Traces : the memoir of a forensic scientist and criminal investigator

'Engrossing, emotionally honest and forensically fascinating' - Dr Richard Shepherd, author of Unnatural Causes In Traces , Professor Patricia Wiltshire will take you on a journey through the fascinating edgeland where nature and crime are intertwined. She'll take you searching for bodies of loved ones - through woodlands, along hedgerows, field-edges, and through plantations - solving time since death, and disposal of remains, from ditches to living rooms. She will give you glimpses of her own history: her loves, her losses, and the narrow little valley in Wales where she first woke up to the wonders of the natural world. Pat will show you how her work with a microscope reveals tell-tale traces of the world around us, and how these have taken suspects of the darkest criminal activities to court. From flowers, fungi, tree trunks to car pedals, walking boots, carpets, and corpses' hair, Traces is a fascinating, unique, and utterly compelling book on life, death, and one's indelible link with nature. "Patricia Wiltshire has worked on over 200 criminal cases across the UK, including some of the most high-profile cases in the past two decades. She works closely with the police on investigations in which outside elements are linked heavily with victims and suspects - and examines the flora and fauna of crime scenes in search of the truth. From hedgegrows to tyre arches; mud tracks to the soles of walking boots - Patricia has an expert eye for spotting discrepencies in outside elements and her career in the field of forensic botany is truly unique. Wonderfully empirical in her pursuit of the facts, Patricia breaks down a crime scene into the minute components, eliminating theories flower by flower and microbe by microbe, until she comes to a realistic and compelling thesis on how a crime was committed and how a crime scene came to be. Her story touches on biology, physics, chemistry, geography, botany, psychology, micrology and criminology, and how our interaction with nature leaves an indelible mark on who we are and how we interact. This brilliant and original memoir will out-grow its true crime roots, connecting with those interested a unique life in a fascinating field, and those interested our inherent connections with the outside world."--Publisher In Traces, Professor Patricia Wiltshire will take you on a journey through the fascinating edge-land where nature and crime are intertwined. She'll take you on a journey searching for bodies of loved ones - through woodlands, along hedgerows, field-edges, and through plantations - solving time since death, and disposal of remains, from ditches to living rooms. She will give you glimpses of her own history: her loves, her losses, and the narrow, little valley in Wales where she first woke-up to the wonders of the natural world. And Pat will show you how her work with a microscope reveals tell-tale traces of the world around us, and how these have taken suspects of the darkest of criminal activities to court. From flowers, fungi, tree trunks, and car pedals - to walking boots, carpets, and even corpses' hair: Traces is a fascinating, unique, and utterly compelling book on the universal themes of life, death, and one's indelible link with nature **'Engrossing, emotionally honest and forensically fascinating' - Dr Richard Shepherd, author of __Unnatural Causes__**In , Professor Patricia Wiltshire will take you on a journey through the fascinating edgeland where nature and crime are intertwined. She'll take you searching for bodies of loved ones - through woodlands, along hedgerows, field-edges, and through plantations - solving time since death, and disposal of remains, from ditches to living rooms. She will give you glimpses of her own history: her loves, her losses, and the narrow little valley in Wales where she first woke up to the wonders of the natural world. Pat will show you how her work with a microscope reveals tell-tale traces of the world around us, and how these have taken suspects of the darkest criminal activities to court.From flowers, fungi, tree trunks to car pedals, walking boots, carpets, and corpses' hair, is a fascinating, unique, and utterly compelling...