'One of the most satisfying characters in modern crime fiction' - Daily Mail An ancient grave. A modern evil. The Dead and the Dying is a pulse-pounding instalment in the Rhona MacLeod series, perfect for fans of Ian Rankin, Martina Cole and Silent Witness. In the dim morning light, Orkney’s Skaill Bay is the backdrop for a calamity of nature’s making. When forensic scientist Rhona MacLeod joins the rescue efforts as a volunteer, she uncovers more than she bargained for: a human skeleton entombed in a stone crypt. The grave is believed to hail from the Viking Age, but Rhona's analysis of the content points to more recent and sinister evil. And a shadow is thrown over the investigation when the skeleton is finally identified – and unsettling connections emerge between the victim and the very people trying to solve. As forensic clues lead Rhona to a second, horrifying discovery, the question looms: how many more secrets are concealed in the sand? **'Lin Anderson is one of Scotland’s national treasures' - Stuart MacBride, author of the Logan McRae series 'The best Scottish crime series since Rebus' - Daily Record** Readers love Lin Anderson: 'This series just keeps getting better' 'I was totally glued the whole way through' 'Atmospheric, descriptive, engrossing'