I would recommend this book to anyone with an interest in biology, the human body, or true crime.

A very interesting, not too dry nonfiction about the bones and human body. Black uses many of her own real life cases and experiences to make this a very readable but informative book. But this book is NOT for anyone who is squeamish. I don’t think I am generally very squeamish but I had a hard time with some of the cases discussed this book. Black doesn’t really hold back on some details! Or, maybe she does and her work is even more gruesome than I could handle.

I learned a lot from this book. About the human body, of course, but also how a forensic anthropologist does their job, their court room experiences, other dating and scientific techniques, and even small tips (bring treats!). I recommend this book and appreciate the advance review given in exchange for an honest review!

Thanks to Netgalley and Skyhorse Publishing for a copy in exchange for a fair and honest review.

Written in Bone is a fascinating, if horrifying, piece by piece look into the work of a forensic anthropologist.The workings of the body have always fascinated me. This interest almost led to an education as a forensic pathologist. Written in Bone fed that interest for the details of anatomy and how these details help solve criminal cases. The author uses real-life examples from her career to explain how important something as small as a fingerbone can be to giving a victim of violent crimes back some measure of dignity. As a science-based book, I learned a lot from Written in Bone, not only about anatomy but also about the workings of a courtroom and how expert testimony plays a role.

While the case examples fascinated me with their anatomical focus, the horror of them reminded me why I didn't become a forensic pathologist. Black worked on cases with child abusers, serial killers, and rapists. I'd advise trigger warnings to be listed in the book's description. I appreciated Black's frankness when discussing these cases and how she gave insight to her emotional reaction to them without letting her emotions affect her work. There is also a section in which Black gives a personal story. I found that incredibly brave, as well as a reminder that forensic anthropology, while academically fascinating, cannot be distanced from the real trauma endured by real people.

I recommend Written in Bone to anyone with a interest in forensic science or biology. However, I warn potential readers that the cases detailed often are disturbing and may be triggering, though the author has done a good job of handling the subjects sensitively.

Written in Bone: Hidden Stories in What We Leave Behind
by Sue Black

This is the second book by the internationally renowned forensic anthropologist and human anatomist Dame Black. She has traveled the world solving cases because of her expertise. In this book she explains how each part of our bodies change, how they change and when, and how that makes it so someone like her can identify a deceased body's age, sex, origin, health, and nationality by finding just a few bones.

The book is organized head to toe and explains all the above with an interesting, intelligent, and professional way. She gives examples of recent and past cases as examples. She also explains how cases were solved before DNA, fingerprints, and the new modern methods of today. Those cases were just as fascinating.

All the cases were amazing! Just how the cases were conducted, the dead person's identity was reasoned by the bones, teeth, etc. was amazing! Some of those cases were so sad and heartbreaking too! I must say I cried a few times. I don't know how she did it.

She also shared personal stories that were both sad and interesting. One was a trip that could have gotten her killed. It was an international trip to see how some people had died in Qatar/Syria.

This book had me transfixed! It was detailed and specific. If you don't like science, this isn't for you! Although Black does a marvelous job of explaining where the part of the body the bone is she is discussing. The book is filled with biological names but don't let that put you off. I do wish there were graphs of the body areas in the book. I think that would help.

I want to thank the publisher and NetGalley for letting me read this book! The review is all my own opinion. I highly recommend!

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Thank you to Skyhorse Publishing and NetGalley for providing me with an ARC of this incredible book, and congratulations to Sue Black for the release of an absolute treasure!

As a mad true crime fan, I was absolutely delighted to be given the opportunity to read this early. I was initially apprehensive that an anatomically based book would be dry and could be tough to get through but somehow Sue made me laugh and kept me hooked throughout. This book was highly educational and I loved the unique voice of Sue as she took us on a journey through the body, analysing each main group of bones to give us insight into the story a forensic anthropologist can decipher from each bone. The anecdotes sprinkled throughout were delivered with empathy and compassion under the lens of an expert that absolutely knows her stuff. I really enjoyed this book and have added Sue Black’s first book “All That Remains” to my TBR! 

I would recommend this book to anyone who has an interest in true crime, anatomy or forensics. Be warned: Do not read this book at night as you will be sucked into the fascinating world of forensic anthropology and may not surface until daybreak.

This review has been posted to Instagram and Goodreads

Excellent. A highly recommended first purchase for collections where true crime and forensic titles are popular.

I love true crime books, and this was no exception. I had a fair idea I was going to enjoy this as I loved All That Remains (2018). This book is slightly different in that instead of discussing the more philosophical side of forensic anthropology, it’s more about how a forensic anthropologist will use the clues in ones to determine who or what they belong to. There’s also lots of case studies to illustrate each skeleton part too!

The author has a really nice writing style - informative without overloading with information but simplified without dumbing it down. The way the book was split up too was really well done, and I like how each section focused on a different part of the skeleton.

A must read for anybody who wants to dig down a little further into what stories our bones can tell and how forensic anthropologists can interpret them.

Thank you to NetGalley and Skyhorse Publishing for providing me with a copy of this eARC.

I received a free e-ARC from the author/publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

I really enjoyed Written in Bone. It's a mix of forensic anthropology and anatomy/biology. The author discusses sections of the skeleton in each chapter, for example, the spine or the cranium. She gives information on not only the anatomy and development of the bones, but also about how they can help identify remains, and help discover what happened to them. There are plenty of real-world examples of how the author, (or other professionals) have put this knowledge into practice. I found all of the explanations easy to understand, and I learned a lot that I didn't know.
My only critique is that the writing style does vary quite a bit; some sections are very dry and formal, while others are extremely conversational. However, I understand that this is probably due to the difficulties of a professional writing for a lay audience.

I'd recommend this book to anyone with an interest in anatomy, true crime, biology, or forensic anthropology. If you loved the tv show Bones and want to know more of the science behind the show, this is the book for you.

Really great read! Good mix of science and true crime. Learned a lot about bones that was new information. Enjoyed the chapter layout from skull to tailbone.

It feels odd to say that a book about dead bodies is entertaining, but there you have it! I was delighted and entertained by this book, and I learned so much about skeletons and the marks we carry with us. Very enjoyable.

I love the format of this book. I couldn’t put it down. Not only did I feel like I was being given an education, the stories that she would include were perfectly timed in each chapter. Absolutely recommend this one. Great read!

Thanks to NetGalley for the ARC.

This book was fascinating. A bit of it was over my head because science is not really my subject, but I enjoyed it. I learned a lot about skeletons from it and though there were dark stories it also had some humor.

I have always loved science, and after watching most of the seasons of Bones, I found forensic anthropology fascinating, so when I saw this book on Netgalley I wanted to pick it up.

I'm so glad I did. Sue Black does a wonderful job of going through the various body parts that can be used to identify individuals and has plenty of fascinating stories to go with it. The language is just technical enough that it is easy to understand. It is often hard to find the balance between too technical and too simple, but I think she found it.

The stories are gory and detailed, so while I don't recommend you eat while reading, I am comfortable to say that if crime shows are what you enjoy you should pick this up so you can annoy your friends by pointing out all the incorrect assumptions made for TV drama.

I especially enjoyed the chapter on hands, which while reading through it I became curious as to what an extra transverse crease on fingers looked like so I googled it and was shocked to discover I actually have one on my pinky finger.

I'd love to see what else she has written!

What a miracle the human body is! The mechanics and biology are unreal. The author of this exceptional book, a forensic anthropologist, explains bones and other remains and their stories from head to toe in vivid detail. She includes information such as differentiating between animal and human bones to establishing whether they have forensic relevance to the date of death and the age of the person to the manner and cause of death to determining where bone fragments in a fire fit in. She describes her incredibly fascinating experiences from the courtroom, woods and back yards, all around the world. Though the subject is difficult, it is real life and death and is dealt with here with both heart rending humanity and sharp wit.

Forensics has always intrigued me and this book is breathtaking in its information. Amongst the plethora of anecdotes which stand out most for me are the bone splinter in the washing machine, the unique death of an elderly man, the suitcase...case, three types of hanging, cat hair forensics and David's finger.

You will also learn what can and cannot be said by forensic anthropologists in court cases. Thank goodness for those in forensics who advocate for the dead and the living.

Please know the book includes stories about rape, torture, child abuse and dismemberment. However, those who are intrigued by the human body, forensics and true crime will find a lot to interest you. I feel smarter after reading it.

My sincere thank you to Skyhorse Publishing and NetGalley for this enthralling eARC.

I will say this about both of Sue Black’s books: she really knows her audience and caters to them well. That audience is very specifically only people who are very into True Crime, but I think her efforts in writing this should be applauded because it hooks those people in with murder content and then actually teaches them the science.

Right at the top, I want to mention that this book contains descriptions of violence, specifically violence towards children and the elderly, in graphic detail. There are also detailed accounts of sexual assault and rape (the worst being about ⅔ of the way through the book).

Written in Bone is what I had hoped that Black’s first book, All That Remains, would be: it’s a collection of stories and actual scientific info. Great! I really wanted to read it in order to answer questions about skeletons for people who want to know more about death and decay and to just satisfy my own curiosity (anatomy is so cool! Bodies are WILD!). Unfortunately, much like the first book I read of her’s, I was very taken aback by how different the summary seemed from the meat of the book. It’s definitely WAY more True Crime than it is popular science about what bones can teach us about the person.

If you’re someone who can’t do True Crime, this book is not for you. I continuously found myself thinking about how it is possible to write a book about death and bones without going into excruciating detail of violent crimes. There is little to no content warning ever before gross details of violent assaults, torture, and brutality, and even less lead up when those acts are done on children and the elderly (which unfortunately happens quite often in this one). There were moments where, as often as Black states that she tried to humanize victims, there were moments that did the opposite, for example, she uses outdated terms to refer to and occasionally victim blame sex workers, among other things.

I may be biased as a person who does a lot of work with people to support and advocate for their grief, both before and after a loss, but this book is unsettling. Taking in content that uses trauma as the entertainment hook is something that I try very hard to avoid when pointing people towards good resources to learn about death, and this book is definitely in that category of non-fiction. As a source for people who pursue this kind of work, it’s probably great, but for the everyday person, I do not recommend reading it. While there are large chunks of the books that are fascinating in their discussion of the skeletal system, they’re spaced between graphic scenes of murder and assault investigations that contain too much detail to just be in there for educational purposes. Utilizing scenes like this has been shown to lessen people’s empathetic skills over time because they don’t see the traumatic effects of these losses on families and communities, and Black’s writing on her experience in the field perpetuates those issues.

Yes, while I learned some cool facts about bones (did I call my time reading this book “a journey to the Bone Zone?” Yes, osteology is cool as hell.), it was a really difficult read on many levels. It’s interesting and readable, no problem, but there were a lot of times where the content was too much for me that I had to step away. Empathy is a skill that can be hard to build and practice, and this book has little. I would not recommend reading it.

It's always been amazing to me the amount of information the body gives up upon death if only the right people are willing to look for it. Sue Black is one such person, her speciality being bones. The book is filled with many case studies with her involvement with the police in aiding crime solution. It's truly fascinating what a small piece of bone can reveal.

Thank you to NetGalley and Skyhorse Publishing for providing me with a copy of this book to review.

I've always been fascinated by forensic anthropology. As an avid fan of Kathy Reiches, Jefferson Bass, and Bones, this book helped me dig deeper into the actual science in how they do the work they do. The book is technical but written in a way that's easy to understand. It's finally a way to learn more about the science of forensic anthropology without picking up a textbook!

A great companion piece to “All that remains” by Sue Black.
Enjoyed the first book, and enjoyed this one even more.

I love books like this one. Books where you learn a great deal but it doesn't feel like you're learning. You're being informed but in such an enjoyable and engaging way you don't want to stop reading. I'm definitely going to read more of Sue Black's books.

This story is incredibly inspiring, especially due to my own interest in anthropology. This book is incredibly well written, and informative. It may be a turn off to those not interested in the science of anthropology, but this is the fault of the person and not the book.

If you are queasy, I wouldn’t suggest this book. As it is a very detailed adventure. This is someone who has likely written many research papers, and it comes across very well. The authors thoughts are organized and presentable, but may not be digestible for everyone. Do not expect this to be a light read, it’s serious and grittyly detailed. I also have purchased the authors previous work, and have yet to read it - but am very excited to now.

I want to sincerely thank NetGalley and the publisher for giving me access to the ARC! I will be picking this book up.

This was my first read by Sue Black and I am so excited to keep reading! Aside from the information being incredibly detailed and woven in with real-life examples, the writing is so enthralling. It takes a lot for me to love a book that is non-fiction, to remain interested but I was from the first page. It also came at the perfect time because I am writing a novel where someone finds human remains. Definitely useful information for writers!