The Best Forensic Science Books

“What are the best books about Forensic Science?” We looked at 134 of the top books, aggregating and ranking them so we could answer that very question!

The top 12 titles, all appearing on 2 or more “Best Forensic Science” book lists, are ranked below by how many lists they appear on. The remaining 100+ titles, as well as the lists we used are in alphabetical order at the bottom of the page.

Happy Scrolling!

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Top 12 Forensic Science Books

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12 .) Forensics: What Bugs, Burns, Prints, DNA and More Tell Us About Crime by Val McDermid

Lists It Appears On:

• Bustle
• Goodreads

In the course of researching her best-selling books, McDermid has become familiar with many branches of forensics, and now she uncovers the history of this science and the people who make sure that for murderers, there is no hiding place. Forensic scientists can unlock the mysteries of the past and help serve justice using the messages left by a corpse, a crime scene, or the faintest of human traces. Now available in paperback, Forensics goes behind the scenes with some of these top-level professionals and their groundbreaking research, drawing on original interviews and firsthand experience on scene with top forensic scientists. Along the way, we discover how maggots collected from a corpse can help determine time of death; how a DNA trace a millionth the size of a grain of salt can be used to convict a killer; and how a team of young Argentine scientists led by a maverick American anthropologist were able to uncover the victims of a genocide. The journey takes us to war zones, fire scenes, and autopsy suites, reveals both extraordinary bravery and true wickedness, as we trace the history of forensics from its earliest beginnings to the cutting-edge science of the modern day.

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11 .) Death’s Acre: Inside the Legendary Forensic Lab the Body Farm Where the Dead Do Tell Tales by William M. Bass

Lists It Appears On:

• Bustle
• Goodreads

Dr. Bill Bass, one of the world’s leading forensic anthropologists, gained international attention when he built a forensic lab like no other: The Body Farm. Now, this master scientist unlocks the gates of his lab to reveal his most intriguing cases-and to revisit the Lindbergh kidnapping and murder, fifty years after the fact.

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10 .) Dead Men Do Tell Tales: The Strange and Fascinating Cases of a Forensic Anthropologist by William R. Maples

Lists It Appears On:

• Best Colleges
• Goodreads

From a skeleton, a skull, a mere fragment of burnt thighbone, prominent forensic anthropologist Dr. William Maples can deduce the age, gender, and ethnicity of a murder victim, the manner in which the person was dispatched, and, ultimately, the identity of the killer. In Dead Men Do Tell Tales, Dr. Maples revisits his strangest, most interesting, and most horrific investigations, from the baffling cases of conquistador Francisco Pizarro and Vietnam MIAs to the mysterious deaths of President Zachary Taylor and the family of Czar Nicholas II.

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9 .) Bones Are Forever by Kathy Reichs

Lists It Appears On:

• Crime Fiction Lover
• Goodreads

Dr Temperance Brennan, forensic anthropologist to the province of Quebec, is brought in to investigate. While there, she discovers the mummified remains of two more babies within the same room. Shocked and distressed, Tempe must use all her skills and inner strength to focus on the facts.

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8 .) Postmortem by Patricia Cornwell

Lists It Appears On:

• Crime Fiction Lover
• Goodreads

A serial killer is on the loose in Richmond, Virginia. Three women have died, brutalized and strangled in their own bedrooms. There is no pattern: the killer appears to strike at random – but always early on Saturday mornings.

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7 .) Practical Homicide Investigation: Tactics, Procedures, and Forensic Technologies by Geberth, Vernon J. Geberth, Vernon J.

Lists It Appears On:

• Realitypod
• ThoughtCo.

“Renowned for being THE definitive resource for homicide investigators, Practical Homicide Investigation: Tactics, Procedures, and Forensic Techniques details the recognized protocols used by investigative divisions of major police departments throughout the world. The text is used in most police academies, including the FBI Academy in Quantico, Virginia.

Now in its fifth edition, the book begins with a comprehensive discussion of homicide crime scenes and moves chronologically from initial police notification, the correct police response that follows, and the subsequent steps necessary to conduct an intelligent investigation. It then delves into the more technical aspects of homicide investigation, augmented with numerous pictures and full-color illustrations that involve pertinent case histories.”

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6 .) Strengthening Forensic Science in the United States: A Path Forward by National Research Council

Lists It Appears On:

• Realitypod
• Sanfoundry

“Scores of talented and dedicated people serve the forensic science community, performing vitally important work. However, they are often constrained by lack of adequate resources, sound policies, and national support. It is clear that change and advancements, both systematic and scientific, are needed in a number of forensic science disciplines to ensure the reliability of work, establish enforceable standards, and promote best practices with consistent application. Strengthening Forensic Science in the United States: A Path Forward provides a detailed plan for addressing these needs and suggests the creation of a new government entity, the National Institute of Forensic Science, to establish and enforce standards within the forensic science community.

The benefits of improving and regulating the forensic science disciplines are clear: assisting law enforcement officials, enhancing homeland security, and reducing the risk of wrongful conviction and exoneration. Strengthening Forensic Science in the United States gives a full account of what is needed to advance the forensic science disciplines, including upgrading of systems and organizational structures, better training, widespread adoption of uniform and enforceable best practices, and mandatory certification and accreditation programs”

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5 .) The Bone Lady: Life as a Forensic Anthropologist by Mary H. Manhein

Lists It Appears On:

• Bustle
• Goodreads

When a skeleton is all that’s left to tell the story of a crime, Mary H. Manhein, otherwise known as “the bone lady,” is called in. For almost two decades, Manhein has used her expertise in forensic pathology to help law enforcement agents–locally, nationally, and internationally–solve their most perplexing mysteries. She shares the extraordinary details of the often high-profile cases on which she works, and the science underlying her analyses. Here are Civil War skeletons, cases of alleged voodoo and witchcraft, crimes of political intrigue, and the before-and-after of facial reconstruction. Written with the compassion and humor of a born storyteller, The Bone Lady is an unforgettable glimpse into the lab where one scientist works to reveal the human stories behind the remains.

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4 .) Working Stiff: Two Years, 262 Bodies, and the Making of a Medical Examiner by Judy Melinek

Lists It Appears On:

• Bustle
• Goodreads

The fearless memoir of a young forensic pathologist?s ?rookie season? as a NYC medical examiner, and the cases?hair-raising and heartbreaking and impossibly complex?that shaped her as both a physician and a mother.Just two months before the September 11 terrorist attacks, Dr. Judy Melinek began her training as a New York City forensic pathologist. With her husband T.J. and their toddler Daniel holding down the home front, Judy threw herself into the fascinating world of death investigation?performing autopsies, investigating death scenes, counseling grieving relatives. Working Stiff chronicles Judy?s two years of training, taking readers behind the police tape of some of the most harrowing deaths in the Big Apple, including a firsthand account of the events of September 11, the subsequent anthrax bio-terrorism attack, and the disastrous crash of American Airlines flight 587.Lively, action-packed, and loaded with mordant wit, Working Stiff offers a firsthand account of daily life in one of America?s most arduous professions, and the unexpected challenges of shuttling between the domains of the living and the dead. The body never lies?and through the murders, accidents, and suicides that land on her table, Dr. Melinek lays bare the truth behind the glamorized depictions of autopsy work on shows like CSI and Law & Order to reveal the secret story of the real morgue.

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3 .) Corpse: Nature, Forensics, and the Struggle to Pinpoint Time of Death by Jessica Snyder Sachs

Lists It Appears On:

• Bustle
• Goodreads
• Realitypod

When detectives come upon a murder victim, there’s one thing they want to know above all else: When did the victim die? The answer can narrow a group of suspects, make or break an alibi, even assign a name to an unidentified body. But outside the fictional world of murder mysteries, time-of-death determinations have remained infamously elusive, bedeviling criminal investigators throughout history. Armed with an array of high-tech devices and tests, the world’s best forensic pathologists are doing their best to shift the balance, but as Jessica Snyder Sachs demonstrates so eloquently in Corpse, this is a case in which nature might just trump technology: Plants, chemicals, and insects found near the body are turning out to be the fiercest weapons in our crime-fighting arsenal. In this highly original book, Sachs accompanies an eccentric group of entomologists, anthropologists, biochemists, and botanists–a new kind of biological “Mod Squad”–on some of their grisliest, most intractable cases. She also takes us into the courtroom, where “post-O.J.” forensic science as a whole is coming under fire and the new multidisciplinary art of forensic ecology is struggling to establish its credibility. Corpse is the fascinating story of the 2000year search to pinpoint time of death. It is also the terrible and beautiful story of what happens to our bodies when we die.

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2 .) Criminalistics: An Introduction to Forensic Science by Richard Saferstein

Lists It Appears On:

• Best Colleges
• Realitypod
• ThoughtCo.

“A clear introduction to the technology of the modern crime laboratory for non-scientists
Criminalistics: An Introduction to Forensic Science, Twelfth Edition, uses clear writing, case stories, and modern technology to capture the pulse and fervor of forensic science investigations. Written for readers with no scientific background, only the most relevant scientific and technological concepts are presented. The nature of physical evidence is defined, and the limitations that technology and current knowledge impose on its individualization and characterization are examined. A major portion of the text centers on discussions of the common items of physical evidence encountered at crime scenes. Particular attention is paid to the meaning and role of probability in interpreting the evidential significance of scientifically evaluated evidence. Updated throughout, the Twelfth Edition includes a new chapter on the exciting field of forensic biometrics. With its easy-to-understand writing and straightforward presentation, this best-selling text is clear and comprehensible to a wide variety of students.”

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1 .) The Forensic Casebook: The Science of Crime Scene Investigation by Ngaire E. Genge

Lists It Appears On:

• Best Colleges
• Goodreads
• Realitypod

Filled with these and many other intriguing true stories, and packed with black and white illustrations and photographs, The Forensic Casebook draws on interviews with police personnel and forensic scientists—including animal examiners, botanists, zoologists, firearms specialists, and autoposists—to uncover the vast and detailed underworkings of criminal investigation.

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The 100+ Additional Best Forensic Science Books

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#	Book	Author	Lists
(Titles Appear on 1 List Each)
13	206 Bones	Kathy Reichs	Goodreads
14	Advances in Forensic Human Identification	Xanthe Mallett and Teri Blythe	Sanfoundry
15	All That Remains	Patricia Cornwell	Goodreads
16	Attacking the Violent Crime of Arson: A Report on America’s Fire Investigation Units	U S Department of Homeland Security U S Fire Administration	Sanfoundry
17	Bare Bones	Kathy Reichs	Goodreads
18	Beyond the Body Farm: A Legendary Bone Detective Explores Murders, Mysteries, and the Revolution in Forensic Science	William M. Bass	Goodreads
19	Biological Monitoring Techniques for Human Exposure to Industrial Chemicals: Analysis of Human Fat, Skin, Nails, Hair, Blood, Urine and Breath	L Sheldon	Sanfoundry
20	Biological Psychology	James W Kalat	Sanfoundry
21	Biological, Psychological, and Environmental Factors in Delinquency and Mental Disorder: An Interdisciplinary Bibliography (Bibliographies & Indexes in Sociology)	Deborah W. Denno and Ruth M Schwartz	Sanfoundry
22	Blow Fly	Patricia Cornwell	Goodreads
23	Bodies We’ve Buried: Inside the National Forensic Academy, the World’s Top CSI Training School	Jarrett Hallcox	Goodreads
24	Body of Evidence	Patricia Cornwell	Goodreads
25	Bones Never Lie	Kathy Reichs	Goodreads
26	Bones to Ashes	Kathy Reichs	Goodreads
27	Book of the Dead	Patricia Cornwell	Goodreads
28	Calendar of Death: Socio-Psychological Factors in Thomas of Canterbury’s Attitude Toward His Own Death (Medieval People)	Arthur Frederick Ide	Sanfoundry
29	Careers in Explosives and Arson Investigation (Careers in Forensics)	Daniel E Harmon	Sanfoundry
30	Carved In Bone	Jefferson Bass	Crime Fiction Lover
31	Cause of Death	Patricia Cornwell	Goodreads
32	Characterization and Cryopreservation of Chicken Semen	Manadiel Thatohatsi Mosenene	Sanfoundry
33	Conviction: Law, the State and the Construction of Justice (Oxford Socio-Legal Studies)	Doreen J McBarnet	Sanfoundry
34	Crime Scene	Jonathan Kellerman and Jesse Kellerman	Sanfoundry
35	Criminal Investigation: The Art and the Science		Best Colleges
36	Cross Bones	Kathy Reichs	Goodreads
37	Cruel & Unusual	Patricia Cornwell	Goodreads
38	Dark Dreams: Sexual Violence, Homicide And The Criminal Mind		Best Master In Psychology
39	Darkly Dreaming Dexter	Jeff Lindsay	Goodreads
40	Dead Reckoning: The New Science of Catching Killers	Michael Baden	Goodreads
41	Deadly Decisions	Kathy Reichs	Goodreads
42	Death du Jour	Kathy Reichs	Goodreads
43	Death Investigator’s Handbook: A Field Guide to Crime Scene Processing, Forensic Evaluations and Investigative Techniques	Louis N Eliopulos	Sanfoundry
44	Death’s Acre		Best Colleges
45	Déjà Dead	Kathy Reichs	Goodreads
46	Devil Bones	Kathy Reichs	Goodreads
47	Dexter Is Delicious	Jeff Lindsay	Goodreads
48	Digital Evidence and Computer Crime: Forensic Science, Computers, and the Internet	Eoghan Casey	Realitypod
49	DNA Fingerprinting (The Medical Perspectives Series)	M Krawczak and J Schmidtke	Sanfoundry
50	DNA Fingerprinting in Plants: Principles, Methods, and Applications	Kurt Weising and Hilde Nybom	Sanfoundry
51	DNA Fingerprinting of Trees and Genetic Diversity of Syzygium Cumini	Suphia Khan	Sanfoundry
52	DNA Fingerprinting: An Introduction	Lorne T Kirby	Sanfoundry
53	DNA Fingerprinting: Approaches and Applications (Experientia Supplementum)	G Dolf	Sanfoundry
54	DNA Fingerprinting: State of the Science (Experientia Supplementum)	Sergio D Pena	Sanfoundry
55	DNA Fingerprinting: The Witness Within	Lalji Singh and Madhusudan W Pandit	Sanfoundry
56	DNA Profiling and DNA Fingerprinting (Methods and Tools in Biosciences and Medicine)	Jörg Epplen and Thomas Lubjuhnn	Sanfoundry
57	DNA: The Story of the Genetic Revolution	James D Watson and Andrew Berry	Sanfoundry
58	Evidence Found: An Approach to Crime Scene Investigation	David Miranda	Sanfoundry
59	Explosives and Arson Investigation (Solving Crimes With Science: Forensics)	Jean Ford	Sanfoundry
60	Fatal Voyage	Kathy Reichs	Goodreads
61	Field Guide for Fire Investigators	International Association of Arson Investigators	Sanfoundry
62	Fingerprints: The Origins of Crime Detection and the Murder Case that Launched Forensic Science	Colin Beavan	Goodreads
63	Fire Investigator	International Association of Arson Investigators	Sanfoundry
64	Firearms Evidence Crime Scene Processing	Michael W Weissberg	Sanfoundry
65	Flash and Bones	Kathy Reichs	Goodreads
66	Forensic Ballistics in Court: Interpretation and Presentation of Firearms Evidence	Brian J Heard	Sanfoundry
67	Forensic Entomology: The Utility of Arthropods in Legal Investigations, Second Edition	Jason H Byrd and James L Castner	Sanfoundry
68	Forensic Fire Scene Reconstruction	David J Icove PE and Gerald A Haynes	Sanfoundry
69	Forensic Investigation of Explosions (International Forensic Science and Investigation)	Alexander Beveridge	Sanfoundry
70	Forensic Investigation of Unusual Firearms: Ballistic and Medico-Legal Evidence	J K Sinha	Sanfoundry
71	Forensic Pathology, Second Edition		ThoughtCo.
72	Forensic Science	Andrew R.W. Jackson	Goodreads
73	Forensic Science: An Introduction to Scientific and Investigative Techniques	Stuart H. James	Realitypod
74	Forensic Science: From the Crime Scene to the Crime Lab	Richard Saferstein	Realitypod
75	From Potter’s Field	Patricia Cornwell	Goodreads
76	Fundamentals of Forensic DNA Typing	John M Butler	Sanfoundry
77	Grave Secrets	Kathy Reichs	Goodreads
78	Gunshot Wounds –		ThoughtCo.
79	Handbook of Firearms and Ballistics: Examining and Interpreting Forensic Evidence (Developments in Forensic Science)	Brian J Heard	Sanfoundry
80	Hard Evidence: Case Studies in Forensic Anthropology	Dawnie W Steadman	Sanfoundry
81	Hidden Evidence: 40 True Crimes and How Forensic Science Helped Solve Them	David L. Owen	Goodreads
82	Homicide Investigation Field Guide	D’Michelle P DuPre	Sanfoundry
83	Human Saliva, Volume I	Jorma O Tenovuo	Sanfoundry
84	Identification Manuals on .303 Cartridges: Dummy Cartridges No.5	B A Temple	Sanfoundry
85	Importance of Delivering Education to Prisoners in Reducing Crime Rate	Mushtaq Amina	Sanfoundry
86	Interpretation of Bloodstain Evidence at Crime Scenes		ThoughtCo.
87	Introduction to Forensic Science and Criminalistics	Gaensslen, Robert E. Gaensslen, Robert E.	Realitypod
88	Investigative Psychology: Offender Profiling And The Analysis Of Criminal Action		Best Master In Psychology
89	Lab Manual for Criminalistics: An Introduction to Forensic Science	Clifton E. Meloan , Richard E. James , Richard Saferstein	Realitypod
90	Male Reproductive Function and Semen: Themes and Trends in Physiology, Biochemistry and Investigative Andrology	T Mann and C Lutwak-Mann	Sanfoundry
91	Measurement Uncertainty in Forensic Science: A Practical Guide	Suzanne Bell	Sanfoundry
92	Mistress of the Art of Death	Ariana Franklin	Goodreads
93	Molecular Analysis of Gene Markers in Urine	Swati Singh	Sanfoundry
94	Monday Mourning	Kathy Reichs	Goodreads
95	Never Suck A Dead Man’s Hand: Curious Adventures of a CSI	Dana Kollmann	Bustle
96	No Stone Unturned: The True Story of the World’s Premier Forensic Investigators	Steve Jackson	Goodreads
97	Oral Biology: Molecular Techniques and Applications (Methods in Molecular Biology)	Gregory J Seymour and Mary P Cullinan	Sanfoundry
98	Organisational Anthropology: Doing Ethnography in and Among Complex Organisations (Anthropology, Culture and Society)	Christina Garsten and Anette Nyqvist	Sanfoundry
99	Pathways to Gang Involvement and Drug Distribution: Social, Environmental, and Psychological Factors	Inger-Lise Lien	Sanfoundry
100	Physical Evidence in Forensic Science	Lee and Henry C	Sanfoundry
101	Point of Origin	Patricia Cornwell	Goodreads
102	Polymers on the Crime Scene: Forensic Analysis of Polymeric Trace Evidence	Valerio Causin	Sanfoundry
103	Practical Fire and Arson Investigation (Practical Aspects of Criminal and Forensic Investigations)	John J O’Connor	Sanfoundry
104	Practical Homicide Investigation Checklist and Field Guide		ThoughtCo.
105	Programmable Freezing and Computer Automated Analysis of Bovine Semen	P Kathiravan and K Rengarajan	Sanfoundry
106	Protocols in Semen Biology (Comparing Assays)	N Srivastava and Megha Pande	Sanfoundry
107	Psychological Evaluations For The Courts: A Handbook For Mental Health Professionals And Lawyers		Best Master In Psychology
108	Risk Factors: An Introduction to the Sociopsychological Analysis of Drug Use	Yik-Ying Katherine Ng	Sanfoundry
109	Rural Arson Control Study	Federal Emergency Management Agency and United States Fire Administration	Sanfoundry
110	Scene of the Crime	Michael Lark and Sean Phillips	Sanfoundry
111	Snakes In Suits: When Psychopaths Go To Work		Best Master In Psychology
112	Social Anthropology of Complex Societies	Michael Banton	Sanfoundry
113	Social Factors and Community Well-Being (SpringerBriefs in Well-Being and Quality of Life Research)	Seung Jong Lee and Youngwha Kee	Sanfoundry
114	Socio-Demographic and Psychological Characteristics of Sub-Types of Alcoholism: An Analysis of the Type A/Type B and Five-Factor Models	Mindy Hope Thiel	Sanfoundry
115	Stiff: The Curious Lives of Human Cadavers	Mary Roach	Goodreads
116	Teasing Secrets from the Dead: My Investigations at America’s Most Infamous Crime Scenes	Emily Craig	Goodreads
117	Textbook of Firearms Investigation, Identification and Evidence Together with the Textbook of Pistols and Revolvers	Julian S Hatcher	Sanfoundry
118	The Anatomy Of A Motive		Best Master In Psychology
119	The Angel of Death	Alane Ferguson	Goodreads
120	The Body Farm	Patricia Cornwell	Goodreads
121	The Casebook of Forensic Detection		ThoughtCo.
122	The Chemistry Of Death	Simon Beckett	Crime Fiction Lover
123	The Cultural Sociology of Political Assassination: From MLK and RFK to Fortuyn and van Gogh	Ron Eyerman	Sanfoundry
124	The Greased Cartridge	E Jaiwant Paul	Sanfoundry
125	The Killer of Little Shepherds: A True Crime Story and the Birth of Forensic Science	Douglas Starr	Goodreads
126	The Mephisto Club	Tess Gerritsen	Goodreads
127	The Origin of Feces: What Excrement Tells Us About Evolution, Ecology, and a Sustainable Society	David Waltner-Toews	Sanfoundry
128	The Poisoner’s Handbook: Murder and the Birth of Forensic Medicine in Jazz Age New York	Deborah Blum	Goodreads
129	The Science of Sherlock Holmes: From Baskerville Hall to the Valley of Fear, the Real Forensics Behind the Great Detective’s Greatest Cases	E.J. Wagner	Bustle
130	The Silent Girl	Tess Gerritsen	Goodreads
131	The Sinner	Tess Gerritsen	Goodreads
132	The Surgeon	Tess Gerritsen	Crime Fiction Lover
133	Twelve: Fatality Hotel Arson (U.S Fire Administration Technical Report)	Joseph Ockershausen and Harold Cohen	Sanfoundry
134	Unnatural Exposure	Patricia Cornwell	Goodreads

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8 Best Forensic Science Text Book Sources/Lists

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Source	Article
Best Colleges	FORENSIC SCIENCE RESOURCES
Best Master In Psychology	5 Great Books For Forensic Psychologists
Bustle	7 Crime Scene Investigation Books To Help You Channel Your Inner NCIS
Crime Fiction Lover	FORENSIC MYSTERIES: FIVE OF THE BEST
Goodreads	Popular Forensic Science Books
Realitypod	Top 10 Forensic Science Textbooks
Sanfoundry	Best Reference Books – B.Sc. – Forensic Science
ThoughtCo.	Popular Books About Forensic Science