Ed Glinert is a man that knows his London inside out, gathering together an astonishing catalogue of cultural, historical and social facts of the city, such as Literary London and West End Chronicles. Most, if not all, of it can be discovered on foot. Now he's like a dead man walking as he takes us on a tour of London's mortality. London's Dead is a collection of anecdotal tombstones to people and events that left this world tragically, violently and even amusingly. On the one hand, there's a touch of the macabre in some of his tales such as Dirty Dick, who never altered anything in his house after his fiancée’s death, a story which inspired Dickens' Great Expectations. On the other hand, it's more a somber reminder of recent events that still haunt our memories such as the 7/11 bombings.

Much like his earlier volumes, the book is divided into distinctive exploratory areas. Some entries are more matter-of-fact such as the addresses where the likes of Judy Garland, Jimi Hendrix and Sylvia Plaith died. Glinert lists historical incidents such as the scattered sites of plague victims, the public executions of Tyburn Hill or Newgate's martyrs. The most notorious hangings at prisons such as Wandsworth and Pentonville are noted down alongside all the deaths that occurred in the Tower of London.

There's a kind of yellowed-round-the-edges pages of the Underground residents of the great Victorian cemeteries from the renowned Highgate to Nunhead and Norwood in the South, and Kensal Green and the aristocratic tombs of Brompton in the West. And there's a tour of the kings and great Britons buried in Westminster Abbey. And if you're traveling by public transport, there are also accounts of all the major incidents on the Underground since the first fatality at Bow Station in 1864.

London's Dead also features extensive items on the darker criminal element such the murderous crusades of John Christie in Notting Hill, Dennis Nilsen in Crickelwood, and the East End of the Krays. Equally Glinert brings a few sobering accounts of recent events that have scarred the city; the controversial shooting of Jean Charles Menezes as well as the tragic stabbings of Stephen Lawrence and Damiola Taylor.

There's no doubting Glinert's relentless passion for excavating the length and breadth (and depth) of the city, searching out golden nuggets of invaluable information. This volume also celebrates our deliciously morbid fascination with death, contemplating the demise of the good, the bad and the ugly. However, there's also a slight uneasiness in having historical accounts alongside recent tragedies which still bleed across our headlines. It's not that he talks ill of the dead or shows any disrespect for victims of terrorism or street crimes, but it does feel like oil on water, the past and present not blending easily in a book of this name. These are incidents that deserve a more appropriate book of remembrance. Undeniably passionate about his subject, Glinert's energy and knowledge is captured in his writings, but I'm sure he's a restless spirit forever wandering the streets seeking to unearth new stories to fascinate us all.