True crime is a tricky genre-it’s tough to assemble all the facts, disparate as they maybe, into a coherent narrative - but it’s even tougher to make that narrative compelling. Pompey succeeds at the first but fails at the second. More of a recitation of the facts ( which are interesting) than a compelling story. Recommended as interesting but not a great read.

This is an interesting look at the Hall-Mills murders from way back in 1922. There is much intrigue involved in the case, as both parties were married, and Hall was a well-known minister. It also delves into the area newspapers, and how this case become nationwide news because it was so notorious for the times.

A fast paced book with loads of characters from all over the spectrum of income and social level of society in the 1920s. While the book centers around who killed a prominent minister and a member of the choir from his church, it shows the birth of the tabloid newspaper and how their influence and competition among these players made true crime a most popular form of entertainment. I was fascinated by the author’s style of writing—heavy descriptive sentences that flowed and pushes the reader to want to read faster to keep up with the words on the pages. It is not boring in the least. Is there one murderer or more; was it from the two families of the victims or a random killing? Many people have their suspicions and are willing to testify in the crime of the century. Famous publishers are involved, including William Randolph Hearst, and the length that they and their journalists are willing to go to try to find the murderer but, more importantly to them, how to raise their ratings and subscription levels, This book will appeal to a wide range of readers: true crime; journalism students and the study of the Fourth Estate and the public’s reactions to fake news plus business school classes in ethics. The research with which the author dealt cannot be understated.

I love true crime in this book is no exception. This case is so interesting you would think it’s actually fiction but it’s not. A perfect book to lose your weekend with…

I was not expecting this book to read like a thriller, but I was pleasantly surprised. The writing flows so smoothly that it was so easy to be immersed in this book. Joe Pompeo really did his research and it showed. When you first encounter this book, you may assume it will be dry or boring due to it being a well-researched dive into a 1920s scandal, but I can promise you it is a fun ride.

I highly recommend this book for fans of history and true crime!

Terrific! I just finished Blood and Ink and it's 4:15am. I will be on the lookout for future books by Joe Pompeo - he is a natural writer of true crime and no doubt, other forms of nonfiction (he writes for Vanity Fair and other prominent periodicals). His writing pulls the reader along smoothly. The "characters" are vivid, the story is told with suspense, and boy, does he do his research. There are other books about this murder case and I have not read any of them. But I do feel comfortable in recommending this one very highly.

I finished this book in one day — a day when I was supposed to be working.

Blood & Ink has everything, absolutely everything, I want from a true crime book: objectivity, impartiality, and nitty-gritty primary source research. The author never resorts to teasing the reader with sleights of hand or hare-brained theories because the Hall-Mills murder itself provides enough twists, turns, and excitement to keep the pages turning. And the parallel story of New York City's developing tabloids and the role they played in the unraveling of the case — albeit not quite as thrilling as a double homicide featuring a preacher and his mistress — is fascinating in its own right. Blood & Ink is a double-barreled shotgun of a read.

Perhaps I am just not as interested in true crime as I used to be, but this true crime story didn't interest me at all.

I love true crime books, it was what I was hoping for from the description. Joe Pompeo has a great writing style and I could see that he researched the topic thoroughly. It was a case I hadn't really heard of so that was a plus. There's something fascinating about the Jazz Age crimes, and I wanted to solve what was going on.

"After the first articles about Gibson hit newsstands, journalists swarmed her farm, about a mile or so from the crabapple tree. Upon arrival, they encountered a hostile subject. Photographers said she tried to smash their cameras, and reporters couldn’t coax her into talking. “I don’t know anything about the case except what I read in the newspapers,” Gibson snapped."

I feel sure if I'd seen a hot-off-the-presses print copy of this title, I'd be giving it 5 stars. Some galleys come with images but this one did not and I missed, never having been to New Jersey unless we're counting the airport, having a map of the area where the murders took place and where the Halls and Mills lived as well as some grainy 100 year-old crime scene photos.
Quite possibly, I am being stingy and should give Pompeo that fifth star just for the exhaustive research he put into this book. He's done far more work putting this book together than any law enforcement officer ever did actually investigating the murders of Reverend Edward Hall and Eleanor Mills. In addition to probably giving himself asthma digging through decades of police reports and witness statements, the Vanity Fair writer has also produced a riveting history of the birth of tabloid reporting in the U.S. as well as the daring reporters, editors, and big time players (Hearst et al.) who pushed them to bring in the most sensational stories.
Please don't let my use of the words "research" and "history" lead you to believe this book is a dry read by any means. William Shakespeare would have been proud to have created this cast of characters. I could probably be persuaded to read a whole book just about Jane Gibson. This book will appeal to both true crime fans and history buffs alike.

Wow. Blood and Ink is a fast paced thriller that I could not put down. Murder, scandal, wealth and the "trial of the century" make this a fascinating study into the culture and historical moment that the murders occurred.

Extremely well researched and written this book should be at the top of your reading list.