Forensics: What Bugs, Burns, Prints, DNA, and More Tell Us About Crime Paperback – April 5, 2016

Regardless of it being based in the UK it sheds light on other places including the U.S. and ultimately it’s pretty useful for learning about the various applications and techniques of forensics, why they are important, how they can be used, and how they may tie together to provide information. Also the book shows incorrect applications and the importance of taking certain forensic methodologies with a grain of salt. An amazing read if you want an introduction to forensics and how they work

I'm a huge fan of non-fiction forensics, so I've read a few books in the genre. However, I have learned a great deal of entirely new and mind-boggling information from McDermid's work, especially how the UK's forensics networks differ from the United States. This is such an easy-to-read, page-turning book. She includes photographs as well. A few missed periods and spelling errors (can get a bit distracting) which I attributed to editing rather than the author, but otherwise I would recommend this to anyone interested in pathology, forensics, or even true crime.

This is an entry level text, which offers about the same amount of information as if you sat down and watched a season or two of a police procedural drama. I had a distinct impression that I was following a passionate curator through a museum. Ms. McDermid draws us in and intrigues us with the histories and capabilities of various investigative techniques, while having the diligence and courage to temper those tales with knowledge of their shortcomings.There's significant value in the author's rigor, but this book left me wanting. Some of this is likely my fault because I'd prefer to wander through the reeds of minutiae of each specialty. At least a little bit it's because the author doesn't very well wrap up each segment, so I had a bunch of "What happened after that?!" moments.'Forensics' does serve as a launchpad for further reading, and for that reason I'll probably suggest it to others with relevant interests.

As a long time fan of the CSI and NCIS series, I welcome this summary of the actual development of forensic science, both the successes and the failures. I think this has given me a more realistic view of its capabilities and limitations. And it’s very readable.

I really enjoyed this book. Firstly, it was well written, & didn't dumb down the material but DID make it accessible. Secondly it showed flaws in the system and how much we need to improve, and how we overestimate what crime labs need to do to prove things. (DNA tests aren't for every crime!) It organized the topics into concise sections as well. I enjoyed it and recommend reading it!

The book is nice enough to read but the subtitle is a bit misleading. You will learn no forensic techniques here - it is just an overview of what is realistic to expect from forensics at this time (written in 2015.). That said, it contains references to a few interesting cases throughout the history and I found it enjoyable enough. I recommend it for a general "getting to know about" forensics adventure but do not expect too much details or a manual on how to start studying forensics...

Great product

Ms McDermid covers a lot of forensic ground here about crime from a British perspective - a good overview of scientific advances available to homicide investigators as of circa 2014. However, it took me an over-long time to finish reading Forensics: The Anatomy of Crime due to the ever-present, startlingly realistic images of FLIES on every other page. I realize of course that flies yield up serious evidence regarding the various stages of decomposition but these distracting reminders of the way of all flesh often gave me pause and prevented me from steadily turning pages. I kept thinking of what Emily Dickinson once wrote: "I heard a fly buzz when I died."