Bug Man

When a national disaster strikes, "first the living" is the rule. Unless you're the Bug Man. When Hurricane Katrina strikes New Orleans, forensic entomologist Nick Polchak signs up to help with the recovery effort. He is known as the Bug Man for his knowledge of insects and what they can reveal about the dead. The government's mandate is clear-rescue the living first, recover the dead later. But something is very wrong in the toxic soup-bowl of post-Katrina New Orleans. Someone is using the cover of disaster to kill... hiding the victims of murder in the same watery grave as the victims of Katrina. It's a tale only the dead can tell. But no one besides the Bug Man is listening. "... stands out from the pack of CSI-inspired mysteries with its quirky hero and creative handling of the Hurricane Katrina disaster. " -Publishers Weekly (Starred Review)

Dogs have long been man's best friend, but the Bug Man's friends is a rare breed... the cadaver dog. All roads lead to the White House for John Henry Braden, the charismatic senator from Virginia aristocracy whose beautiful wife Victoria is the talk of Washington and the crown jewel of Endor, her backwoods Virginia hometown. But when bodies turn up on Braden's propertyùthe site of a multimillion dollar construction project he's spearheadingùthe senator's spin doctors, led by his future first lady, must act quickly to quell a conspiracy before it blemishes their presidential campaign. Enter entomologist Nick Polchak, the quirky bug expert enlisted to determine if the senator's bone yard is a forgotten cemetery or a crime scene. To help with the investigation, Polchak follows local legend to Alena Savard, a mysterious woman known for her ability to turn mongrels into the best search dogs around. They soon find themselves on the trail of a desperate individual bent on protecting a terrible secret. Less than Dead is an unforgettable tale of crime and concealment in the corridors of high-stakes politicsùas well as in the deepest contours of the human heart.

Nick Polchak must stop a terrorist from causing a global ecological nightmare. Two beautiful women from Nick's past are competing for his heart. He's not sure which impending disaster makes him more nervous. When forensic entomologist Nick Polchak is called to the scene of a murder on a small organic farm in North Carolina, he is astonished to find that, the victim's estranged wife is an old friend, a woman he once worked with a woman he once had feelings for. When she asks Nick to investigate her husband's drug-related murder, Nick seeks the assistance of Alena Savard, the reclusive dog trainer known to the people of northern Virginia as the Witch of Endor. Alena jumps at the chance to renew her relationship with Nick but when she arrives in North Carolina, she discovers that she's not the only woman who has her eye on the Bug Man. Soon Nick finds his usually analytical mind clouded by thoughts of a strangely human nature. These two women have stirred feelings that he can't quite fathom feelings of lost opportunities and future possibilities . . . Now Nick must navigate the unexplored territory of his own heart while he solves an agro terrorist's plot to ignite an environmental holocaust that could spread to the ends of the earth.

The Bug Man is getting married on Saturday... if his fiancé can find him. Forensic entomologist Nick Polchak lives in a world of maggots and blow flies and decomposing bodies. No wonder he's still single. But Nick has finally found a woman as strange as he is - dog trainer Alena Savard, a woman who is odd, reclusive, and can seemingly talk to animals. It was a match made in heaven. Nick and Alena are scheduled to be married on Saturday - but there's one small problem. Nick has disappeared. Caught up in a murder case involving an old friend, Nick finds himself on a manhunt that's drawing him farther and farther from the church where Alena is waiting. But will he make it back in time? Could Nick's single-minded focus cause him to forget his own wedding? Is he really pursuing a killer, or is he running away from something else?

All four novels from the Bug Man series now available in one e-book collection. First the Dead. Nick tries to find a killer in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina's attack on New Orleans. But the more he digs the stronger-and deadlier-the resistance becomes. Nick is there to collect bodies, and he's going to do just that-especially when he starts finding bodies that were clearly dead before the hurricane. He understands that all forensic evidence will soon disintegrate in the hot, contaminated water . . . and he knows that's exactly what the killer wants to happen. Less than Dead. Nick has finally met his match. When a grave is discovered on property owned by the front-running candidate for the next presidential election, the FBI immediately becomes involved. The graves then vanish and Nick follows local legend to the bizarre Alena who keeps to herself in the mountains of Northern Virginia, training cadaver dogs. Together they discover that this small town-and the presidential-hopeful-have closets full of skeletons. Ends of the Earth. Nick struggles to protect a victim's family from agro-terrorists in North Carolina. After dissecting the remains of a bale of marijuana scattered in the tomato fields, Nick learns that the South American marijuana is strangely infested with a common North Carolina insect: the tobacco hornworm. To further confound the mystery, the bugs are infected with a fungus from Asia, and Nick begins to suspect his victim wasn't killed because of the marijuana, but because of the insects it contained. He then discovers that a vicious agricultural scheme is underway to cripple US corn and ethanol production. Nick of Time. The Bug Man is getting married on Saturday . . . if his fiancée can find him. Forensic entomologist Nick Polchak lives in a world of maggots and blowflies and decomposing bodies. No wonder he's still single. But Nick has finally found a woman as strange as he is-dog trainer Alena Savard, a woman who is odd, reclusive, and can seemingly talk to animals. It was a match made in heaven. Nick and Alena are scheduled to be married on Saturday-but there's one small problem. Nick has disappeared. Caught up in a murder case involving an old friend, Nick finds himself on a manhunt that's drawing him farther and farther from the church where Alena is waiting. But will he make it back in time? Could Nick's single-minded focus cause him to forget his own wedding? Is he really pursuing a killer, or is he running away from something else?

Three novels from Tim Downs now available in one e-book collection.First the DeadNick tries to find a killer in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina's attack on New Orleans. But the more he digs the stronger-and deadlier-the resistance becomes. Nick is there to collect bodies, and he's going to do just that-especially when he starts finding bodies that were clearly dead before the hurricane. He understands that all forensic evidence will soon disintegrate in the hot, contaminated water . . . and he knows that's exactly what the killer wants to happen.Less than DeadNick has finally met his match. When a grave is discovered on property owned by the front-running candidate for the next presidential election, the FBI immediately becomes involved. The graves then vanish and Nick follows local legend to the bizarre Alena who keeps to herself in the mountains of Northern Virginia, training cadaver dogs. Together they discover that this small town-and the presidential-hopeful-have closets full of skeletons.Ends of the EarthNick struggles to protect a victim's family from agro-terrorists in North Carolina. After dissecting the remains of a bale of marijuana scattered in the tomato fields, Nick learns that the South American marijuana is strangely infested with a common North Carolina insect: the tobacco hornworm. To further confound the mystery, the bugs are infected with a fungus from Asia, and Nick begins to suspect his victim wasn't killed because of the marijuana, but because of the insects it contained. He then discovers that a vicious agricultural scheme is underway to cripple US corn and ethanol production.Nick of TimeThe Bug Man is getting married on Saturday . . . if his fiancée can find him.Forensic entomologist Nick Polchak lives in a world of maggots and blow flies and decomposing bodies. No wonder he's still single.But Nick has finally found a woman as strange as he is-dog trainer Alena Savard, a woman who is odd, reclusive, and can seemingly talk to animals. It was a match made in heaven.Nick and Alena are scheduled to be married on Saturday-but there's one small problem. Nick has disappeared.Caught up in a murder case involving an old friend, Nick finds himself on a manhunt that's drawing him farther and farther from the church where Alena is waiting. But will he make it back in time? Could Nick's single-minded focus cause him to forget his own wedding? Is he really pursuing a killer, or is he running away from something else?