Top 5 forensic thrillers – as chosen by Ashley Dyer

THE SILENCE OF THE LAMBS
Thomas Harris

Harris deals brilliantly with everything from forensic psychology to post-mortem scenes, combining science and forensic detection with enviable inventiveness and creative genius.

THE BONE COLLECTOR
Jeffery Deaver

Jeffery Deaver is the acknowledged king of the forensic thriller and this has it all. Fun fact: Deaver’s forensic expert Lincoln Rhyme actually coined the phrase “walk the grid” to describe the systematic approach CSIs take when searching crime scenes. It’s now common parlance in law enforcement across the US.

SKIN
Mo Hayder

Hayder weaves neat forensic details by the generous handful into her zingy prose. Protagonist Jack Caffery talks through a victim’s tox report with a pathologist, turning a suicide investigation on its head in just three scientifically potent, action-packed paragraphs.

FATAL VOYAGE
Kathy Reichs

Tempe Brennan is, like Reichs, a forensic anthropologist. She can be heavy on the forensic detail, but when she hits her stride, it’s worth having to skim a little. Fatal Voyage drops us into a disorientating dream-like forest bestrewn with bodies. Reader, read on…

DARKLY DREAMING DEXTER
Jeff Lindsay

Dexter Morgan is a forensic scientist with a dark half. By day, a mild-mannered forenzoid; by night, a serial killer. Lindsay polarises opinion, and for years, I resisted – I mean, a murdering psychopath with a social conscience? But the charm, wit, and style is seductive – try it.

Splinter in the Blood by Ashley Dyer is out on March 1(Corsair, £14.99)