Reading order
| # | Title | Published | Author | Buy on Amazon |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Shoofly Pie | 2003 | Tim Downs | Buy |
| 2 | Chop Shop | 2004 | Tim Downs | Buy |
| 3 | First the Dead | 2008 | Tim Downs | Buy |
| 4 | Less than Dead | 2008 | Tim Downs | Buy |
| 5 | Ends of the Earth | 2009 | Tim Downs | Buy |
| 6 | Nick of Time | 2011 | Tim Downs | Buy |
| 7 | The Bug Man Collection | 2015 | Tim Downs | Buy |
The Bug Man series follows Dr. Nick Polchak, a forensic entomologist who uses his knowledge of insects to solve crimes that baffle conventional investigators. Starting with Shoofly Pie in 2003, the seven books take Polchak from murder investigations in rural Virginia to disaster response in post-Katrina New Orleans. Tim Downs builds each mystery around real forensic entomology principles, giving the books an educational dimension alongside the suspense.
Polchak is a well-drawn character whose obsession with bugs and inability to read social situations create comedy and conflict in equal measure. The series pairs him with different law enforcement partners and puts him in increasingly high-stakes scenarios. First the Dead sends him to New Orleans in the wake of Hurricane Katrina, while Ends of the Earth raises the stakes to an international level. The Bug Man Collection, published in 2015, compiles the series for readers who want to take it all in at once.