Blood, Sweat and Fear

Most people are familiar with forensic evidence and the impact it has on cases today. No case goes to trial without strong evidence, and of course, forensic evidence to back up their facts.

The story of Canadian Inspector Vance was engaging from the beginning to the end. He started out as a analyst for food and beverages, but was asked to help on cases when law enforcement was stuck. His analysis of blood evidence, by using science, was groundbreaking in the 1920s. As he began to build a name for himself, he was called into other crime scenes, both in Canada and the United States.

I absolutely loved this book. It was fun to read and learn about some of the cases that until now, I had never heard of. Some cases were mentioned only in passing, while others were expanded and given quite a bit of information.

Through his efforts and his relentless pursuit of the truth, we have one of the first pioneers into the field of Forensics. Based on his notes, and his tireless work, many criminals went to prison. Some though, still escaped justice.

Overall this book kept me engaged. There were times that I stumbled through, as many of the words are missing letters, so deciphering what the word should (or could) be could take a little doing. The author tends to jump a little bit back and forth, so if you are not paying careful attention, you might find yourself flipping back a few pages to figure out where you are and where she is heading with the information provided.