MAY 2025: Human Remains by Jo Callaghan – WARWCIKSHIRE

14th May 2025

Human Remains by Jo Callaghan, police procedural set in Warwickshire (with added AI).

This is the third outing for AIDE Lock, an AI hologram who is once again the voice of measured reason in this police investigation. DCS Kat Frank, one of the team members of The Future Policing Unit, is called in to investigate the remains of a person on a riverbank. The torso is missing both hands and the head.

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Running parallel to the investigative story is news of a podcast which is delving into Frank’s handling of a previous case dubbed The Aston Strangler, and the presenter forensically sifts through the evidence behind the conviction. The host takes the view that there were many unsafe aspects of the conviction, thoroughly undermining Frank’s competency.

Then a second body is found….

This is a detective series that is inventive and full of information. The digestion of strawberries features and apparently the human digestive system cannot break down the seed of the fruit and herein is evidence that is useful to the team. I really love tidbits of learning when I am reading and throughout this has some very interesting features as the team delves into the main case.

Of course the main thrust of the storyline is the relationship between Kat Frank and AIDE Lock. She works by looking at the bigger picture, with a good deal of subjective sleuthing, intuition and policing experience, developing hypotheses to move forward on her cases. Lock, however, maintains absolute objectivity and is able to reinforce his position with evidence from the internet and research that he can assimilate within microseconds. He has access to huge databases of information which he presents, and the two have to negotiate and meld their skills, which is skilfully and engagingly handled. And therein lies the unusual and compelling thrust of the series.

This is an engaging and unique series which will captivate even those readers (like me) who aren’t fans of fantastical storylines.