On the morning of December 1st, 1948, the body of a well-dressed man was found propped against a seawall on Somerton Beach in Adelaide, Australia. He had no wallet. No identification of any kind. The labels had been cut from every item of his clothing. The cause of death could not be determined. The only unusual item found on his person was a small scrap of paper tucked into a hidden pocket in his trousers, printed with two words in Persian.

Tamám Shud. It is finished.

What followed is one of the most famous cold cases in history. There is a book of Persian poetry with a phone number penciled in the back. There is a woman who knew more than she ever admitted. There is a coded message that no one has ever deciphered. There is a suitcase at the train station containing items labelled with a name that is not the dead man's. There is a pl ...