Shoofly Pie & Chop Shop

Book excerpt: In 2003, the Shoofly Pie introduced an intriguing and unique detective: forensic entomologist Nick Polchak. So popular did Polchak become that author Tim Downs has now published five Bug Man novels. And now for the first time: the first two Bug Man novels under one cover. Shoofly Pie Within minutes of a murder, the first fly arrives at the scene. Soon there are hundreds, then thousands, and each one knows the victim's story... Thirty-year-old Kathryn Guilford turns to Dr. Nick Polchak, the Bug Man, to help her learn the truth about the apparent suicide of her longtime friend and onetime suitor. Polchak introduces her to a mysterious world of blood-seeking flies and flesh-eating beetles. But there's a problem... Kathryn Guilford has a pathological fear of insects. Now she must confront her darkest fears to unearth a decade-long conspiracy that threatens to turn her entire world upside down. Chop Shop Young Dr. Riley McKay has worked hard toward her career in pathology. But her promising future is threatened when suspicious activities -- bungled autopsies, concealed evidence, and unexplained wounds -- incriminate her supervising pathologist at the Allegheny County Coroner's Office in Pittsburgh, Dr. Nathan Lassiter. When Riley is ignored by her seniors and threatened by Dr. Lassiter, she turns in desperation to Dr. Nick Polchak, the Bug Man, to help her uncover the truth. From a handful of tiny maggots, Nick and Riley begin to unearth the facts... The flies on the wall can talk. Forensic entomologist Nick Polchak is listening.