If a ghost appeared from nowhere and ordered you to start solving crimes, what would you do?

When a ghost shanghais Porter Norton, he just wants to put his head in his hands and have nothing to do with it. Then he discovers he has to atone for a family curse that has seen all the males die at their own hands for five generations.

The Gliss, the sarcastic spirit that rescues him, says he can now see and hear the dead - if he’s close to their remains. Porter has to use his unwelcome gift to clear up past injustices. Or else.

Forced to investigate the murder of a WW1 British Tommy executed for spying in 1917, he begins to suspect the case has links to his own family history. Along the way, Porter enlists the help of a bickering group of misfits, who struggle to stay involved - because everyone knows, only fools believe in the supernatural.

As Porter, The Gliss, and friends, get deeper into the explosive case, they discover their own lives and sanity are at stake. An evil from WW1 is pursuing them.

Chock full of pop culture, banter and twists, the story takes us from present-day London and Flanders to scenes from World War 1. Dead & Talking is the debut novel from Des Burkinshaw, a TV producer/director with credits on the BBC, ITV, Channel 4, Sky and Discovery. Des is also a former Times journalist, whose work has also been published in many other publications.