With forensics detail to rival Kathy Reichs, Simon Beckett's menacing new thriller will leave you wanting more . . . Top forensics expert Dr David Hunter is facing an uncertain future - his career hangs in the balance and his personal life has taken a turn for the worse.

So when he gets a call from Essex police, it comes at the perfect time. A badly decomposed body has been found in the mudflats and salt marshes of the Backwaters. Could it be linked to two unsolved missing-person cases?

But then more remains are discovered. And as these desolate wetlands begin to give up their grisly secrets, Hunter is reminded that it's not the dead we need to fear . . . With its eerie, claustrophobic sense of place, authentic forensics and explosive, heart-in-mouth moments, The Restless Dead is a masterclass in crime fiction.