Sarah Ward and Sarah Tarlow: Buried Secrets: Archaeology in Crime Fiction and Memoir

Sunday 17 November, 10.30 - 11.30am, QUAD Derby

Sarah Ward returns to the Festival with a dark new crime series. Set in New England, Archaeology Professor Carla James is reeling following the death of her husband. Desperate for a change of scene, she takes a job at an elite New England college. On her first day, Carla is asked to represent the department at a murder site. She initially believes there is nothing notable about the scattered debris that surrounds the body, but there is more to the case than meets the eye.

This victim is just the latest in a series of unsolved deaths. Nothing obvious links them but Carla is convinced – there is a methodical killer operating in the shadows.

Sarah will be joined by Sarah Tarlow, Professor of Historical Archaeology at the University of Leicester who advised Sarah on the research for her novel and is best known for her work on the archaeology of death and burial. Her memoir, The Archaeology of Loss, was published in 2023.

This event will be filmed and made available as a digital recording after the Festival. For more information please click here.

Please note that we anticipate that parking will be unavailable at the Assembly Rooms car park as demolition work will have started by November. Alternative parking is available on streets around the Cathedral area and in other public car parks including Chapel Street and Bold Lane.