A quiet village is shaken by an unsettling discovery—a motor hearse, abandoned in the early morning light, with a coffin still inside. But it is what lies elsewhere that turns curiosity into horror. A body, burned beyond recognition, is found in a tar boiler on a lonely stretch of road. With no clear identity and no immediate connection between the grisly find and the stranded vehicle, Inspector Jimmy Waghorn is called in to untangle the mystery.

As he follows a trail of missing persons, unexplained purchases, and seemingly unrelated crimes, Dr. Priestley offers his precise and methodical insights. But even he must admit that the case is not as straightforward as it seems.

With forensic detail and quiet ingenuity, Body Unidentified weaves a puzzle of deception and murder in the best tradition of Golden Age detective fiction