From the UK’s leading forensic scientist and Sunday Times bestselling author of All That Remains and Written in Bone: a gripping exploration of forensic science, told through often shocking real cases to assess its triumphs, failures, and future.
‘No scientist communicates better.’ Val McDermid, award-winning author of the Detective Karen Pirie series
For over forty years, Professor Dame Sue Black has analysed criminal evidence at the highest level. As the UK’s leading forensic scientist, she has stood in court as an expert witness, repeatedly putting her research and reputation on the line, all in the name of justice.
Now in An Expert Witness she puts forensic science itself on trial.
Drawing on shocking real cases and true crime, from historic poisonings to modern sexual offences, Sue Black traces the evolution of forensic science, from early identification methods to more recent breakthroughs such as DNA profiling, Sue’s own vein identification research, and the emerging role of artificial intelligence in criminal investigation.
She shows where science has delivered justice, and where failures have led to devastating consequences, including wrongful convictions such as that of Andrew Malkinson, imprisoned for seventeen years for a crime he did not commit.
As she reflects on life serving as an expert witness, Sue looks back at landmark cases to tell the story of forensic science, ask questions for its future, and explain why this book marks the close of a defining chapter in one of the most extraordinary careers in modern forensic science.
Praise for Professor Dame Sue Black:
‘Gripping from the start . . . fascinating in its detail of real life cases and written with a narrative that propels you forward to the next page.’ Dr Richard Shepherd, forensic pathologist and author of Unnatural Causes
‘Engrossing’ Financial Times
‘Dame Sue Black writes about life and death with great tenderness [and] with impeccable science lucidly explained . . . I am genuinely glad I read this book.’ Lee Child, bestselling author of the Reacher series
‘Part meditation, part popular science and part memoir . . . fascinating’ Sunday Times
‘Black writes with rare precision and compassion’ Evening Standard
‘For someone who deals in death every day, Sue Black has a rare ability to make blood and bones come alive. A marvellous writer.’ Ruth Davidson, SMP
‘Utterly gripping’ Guardian
Professor Lady Sue Black is one of the world’s leading anatomists and forensic anthropologists. She is President of John’s College, Oxford and previously Pro-Vice Chancellor for Engagement at Lancaster University. From 2003 to 2018 she was Professor of Anatomy and Forensic Anthropology at the University of Dundee.
She was the lead anthropologist for the British Forensic Team in the war crimes investigations in Kosovo, and one of the first forensic scientists to travel to Thailand following the Indian Ocean tsunami.
Sue was appointed Dame Commander of the Order of the British Empire for services to forensic anthropology and is a Lady of the Most Ancient and Most Noble Order of the Thistle.
She is the author of the critically acclaimed and award-winning Sunday Times bestsellers All That Remains and Written in Bone. Her new book, An Expert Witness: Forensic Science on Trial is published in 2026.
