. Well done, Doiron.

5 ⭐️

[Cindy B. · Rating 4 out of 5]

Entertaining — I’m just glad it’s fiction. Clearly narrated. Novella.

[Meghan Samberg · Rating 4 out of 5]

Short story

[Yvonne Speece · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a short novella falling about midway thru the series & one I hadn't read previously. The story is a recounting of an older situation involving a possible rabid bat. This is a wonderful series featuring Mike Bowditch the game warden & I highly recommend it.

[Lis · Rating 5 out of 5]

I think Charlie Stevens is my most favorite character ever written.

[Lindsay Nixon · Rating 3 out of 5]

It was OK. Short and quick. Could be good for a 1 to 2 hour car ride. Otherwise I’d skip it I probably won’t read any more in the series

[Nancy Shaw · Rating 3 out of 5]

A short story. Quick read. A Vietnamese woman married to an angry, volatile Vietnam veteran living in remote Maine woods confronts her demon.

[BrkrDave · Rating 2 out of 5]

I am clearly the minority here. I found the story to be depressing but touching only lightly on Charlie and Ora's lives. Yes, they are the main characters in the book but nothing about their reliationship with each other or with others is revealed. Mike Bowditch has only a walk on part and there is nothing to be learned about him that wasn't already known. In short, I found nothing new about the characters I enjoy and the story was wanting. I don't need happy endings but this story had little to recommend it.

[Chris · Rating 4 out of 5]

The short novellas by Paul Doiron in the Mike Bowditch series seem to be stories from the past that Charlie Stevens tells. This one is from the 80s and is his and his wife, Aura's, retelling of confrontations with a Vietnam vet and his Vietnamese wife. It was interesting, and a bit thought-provoking.

[Vincent E. · Rating 4 out of 5]

Keeps it moving

Enjoyed this background piece, really an extended short story. The author supplies enough detail to create a backdrop, flesh out characters, without lapsing into poetic prose. There is a nice twist at the end left hanging, perhaps bolstered by one line of dialog earlier in the tale. Enough to make the reader think “hmm.”

[Jill · Rating 3 out of 5]

It may not matter as this story is not about Mike, but the book is out of order. In this book he hasn't started dating Charlie's daughter yet, but in the full length books they've dated and already broken up.

[Susan Grace · Rating 3 out of 5]

Ok...This is my official review...now that I've actually read Rabid! Still not a super fan of short stories. I like meals over appetizers! This was good. A little mystery. Not enough Mike Bowditch for me.

[Patti · Rating 4 out of 5]

Rabid is a short story in the series by author Paul Doiron about Maine Game Warden, Mike Bowditch. This short story builds on the relationship between Mike and his mentor, retired Game Warden and pilot, Charley Stevens.

Mike Bowditch is currently stationed in a part of Maine known as the “Downeast Region.” Charley rides along with him one day and asks Mike to take a detour down a forest road. Charley recounts the story of what happened here.

When Charley was a patrol Warden, he was once stationed in this same area. He was called to a house about a bat in the house that had bitten the homeowner. The house is far from a showplace. Charley finds the man, a retired Marine and Vietnam vet, at the house with his Vietnamese wife and their daughter. The man was bitten by a bat in the little girl’s room and threw it in the wood stove. Charley is concerned about rabies. There’s no way to test for it unless the man, John Hussey, goes to the hospital. He’s not a well man to begin with. He seems to have anger issues. This is set in the 1980s, when the world was just beginning to acknowledge that domestic violence was a problem.

Charley feels caught between a rock and a hard place. He talks to the wife, Giang, in her language, which he learned on his own tour of duty. In the end, there’s not much he can do but encourage John to get tested, which, of course, he doesn’t.

To read my complete review, please go to Rabid by Paul Doiron – Exploring Domestic Violence and Untreated PTSD

[Kaye Mallory · Rating 4 out of 5]

Maine Game Warden Mike Bowditch accompanies his old friend and mentor, retired bush pilot Charley Stevens, as he pays a visit to a mysterious woman, the widow of a Vietnam vet, living in isolation in the Maine wilderness. Many years earlier, she had called Charley, then a young game warden himself, for help. She claimed that her badly bleeding husband had been attacked by a rabid bat. But in the succeeding days, despite her husband's increasingly erratic and aggressive behavior, his wife resisted Charley's attempts to help, arousing his suspicions that more was going on than met the eye. Was the husband the victim of rabies, or was he suffering from post traumatic stress disorder? The situation finally erupted into horrific violence, leaving everyone involved deeply scarred. In the devastating finale to RABID, Charley reveals to Mike how he uncovered the awful truth about what actually happened in their home so many years before.

[Dave Weller · Rating 4 out of 5]

Rabid is a short story by Paul Doiron in the Mike Bowditch series. The story is fifty-four pages and a fairly rapid read. The plot revolves around Mike's mentor,Charley Stevens, and it is actually a flashback that involves Bowditch only to the extent that he is the listener to the tale as related by Charley. In a nutshell, Charley receives a phone call from the wife of a Vietnam war veteran named John Hussey. The wife's name was Giang, and she was Vietnamese, and they had a daughter named Lisa. Charley responded to the call, and when he approached the house, he learned that Hussey had been bitten by a bat. Charley assessed the situation and recommended that Hussey see a doctor and treat the wound appropriately, since rabies could be involved. I'll stop here, since it is a short story, and I do not wish to give anything away. As always Charley and his wife, Ora, are down to earth characters that you cannot help but love. Give this a quick read, and you will enjoy the time spent.

[Wanda · Rating 3 out of 5]

An interesting quick read. Charley, a former game warden, asks Mike to stop with him while he delivers a package to a house way out at the end of a road in a very isolated spot. He says he is doing it for his wife. Mike asks what it is and who lives in the house and Charley proceeds to tell him the story.
The story Charley tells is about a Vietnam veteran who marries a Vietnamese woman and brings her to live in rural Maine. She is basically kept as a prisoner in the house and the man is suffering from PTSD plus drinks and takes drugs. It appears as if he is abusing her and their daughter and Charley's wife, Orla, attempts to help. Things don't end well and Orla & Charley feel guilty for how it turned out so they help out the woman in the present.

[Kirsti · Rating 3 out of 5]

I guess I've spent too much time reading nonfiction about rabies because early on when we find out that someone may have been bitten in the face by a bat that may have been rabid, my immediate response was, "Well, rabies attacks the central nervous system and travels about a centimeter a day in the human body until it reaches the brain. So if he got bitten in the face, we should know about the diagnosis within a week at most, even if he can't or won't see a doctor."

Longish story (about an hour and fifteen minutes on audio) about an isolated cabin and the terrible and sad goings-on there. It's always good to try a new author.

[Marseydoats · Rating 4 out of 5]

This story is very well written, as usual, but it's extremely brutal. Charley and Ora are my favorite characters from this series, so I'm always glad to see a story featuring them. Usually I get annoyed when I have the promised short story and then an excerpt from another book. In this case, Pitch Dark looks like it will be awesome. I will have to wait until July or August to read it because my library is slow to get new books in.

[Mr. Wakiki · Rating 3 out of 5]

it was a good short story... but so out of context in that Mike Bowditch is telling the story, that as told to him from the Steven's family, missing the fact he is saying things that are likely not know to him.

probably should have wrote this as a story from the Stevens perspective.. for background on them, but also how Ora and Charley see Bowditch

[Sandy · Rating 1 out of 5]

I will say this for 99% of these half books that are written, they are a utter waste of time. 35 pages, if that, and it mentioned how Mike was in love with Stacy, but she didn’t know it and then the prior two books they’re dating. At least if you’re going to write a half book get the sequence right.

[Sharon · Rating 3 out of 5]

Game Warden Mike Bowditch accompanies his mentor, Charley Stevens on a visit to a mysterious woman, the widow of a Vietnam vet who lives out in the bush in Maine. Turns out, according to Charley, many years ago when he was a young game warden, she had called him for help stating that her husband had been bitten by a rabid bat. The husband was increasingly aggressive but the wife was not interested in getting help from Charley which begs the question of what is really going on? Before Charley could suss it out, the situation erupted into horrific violence.

Mike asked Ora, Charley's wife about the incident and got a similar but very different story.

Quick, intense read.

[Kay · Rating 4 out of 5]

Less than an hour to read...does that count as a book? It was a good bedtime story with Charlie and "The Boss". I want more Bowditch books they are so good, and the audio ones are especially entertaining. Love the accent!