Book Review and Giveaway: First the Dead: A Bug Man Novel by Tim Downs

I really liked the history, mystery and forensics in this story.
First the Dead: A Bug Man Novel
by Tim Downs

Hardcover: 368 pages
Publisher: Thomas Nelson; First Edition edition (January 8, 2008)
ISBN-13: 978-1595540249
Genre: Mystery
My Rating: 4.25 of 5.0

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)

Review:
Nick Polchak is a forensic entomologist more commonly known as “the Bug Man”. He studies the bugs (maggots, larvae and flies) that inhabit, grow and feed off of dead bodies. He is able to determine time of death, location and many other details if he gets to the bugs early enough. Nick is often called in as part of a DMORT (Disaster Mortuary Operational Response Team) when there is a crisis like an airplane crash or natural disaster where bodies have to be recovered and identified. This time the team has been called in to set up on the edge of New Orleans to help deal with the expected disaster of Hurricane Katrina. The order has been given that everyone, including Nick, is to help rescue the living first and worry about dead bodies later.

Nick isn’t happy about the order to ignore the dead as he knows that forensic evidence on the dead bodies will quickly deteriorate in the flood conditions left behind by the hurricane. He tries to comply with the order but when he discovers two bodies that he suspects did not die in the hurricane, but before it, he can’t stop himself from trying to preserve the evidence. But someone else clearly doesn’t want him preserving any evidence or poking his nose into unexplained deaths found in the flooded homes.

Nick is a very brusque and dry character – a singular loner. The DMORT psychologist, Dr. Beth Woodbridge, would love to figure Nick out but he is clearly, adamantly unwilling to cooperate with analysis. I really enjoyed the forensic elements of this story and the mystery. I also found the history of Katrina’s impact on New Orleans very fascinating. There is also detailed description of meth addiction which was all new to me.

Not all of my ladies’ book club members liked this. However, I think any reader who enjoys CSI type shows or novels should enjoy this book and series. Of course, that assumes that the reader isn’t turned off by bugs. Although I got the book at deep discount through Christianbooks.com I did not really find anything more than a sentence or two that might be considered to touch on faith. One of our book club ladies has read more books in the series and said that some of the others do have some faith references. I would be interested in reading more in this series.

This was purchased for Ladies' Book Club discussion in October. I will count it towards my TBR since I have had it since 2014.

ONE (gently read) hard cover PRINT COPY GIVEAWAY

US Only

ENTRY FORM HERE

(Don't forget to fill in the form for entry!

I have noticed a few commenters who forgot to enter through the Form.)

For 3 Extra Bonus entries (a) comment on the review, OR

(b) Visit the AUTHOR'S FACEBOOK PAGE and tell me something you learned or like there.

* This contest is open to US only for Print Copy.
* This contest will close 5 PM (Central) October 17, 2015.
WINNER WILL BE ANNOUNCED after October 17, 2015.
Winners will have 72 hours to respond on the winners form linked in the announcement or by email.

Guest Post by D. J. Donaldson: A Forensic/Medical Author’s Take on Ebola and the CDC

Outbreak… Breakdown

A Forensic/Medical Author’s Take on Ebola and the CDC

by D. J. Donaldson

My book, Louisiana Fever, involves the spread of a bleeding disease known as Crimean Congo hemorrhagic fever. This is a real disease that, like its close relative, Ebola, is caused by an infectious virus. And having researched this thoroughly (and having come from a forensic/health background) I feel compelled to weigh in on the Ebola outbreak.

When I was plotting Louisiana Fever, I figured I ought to have a character in the book that was once an infectious disease specialist at the CDC. It seemed like a logical idea because the CDC is this country’s unquestioned champion against virulent organisms, an organization staffed with experts that know every nuance of tropical viruses and how they can be controlled.

To make sure my writing about the CDC would have an authentic ring to it, I asked the public relations office of the CDC if I might be given a tour of the place. “Sorry,” I was told. “We don’t give tours.” Considering how many dangerous viruses are stored in the various labs there, that seemed like a good policy, even to me. So there would be no tour. But then I heard from someone in my department at the U. of Tennessee Medical Center that one of our former graduate students now worked at the CDC. I began to wonder if this connection might work to my advantage.

And it certainly did. The former student was now a virology section chief. A SECTION CHIEF…. Holy cow! This could be my way in. But would the man be generous by nature and sympathetic to writers? He proved to be both of those.

On the day of my visit, I reported to the security office as instructed. There, I had to wait until my host came to escort me into the bowels of the place… no wandering around on my own with a visitor’s badge. That day I saw the hot zone in action and spoke with experts in many fields of virology, even spent some time with the world expert on porcine retroviruses. At the end of my visit—including all the cumbersome clinical protocols I had to engage in both before and during said visit—I not only left feeling more educated, but actually more safe and secure that no tropical virus would ever be a threat to this country… not with the meticulous, detail-oriented, security conscious, microbe fighters at the CDC watching out for us.

So, it’s with much regret and… yes, even a little fear, that I witnessed the head of the CDC recently assuring us that the Ebola virus is very difficult to transmit and that we know exactly how to control it. Instead of (what looked like) his clumsy attempts to soothe an ignorant and paranoid public, the CDC head should have given a blunt assessment, educated everyone like adults, and encouraged them to exercise precaution. Then, seemingly in answer, two nurses who cared for the index patient from Liberia become Ebola positive. And the CDC clears one of those nurses to take a commercial airline flight, even though she was in the early stages of Ebola infection…depressing. From a medical professional standpoint, this was practically criminal negligence. At present, the disease is not transmitted by air ("airborne"), but any scientist worth his/her salt cannot account for mutations the virus may undergo. This is why the job of the CDC is to contain harmful microbes, issue protocols to protect the public against them and ultimately eradicate them... period. It is not to be PR professionals for television cameras and fostering carelessness.

I’m still convinced that the combined knowledge and brainpower of the CDC staff will be a major impediment to any virus taking over this country. But Ebola probably has some tricks we haven’t seen yet. That means we may lose a few more battles before we can declare that this particular threat is behind us.

Meanwhile, how is development of that Ebola vaccine coming?

D.J. Donaldson is a retired professor of Anatomy and Neurobiology at the University of Tennessee, Health Science Center—where he taught and published dozens of papers on wound-healing and other health issues. He is the author of Louisiana Fever, one of the seven in the Andy Broussard/Kit Franklyn series of forensic mystery thrillers.
Don Donaldson Website Link

Louisiana Fever:  http://bit.ly/1u5ohGC

Amazon:  http://amzn.to/1tEzXhI

B&N:    http://bit.ly/1tjAQw9

Apple:  http://bit.ly/1zhb3YX

Kobo:   http://bit.ly/1tQODeM

Please see my review post for more information about Louisiana Fever.

Book Review: Louisiana Fever by D. J. Donaldson

This is an engaging, suspenseful, and timely mystery with lots of forensic detail and distinct characters.

Louisiana Fever
by D.J. Donaldson

File Size: 746 KB
Print Length: 301 pages
Publisher: Astor + Blue Editions;
Reprint edition (March 5, 2013)
Sold by: Amazon Digital Services, Inc.
ASIN: B00L8B7EZO

Genre: Forensic Mystery
My Rating: 4.5 of 5.0

Book Description
Publication Date: March 5, 2013
“D.J. Donaldson is superb at spinning medical fact into gripping suspense. With his in-depth knowledge of science and medicine, he is one of very few authors who can write with convincing authority.” --Tess Gerritsen, NY Times best-selling author of the Rizzoli & Isles novels
    Andy Broussard, the plump and proud New Orleans medical examiner, obviously loves food. Less apparent to the casual observer is his hatred of murderers. Together with his gorgeous sidekick, psychologist Kit Franklyn, the two make a powerful, although improbable, mystery solving duo.
    When the beautiful Kit goes to meet an anonymous stranger—who’s been sending her roses—the man drops dead at her feet before she even could even get his name. Game on.
    Andy Broussard soon learns that the man carried a lethal pathogen similar to the deadly Ebola virus. Soon, another body turns up with the same bug. Panic is imminent as the threat of pandemic is more real than ever before. The danger is even more acute, because the carrier is mobile, his identity is an absolute shocker, he knows he’s a walking weapon and… he’s on a quest to find Broussard. And Kit isn’t safe either. When she investigates her mystery suitor further, she runs afoul of a cold blooded killer, every bit as deadly as the man searching for Broussard.
    Louisiana Fever is written in Donaldson’s unique style: A hard-hitting, punchy, action-packed prose that’s dripping with a folksy, decidedly southern, sense of irony. Add in Donaldson’s brilliant first hand knowledge of forensics and the sultry flavor of New Orleans, and the result is first class forensic procedural within an irresistibly delectable mystery.

Review:
Andy Broussard is the true lead in this story. He is not a movie-star character but rather a plump, aging and extremely focused man. He is a unique and eccentric New Orleans medical examiner. He is particular to routine which includes precise procedures and dedication to finding clues to help identify the cause of death and the murderers, when applicable.

Kit is a criminal psychologist who works hand in hand with Andy and the local police, helping to profile and track down killers. Kit is given a cryptic note to meet a mysterious admirer who has been leaving yellow roses for her. She arrives at the restaurant to see a stranger in the corner with a yellow rose. He rises from his seat calling her name and then collapses. The cafe’s indomitable owner, Grandma O, gives CPR with the help of another man until the medics arrive. Unfortunately the man is pronounced dead and there is no identification found. Andy is puzzled by symptoms he discovers during the careful autopsy. Although the man died of a heart attack there is evidence of a more dangerous disease that Andy cannot identify.

Kits boyfriend, Teddy, arrives home just in time to help her begin tracking clues to identify the man. The few clues indicate the man may have spent time on the docks so that is where they begin their search.

Andy is called out to another very gruesome death scene. Walter Baldwin has been found dead, curled in the corner of his closet and with blood splattered throughout his apartment. Some of the symptoms match those of the unknown man and Andy is becoming concerned that a fast acting, contagious disease has hit his town. This fear becomes more than suspicion when one of Andy’s staff becomes ill with the deadly, Ebola-like symptoms.

Kit disappears and after a day of worry and contacting family and friends. the officers learn that she actually was taken in circumstances that indicate a forcible abduction. Andy ardently continues his detailed forensic work, both in the lab and beyond, looking for clues to help uncover the source of the disease and to help find Kit’s kidnappers. Meanwhile he is unwittingly being stalked by Walter’s murderer.

I thoroughly enjoyed the forensic details and clues in this story. It has an beginning hook that provides an unusual lead into the plot.  The mystery of the contagious disease is scary, realistic and wonderfully portrayed with a touch of irony. I especially liked Andy as a character although I found Kit to be self-centered and shallow. New Orleans serves as a great backdrop setting with its colorful cultural elements as well as the surrounding swamp where criminals might seek to hide. The supporting cast, including Homicide Detective Gatlin, Grandma O, Bubba and others are good additional characters of interest. I also appreciate the fact that the language is clean without loosing anything in the offering.

This is the first book I have read by this author and apparently this book is part of a series. This read fine alone but made me want to read the first and subsequent stories. I highly recommend this book and Mr. Donaldson’s other work to readers who love a good mystery, great forensic detail and interesting characters.

(Note: I might have been disturbed that the characters connected with cell phones but the publisher forewarned me that this is a reprint of a book originally published in 1996.)

I am thankful to the author and his publisher for offering the timely guest post by this author and for providing this great forensic mystery for an honest review.

Don't miss the timely guest post by Mr. Donaldson regarding the current Ebola outbreak and CDC.

Audiobook Review: Bones Are Forever by Kathy Reichs

This is another engaging mystery from a solid series with forensic focus and a strong female lead.
Bones Are Forever: A Novel (Temperance Brennan)
Kathy Reichs (Author), Linda Emond (Reader) 

• Audio CD
• Publisher: Simon & Schuster Audio; Unabridged edition (August 28, 2012)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 144234900X
• ISBN-13: 978-1442349001

Genre: Forensic Mystery
My Rating: 4.25 of 5.0

Book Description
Release Date: August 28, 2012 | Series: Temperance Brennan
Kathy Reichs, #1 New York Times bestselling author and producer of the Fox hit series Bones, is at her brilliant best in a riveting novel featuring forensic anthropologist Tempe Brennan—a story of infanticide, murder, and corruption set in the high-stakes, high-danger world of diamond mining.

Temperance Brennan has been asked to examine the corpses of three dead babies in Montreal. It’s a difficult assignment, complicated further by the fact that her long-time flame Detective Ryan is investigating the infants’ mother, a former (and possibly current) prostitute. When the woman flees to Edmonton, the investigation is joined by Royal Canadian Mounted Police sergeant with whom Tempe had an ill-advised fling over a decade earlier. The dissonant team heads to remotest Yellowknife—mining country—to pursue an ever more sinister trail.

     With the Fox series Bones in its seventh season and her popularity at its broadest ever, Kathy Reichs reaches new heights in storytelling and suspense-building. Bones Are Forever shimmers with sexual tension, crackling dialogue, and the thrilling twists Reichs delivers so well.

Review:
This is book 15 of the Temperance Brennan series. Tempe is a forensic anthropologist who spends much of her time consulting on crime scenes when bodies are found that are so degraded that they need her special expertise to sort through the bones, the dirt, the bugs and other details that can help to identify the age and gender of the body and the time and cause of death. Each book describes crime scenes that Tempe is called in on and then she digs in and pursues the clues with the help of the police until she solves the crime. Most of the time Tempe works along side Detective Ryan with whom she had a long, up and down, relationship through the series.

In this volume three abandoned infants are discovered. Tempe sets off to hunt down the murderous mother with Ryan and Oliver, a Canadian Detective with whom Tempe had a post divorce fling ten years before.  Although there is jealous posturing and denigrating between the men, there is no romance in this episode. The hunt for the mother of the dead babies takes the three across Canada to Edmonton and the remote mining country of Yellowknife.  Tempe pushes the investigation, getting a few bumps and bruises along the way. New murders follow her inquiries, and the trail leads to what appears to be a conflict between caribou  conservationists and diamond mining interests. Tempe (and the reader) is given quick, but detailed, lessons on diamond mining. Ryan and Oliver are pulled off to other tasks just as Tempe unravels the mystery and is kidnaped by the killers.Will anyone find her before it's too late or will she be able to fight her way out?

Ms. Reichs writes with crisp details, including the dirt, the maggots and the deteriorating bones.  Tempe, as usual, goes beyond her basic duties to embroil herself in the investigation. As soon as I started listening to the Audio I remembered how much I enjoyed Tempe’s persistent character and her unique, vivid description of the crime scene and the forensic process. The narrator, Linda Emond has done the past several books and she has a good grasp of the crisp attention to detail as well as the sometimes weary tone for the characters who face so much frustration in the cruel crimes they investigate. Ms Emond does a beautiful job with the French words that go along with the Quebec setting.  Although I didn't find this episode to be overly exciting, the steady narration helps to keep the listener engaged through the suspenseful ending.

This series is a great one for readers who like mystery, strong female characters and aren’t too squeamish to be put off by the nitty-gritty forensic detail.  I had read or listened to books 1 through 12 so I knew the background of the characters and was only missing the latest fall out between Tempe and Ryan. I think this particular book could be read as a stand alone as it has less personal complications and emotions than many of the prior books. However, I do recommend the whole series, listened to or read in order.



Thank you to Simon and Schuster for providing this Audio to review through Audiobook Jukebox.
I will add this to my Audio and Mystery Challenge lists.