100,000+ Books, Games & Puzzles in-stock 🇳🇿

Auckland Bookstore open today until 5pm! 🎉

Written In Bone

hidden stories in what we leave behind
4.31 goodreads logo

Ratings/reviews counts are updated frequently.

Check link for latest rating.
( 9,333 ratings, 1,131 reviews)
Book Hero Magic crafted this summary to help describe this book. While it's new and still learning, it may not be perfect - your feedback is welcome! Summary
Written In Bone by Professor Sue Black explores forensic anthropology through the investigation of human remains. Each chapter focuses on different parts of the body, revealing stories that bones can tell about past lives, deaths, and the secrets they hold. It's an engaging blend of science, true crime, and personal memoir.
Read More
Format: Paperback / softback
$2400
OVERNIGHT NZ-WIDE DELIVERY

Found a better price? Request a price match

Book Hero Magic created this recommendation. While it's new and still learning, it may not be perfect - your feedback is welcome! IS THIS YOUR NEXT READ?

This book may appeal to you if you have an interest in forensic anthropology and enjoy true stories about solving mysteries through the science of bones. It offers a unique and compelling insight into the life of a forensic expert and the fascinating cases they've encountered.

Book Hero thinking about your next read

Book Hero Magic formatted this description to make it easier to read. While it's new and still learning, it may not be perfect - your feedback is welcome! Description

From the world's foremost forensic anthropologist and bestselling author of All That Remains, this book is an exploration — from skull to feet — of how our bones reveal all that happens to us in life.

THE TIMES - BEST MEMOIRS OF THE YEAR. WINNER OF THE CWA GOLD DAGGER FOR NON-FICTION

'Gripping from the start, Written in Bone is superb' - Dr Richard Shepherd, author of Unnatural Causes

'No Scientist communicates better than Sue Black' - Val McDermid, author of Still Life

From the Sunday Times Bestselling author of All That Remains, Sue Black reveals the secrets hidden deep within our bones.

Drawing upon her years of research and a wealth of remarkable experience, the world-renowned forensic anthropologist Professor Dame Sue Black takes us on a journey of revelation. From skull to feet, via the face, spine, chest, arms, hands, pelvis and legs, she shows that each part of us has a tale to tell. What we eat, where we go, everything we do leaves a trace, a message that waits patiently for months, years, sometimes centuries, until a forensic anthropologist is called upon to decipher it.

Some of this information is easily understood, some holds its secrets tight and needs scientific cajoling to be released. But by carefully piecing together the evidence, the facts of a life can be rebuilt.

Limb by limb, case by case — some criminal, some historical, some unaccountably bizarre — Sue Black reconstructs with intimate sensitivity and compassion the hidden stories in what we leave behind.

Praise for Sue Black:

'Utterly gripping' - The Guardian

'Fascinating' - The Sunday Times

'Moving' - Scotsman

'Engrossing' - Financial Times

Book Hero Magic summarised reviews for this book. While it's new and still learning, it may not be perfect - your feedback is welcome! HOW HAS THIS BEEN REVIEWED?

Written In Bone by Professor Sue Black is praised for its insightful exploration into forensic anthropology, blending science with personal stories. Readers appreciate her compelling writing style and the book's educational yet accessible nature. Professor Black's expertise and engaging narrative captivate and inform, making complex subjects understandable for a broad audience.

Book Hero reading reviews

Book Details

INFORMATION

ISBN: 9781529176605

Publisher: Transworld Publishers Ltd

Format: Paperback / softback

Date Published: 03 February 2022

Country: United Kingdom

Imprint: Penguin (Transworld)

Audience: General / adult

DIMENSIONS

Spine width: 21.0mm

Width: 129.0mm

Height: 197.0mm

Weight: 256g

Pages: 368

About the Author

Professor Dame Sue Black is one of the world’s leading anatomists and forensic anthropologists. She is also the Pro-Vice Chancellor for Engagement at Lancaster University. She was the lead anthropologist for the British Forensic Team's work in the war crimes investigations in Kosovo, and she was one of the first forensic scientists to travel to Thailand following the Indian Ocean tsunami to provide assistance in identifying the dead. Sue is a familiar face in the media, where documentaries have been filmed about her work, and she led the highly successful BBC 2 series History Cold Case.

Sue was appointed Dame Commander of the Order of the British Empire in the 2016 Queen’s Birthday Honours for services to forensic anthropology.

She is the author of the critically acclaimed Sunday Times bestseller All That Remains.

Also by Professor Sue Black

View all
  • An Expert Witness
    Pre-order
    An Expert Witness
    From Britain's best-known forensic scientist, a book that explains what forensic science is, how it evolved and, through a series of landmark cases, the shocking truth about where it is headed. The relationship between law enforcement, science and the legal system is a complicated one. When it works well, it makes compelling television. Equally, when it does not work well,...
    Paperback
    $4000
    Pre-order
    Out 13 Oct 2026

More from Science & Nature

View all
  • Murder Under the Mistletoe
    BOOK 4 IN THE BESTSELLING CANON CLEMENT MYSTERY SERIES 'The best of the new cosy crime writers' Daily Telegraph 'You'll want to take a front row pew in Champton while this delicious series unfolds' Janice Hallett It is Christmas Day and at Champton Rectory, Canon Daniel Clement and his mother Audrey are joined by the residents and guests of the...
    Paperback
    $2799
    In Stock
    Ships Monday
  • John and Paul
    THE SUNDAY TIMES AND NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER LONGLISTED FOR THE BAILLIE GIFFORD PRIZE FOR NON-FICTION 'A triumph.' Deborah Levy, New Statesman 'Tremendous.' Alwyn Turner, The Times 'Revelatory.' Simon Schama, Financial Times 'The gold standard of Beatles books.' Anthony Quinn, Observer 'As enthralling and astonishing as their music.' Jon Dennis, Sunday Telegraph 'A masterpiece.' Dylan Jones, Evening Standard '[Ian Leslie]...
    Paperback
    $2800
    Elsewhere:
    $3299
    In Stock
    Ships Monday
  • Raising Hare
    THE INSTANT SUNDAY TIMES AND NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER SHORTLISTED FOR THE WOMEN'S PRIZE FOR NON-FICTION 2025 SHORTLISTED FOR WATERSTONES BOOK OF THE YEAR 2024 SHORTLISTED FOR THE HATCHARDS AND BIOGRAPHERS' CLUB FIRST BIOGRAPHY PRIZE A BOOK OF THE YEAR FOR THE HAY FESTIVAL, SUNDAY TIMES, THE TIMES, FINANCIAL TIMES, SPECTATOR AND iNEWS 'A beautiful book' - ANGELINA JOLIE 'I...
    Paperback
    $2400
    Elsewhere:
    $2799
    In Stock
    Ships Monday
  • What If? 10th Anniversary Edition
    CELEBRATING TEN YEARS OF THE MILLION-SELLING POP SCIENCE CLASSIC WITH A SPECIAL EDITION. THIS IS WHAT IF? . . . x10. THE SUNDAY TIMES BESTSELLER 'Nerd royalty' — BEN GOLDACRE 'Totally brilliant' — TIM HARFORD 'Required reading across the world' — NEW YORK TIMES From the creator of the wildly popular xkcd.com, experience hilarious and informative answers to important questions...
    Hardback
    $4200
    Elsewhere:
    $5000
    In Stock
    Ships Monday
  • Nuclear War
    The Sunday Times bestselling non-fiction thriller that has to be read to be believed. Baillie Gifford shortlisted, a favourite of Steven Bartlett, with an average reader rating of 4.6, sure to be a mass-market hit. Up to now, no one outside of official circles has known exactly what would happen if a rogue state launched a nuclear missile at the...
    Paperback
    $2500
    Elsewhere:
    $2800
    In Stock
    Ships Monday
  • The Anxious Generation
    A powerful argument for reclaiming childhood—and all human relationships—from the online world, from the influential social psychologist and international bestselling author. Jonathan Haidt has spent his career speaking truth and wisdom in some of the most difficult spaces—communities polarised by politics and religion, campuses battling culture wars, and now the mental health emergency hitting teenagers today in many countries around...
    Paperback
    $2299
    Elsewhere:
    $3000
    In Stock
    Ships Monday
  • Prisoners of Geography
    Prisoners of Geography looks at the past, present, and future to offer crucial insights into one of the major factors that determine world history – because if you don’t know geography, you’ll never have the full picture. Originally published in 2015, this completely revised and updated edition brings it up to date with the events and trends of the past...
    Paperback
    $2899
    In Stock
    Ships Monday
  • Booker Prize
    Orbital
    Winner of the Booker Prize 2024. Chair of the judges, Edmund de Waal, describes the winner as 'a book about a wounded world' adding that the panel's 'unanimity about Orbital recognises its beauty and ambition'. Life on our planet as you've never seen it before. A team of astronauts in the International Space Station collect meteorological data, conduct scientific experiments...
    Paperback
    $2200
    Elsewhere:
    $2600
    (2)
    In Stock
    Ships Monday
  • Diddly Squat: Home to Roost
    It's been another memorable year on Diddly Squat Farm - will the chickens finally come home to roost? Welcome back to Clarkson's Farm. The spring crop failed. Farming sheep, pigs, and cows was hardly more lucrative (better off breeding ostriches...) But in the face of uncooperative weather, bureaucracy, and the world's persistent refusal to recognise his genius, our hero's not...
    Paperback
    $2600
    Elsewhere:
    $3000
    In Stock
    Ships Monday
  • The Place of Tides
    To save the world, we have to start somewhere. One afternoon many years ago, James Rebanks met an old woman on a remote Norwegian island. She lived and worked alone on a tiny rocky outcrop, caring for wild ducks and gathering their down. Hers was a centuries-old trade that had once made men and women rich, but had long been...
    Paperback
    $3000
    In Stock
    Ships Monday
  • Ultra-Processed People
    Launching the runaway bestseller with ambitions to be the biggest non-fiction paperback of the year IT'S NOT YOU. IT'S THE FOOD. "If you only read one diet or nutrition book in your life, make it this one" - Bee Wilson "You've got to get this book in your life . . . Completely compelling . . . Read a page...
    Paperback
    $2500
    Elsewhere:
    $2800
    In Stock
    Ships Monday
  • The Island of Missing Trees
    The Island of Missing Trees by Elif Shafak is a captivating and poignant novel that delves into the intertwined lives of two star-crossed lovers in war-torn Cyprus and their enduring legacy decades later. This Sunday Times bestselling novel intricately weaves themes of love, loss, and identity amidst a backdrop of cultural and historical turmoil. Set in 1974 on the island...
    Paperback
    $2300
    Elsewhere:
    $2600
    In Stock
    Ships Monday

Why buy from us?

Book Hero is not a chain store or big box retailer. We're an independent 100% NZ-owned business on a mission to help more Kiwis rediscover a love of books and reading!

Service & Delivery

Service & Delivery

Our warehouse in Auckland holds over 80,000 books, toys, board games and puzzles in-stock so you're not waiting for your order to arrive from overseas.

Auckland Bookstore

Auckland Bookstore

We're primarily an online store, but for your convenience you can pick up your order for free from our bookstore, which is right next door to our warehouse in Hobsonville.

Our Gifting Service

Our Gifting Service

Books make wonderful thoughtful gifts and we're here to help with gift-wrapping and cards. We can even send your gift directly to your loved one.