Blood Will Tell

Last week I finished Carlton Smith's true-crime book Blood Will Tell. Blood is very telling in this story; while Ken Fitzhugh asserts that his wife, Kristine, died accidentally after falling down the stairs, blood spatter patterns suggest that she was actually attacked in the kitchen, and the scene was staged to make the death appear accidental. One investigator states it succinctly: "There's simply too much blood."

Blood Will Tell had all of the elements for an interesting story, but Smith's treatment is not particularly compelling. It starts strongly, with a brief glimpse of Ken in prison, then a switch to the description of the crime scene. But as the story continues, much of it seems wordy and not particularly illuminating. One section provides a long family history about Ken. As I read it, though, I found myself asking how much of the information was necessary to the story. The answer: not nearly as much as Smith provides.

Things pick up with the description of the trial, but even that ends with a disappointment. It's clear from the first page that Ken is convicted, but there's nothing in the book about the verdict or the sentence. This seems like a significant oversight.

It was interesting to get Ken's perspective. True-crime books aren't always able to depict both sides, but in this case, Smith interviewed Ken. Ken claims that he is innocent, of course, but apparently the jury believed otherwise. My rating of the book: 2 out of 5.

Since this blog entry focuses on crime, I'll add that I'm terribly disappointed in the verdict in the case about the death of Ted Binion. I don't understand why the two were acquitted of murder.

Alyssa