Review by Esmeralda Cisne -- Pancake Money by Finn Bell

[Esmeralda Cisne]

[Following is a volunteer review of "Pancake Money" by Finn Bell.]

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4 out of 4 stars

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I have four words to describe this crime novel by author Finn Bell: straightforward. Gripping. Page-turner. Touching. Let me explain why I chose these words to describe this roller-coaster ride of a book:

First, Pancake Money is straightforward because the book begins with a dramatic and intriguing scene which we do not find out about until much later. It started off with a bang, and it did not lose its momentum throughout the story; it had only gotten better. The grisly murder of a retired Catholic priest kicked off the events in the book. The case eventually brought our two leads, Bobby and Pollo, to a secluded and anonymous retreat called Tegere Servare. In Latin, Tegere Servare means “to shield and save”, and the retreat is for men of the cloth who experience difficulty in their calling due to the temptation of their repressed sexual desires. Tegere Servare shields and saves them from the judgment of the outside world and helps them save themselves from the evil that tempts them. But that very evil might also be the reason why the Holy Man Killer murdered the founders of Tegere Servare in a matter of days...

Secondly, it is gripping because it touches on the taboo. However, not every story that touches on the taboo is everyone’s of cup of tea. Ultimately, one of the goals of reading books is to teach us empathy, but not every author can broach a subject that would sound like a good and concise explanation to readers. This is where author Finn Bell gets us good. Detectives Bobby and Pollo represent the two different points of view regarding sexual abuse cases committed by priests of the Catholic Church: Pollo is kind of like the angry, cynical, and unforgiving personality who would not want clemency and forgiveness for those guilty of pedophilia and other related crimes. Most especially if the guilty party is someone whom everybody trusts. On the other hand, Bobby, who was raised Catholic and has never left the church, silently contemplates that the lines between crime and sin are blurred. Although he thinks that pedophiles, specifically, pedophile priests should be punished, it shouldn’t be in archaic, primitive ways like how martyrs were killed, Old Catholic style.

Third, it is a page-turner not just because of the compelling murder cases we read about as we progress through the chapters. Going back to my second point, I found Pancake Money a page-turner because I was intrigued about how the author would tackle a rather touchy subject for the church - the sexual abuse cases against their pedophile priests. Finn Bell approached the rather sensitive topic without sounding too vindictive. Through his characters, he has shown the complexity of human nature. But what stood out most to me was the way the author tackled the Catholic Church’s stand against the issue. For laypeople, it might seem that the Church is turning a blind eye on the matter of sexual abuses within their walls, especially by not treating pedophile priests like criminals, all in the name of mercy and forgiveness. The author has shown the church people’s perspective in the story: the fact that it is difficult for priests to prosecute their own, because if they let their own anger to take over and unleash wrath upon the criminal – the good priests themselves would sin.

Lastly, Pancake Money is touching because we will learn so much about the other characters even if it was just told from Bobby’s perspective. Pain is the theme and the subject repeated throughout the book. Pain and its drastic effect on the human psyche are explained to us in detail by the old little Forensic Psychology professor Bowlby, one of my favorite characters who always offer her insight and wisdom even at the most unexpected of times and places.
Finn Bell writes each of the characters in the story with depth that you will only appreciate and learn about as you read on. Usually, when I read short crime novels, even if it deals with the fragility of the human psyche when exposed with too much pain, I don’t cry. I empathize with the story, but I don’t cry. Usually, because there were so many unnecessary subplots that eventually digressed my attention from the main point.
Pancake Money delivered a straight gut-punch towards a particularly harrowing scene (it could be a different scene for other people, so I won’t mention it), proving that one’s emotional connection to the characters in the story wasn’t compromised because the book is relatively short. On the contrary, the length of the book was enough to make a compelling murder-mystery story.

The beauty in Finn Bell’s writing is this: as readers, we’d know when something big is about to happen. We will not feel it as it unfolds; rather, we reel in the after-effects. We begin to notice the meticulously placed words, why we feel so deeply for the characters or what has happened to them. Only when the story is done do we realize that it was a great ride and the impact it left us with weren’t all just ‘pancake money’!
This was the first book I’ve read from this author, and after this one, I think I have become a fan. I rate this book 4 out of 4 stars.

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Pancake Money
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