I've enjoyed all Mallett's work, and this is also excellent. Mallett's focus on Australian cases means that her case studies tend to be those that are not particularly well-known or cultural touchstones, and they open themselves up for fresh discussion and forensic analysis. Her methodology in choosing cases that illustrate faults and ambiguities in the criminal justice system as well as in past forensic analysis has not been to pluck out the sensational, but to pursue those that create a wider picture of the limits of and miscarriages of justice in Australia. Not all these cases are at all 'they clearly got it wrong': the ambiguities around some clearly highlight the places where forensics isn't enough to prove guilt or innocence under the law, or where it has been pushed further than it ought. As a result, this is nuanced and interesting, rather than pulpy and sensational.

This book covers some of the biggest (and, in some cases, lesser-known) cases of wrongful convictions and possible wrongful convictions in the Australian court system. It provides an interesting overview of the criminal justice system's approach to DNA evidence, expert evidence, and a plethora of other matters that affect convictions in cases. It has some really good points and some interesting examination of the issues, but it does come up onto a few hitches.

I found some of the segments extraordinarily familiar to certain episodes of a well-known true-crime podcast, and I struggled with this. The covering of some of the issues was remarkably similar, and there could have been a different approach to the cases. The style was a little disjointed as well, and it seemed as though the chapters were coming from very different perspectives and there was little consistency. However, I did think that the focus on the cases was still very interesting, and there are some important points raised in here that I feel a lot of people will benefit from learning.