1. Introduction to ticks 2. Tick classification and anatomy 3. The tick life cycle 4. Blood feeding as a life choice 5. Tick saliva 6. Tick and tick-borne disease distribution 7. Tick-borne diseases of humans 8. Tick-borne diseases of animals 9. The tick microbiome 10. Ticks and climate change 11. Controlling ticks and tick-borne diseases 12. Conclusions