From rookie mistakes and runaway corpses to screaming dead men and unusual requests, a collection of stories by funeral directors.

The Undertaker. After you have breathed your final breath the Undertaker prepares your body for the afterlife. They carry the burden of making you at ease in your new home for all eternity. The stories these brave men and women could tell! We have gathered but a few for you today in these pages. UNDERTAKER TALES IS A FICTIONAL ANTHOLOGY OF HORROR STORIES.

From rookie mistakes and runaway corpses to screaming dead men and unusual requests, a collection of stories by funeral directors.

Discover a more lighthearted side of the funeral industry in this collection of real-life stories from the authors of Mortuary Confidential. Not knowing what to do, I sat on the church steps and waited. As the gravity of my failure began to well up in me, I began to cry . . . I Had Lost The Hearse! Funerals and the all the things that accompany them are traditionally somber, contemplative events in which the bereaved look to their undertaker to guide them through that most difficult of times. Of course, sometimes tradition gets thrown under the bus. From a dysfunctional family who turn their mother’s wake into a full-blown riot, to funeral crashers looking for free meals, to a horse-drawn hearse taking the dearly departed for the ride of their afterlife, these accounts from actual undertakers will have you laughing, thinking, and gasping in disbelief. A literal graveyard of wild coincidences, slapstick humor, and touching moments, Over Our Dead Bodies explores the lighter side of the dead, the living, and the lone undertaker who must make it all go as planned—even if it doesn’t. Praise for Mortuary Confidential “Outrageous funeral stories, dipped in beauty and morbid humor.” —Caleb Wilde, author of Confessions of a Funeral Director “Curious, wildly honest stories that need to be told, but just not at the dinner table.” —Dana Kollmann, author of Never Suck a Dead Man’s Hand “As unpredictable and lively as a bunch of drunks at a New Orleans funeral.” —Joe R. Lansdale, author of Moon Lake “Sick, funny, and brilliant! I love this book.” —Jonathan Maberry, Bram Stoker Award–winning author of They Bite! And Rot & Ruin “These true mortuary tales are poignant—and suddenly, gaspi

A day in the life of Carla Valentine - curator, pathology technician and 'death professional' - is not your average day. She spent ten years training and working as an Anatomical Pathology Technologist: where the mortuary slab was her desk, and that day's corpses her task list. Past Mortems tells Carla's stories of those years, as well as investigating the body alongside our attitudes towards death - shedding light on what the living can learn from dead and the toll the work can take on the living souls who carry it out. Fascinating and insightful, Past Mortems reveals the truth about what happens when the mortuary doors swing shut or the lid of the coffin closes.

"The Rue Morgue Murders" is a pioneering tale in the mystery genre, in which detective Auguste Dupin uses his acute observation and logic to solve a brutal double murder in Paris, revealing a surprising and unusual outcome.

Including the Scott Peterson and Chandra Levy CasesA certifiable genius, Wecht has earned degrees both in medicine and the law, but his great passion...is the ever illusive commodity, justice.... [I]f it's an objective opinion you desire, predicated on facts gleaned from forensic science, then Dr. Cyril Wecht is your man. If it's the truth you want in a murder case, he'll give you his conclusions without regard to politics or profit, in fact he often works pro bono. If I'm ever unjustly accused, he's the first one I'm going to call.- IntellectualConservative.comYoung people drawn to the broad fields of criminal justice, medicine, or science will be fascinated by the forensic findings presented here. The thought-provoking cases span 40 years of renowned pathologist Wecht's career....[T]his chatty yet analytical book is written to appeal to laypersons, and it does. Its whodunit aspect is magnetic.- School Library JournalDr. Wecht's evalutions of the evidence in the Gander Airplane Crash, which claimed the lives of 248 American soldiers, and in the police custody death of Jonny Gammage, as well as in the deaths of Laci Peterson and Chandra Levy, raise very troubling questions about compromised investigations that the country's leading forensic pathologist-attorney-coroner uniquely addresses.- Michael Baden, M.D., Former Chief Medical Examiner, New York City and co-author with Linda Kenney of the thriller Remains SilentDr. Wecht is a world renowned pathologist. Reading this book is like being on one adventure after another. For those interested in true crime, you must read this book!- Dr. Henry C. Lee, Author of Cracking Cases and Cracking More Cases and professor of forensic science at the University of New HavenWas Scott Peterson convicted of murdering Laci Peterson based upon circumstantial evidence alone? Did Washington intern Chandra Levy know her killer?In Tales from the Morgue, Dr. Cyril Wecht, one of the most sought-after forensic pathologists in the world, shares his insights and scientific expertise on nine cases that he has officially investigated - high-profile cases as well as other lesser-known but highly intriguing mysteries. Dr. Wecht takes the reader inside some of the nation's most bizarre and intriguing medico-legal investigations and shows how forensic scientists help to solve crimes - and why they sometimes fail in their efforts. His vast experience and his willingness to take on the establishment if necessary and provide proof that runs counter to popular opinion make this book a page-turner.Cyril H. Wecht, M.D., J.D., one of the world's leading pathologists, is the author of Mortal Evidence, Who Killed JonBenet Ramsey?, Grave Secrets, Cause of Death, and hundreds of professional publications. He has served as president of both the American College of Legal Medicine and the American Academy of Forensic Sciences, and has appeared on numerous nationally syndicated television programs including NBC's Dateline, Larry King Live, 20/20, Burden of Proof, and many others.Mark Curriden is the senior communications counsel for Vinson & Elkins, LLP; the former legal writer for The Dallas Morning News and The Atlanta Constitution; and a co-author of Mortal Evidence.Angela Powell, former columnist and children's book reviewer for The Dallas Morning News, is now a freelance publicist.

Michelle Williams is young and attractive, she has close family ties as well as a busy social life - but she is far from usual. She is a mortuary technician and her job involves dealing with those things in life that many people do not wish to experience directly. Yet life in the mortuary is neither gruesome nor sad. Told with good humour and common sense, we are introduced to a host of characters - the pathologists, many of them eccentric, some downright mad; the undertakers, the hospital porters and the man from the coroner's office who sings to Michelle every morning. The incidents too ensure that no two days are ever the same. From the tragic to the hilarious they include: The fitness fanatic who was run over as he did pressups in the road on a dark night The decapitated motorcyclist The guide dog who led his owner on to the railway tracks - and left him there The forty stone man for whom an entire refrigerated lorry had to be hired because he wouldn't fit in the mortuary cooler Over the course of her first year Michelle has to deal with situations and emotions that few of us will ever experience, and does so while retaining a sense of humour and a sense of perspective.

A deceased undertaker still carries out his life’s work. The spirit of a nun comforts mourners. Red carnations materialize from nowhere . . . Spooky Stories from the Dismal Trade Alternately hair-raising, creepy, and touching, Mariah de la Croix’s encounters with the supernatural during her tenure as a mortician are both chilling and unforgettable. Restless in Peace recounts her true experiences working in funeral homes—and the resident spirits’ frightening, bizarre, and sometimes amusing behaviors. From the angry spirit who follows her home after work to the deceased man who likes to communicate through a microphone, this book offers a rare glimpse of living and working among the spirited dead.