196 Books: Costa Rica

Cadence of the Moon by Oscar Nunez Olivas

Here's Costa Rica, in Central America:

And the book summary:

A series of murders committed with dreadful sadism by a psychopathic killer shakes Costa Rica like one of the earth tremors that periodically bedevil Central America. The police and press compete to uncover the murderer's grisly trail - leading to a passionate encounter between a detective and an astonishing female reporter whose charms are her most powerful investigative tool. In a groundbreaking work of fiction that explores the sharp dilemmas faced by both policemen and journalists alike, Costa Rican writer Oscar Nunez Olivas explores just how close - and how far - from the truth reporters and detectives on the trail of a lunatic can be.Published by Aflame Books, "Cadence of the Moon" is a tale of intrigue and human frailty based on the real story of Costa Rica's first ever case of a serial killer. Nunez Olivas draws upon the details of a notorious unsolved crime that horrified this small country to weave a plot that examines the dilemmas faced by journalists driven by a professional ethic yet living by the rules of the real world. Translated by Joanna Griffin from the Spanish-language original ("En clave de luna"), "Cadence of the Moon" explores how the police and press investigations reinforced and contradicted each other and the political and financial pressures that compromised both. Nunez Olivas says: "Objectivity in journalism is a vacuous concept. There does not nor has there ever existed objectivity in the act of scrutinising, interpreting and transmitting human experience.

Ok. Let me start out by saying, the "charms" of the investigative reporter are, of course, her looks. Because apparently there is not a single male author who can write a damn book without objectifying the female characters. Get. It. Together. While each of the female characters had a thorough description of her body, the only description of a male I can remember was an "athletic build" and "cold eyes." WHAT THE ACTUAL FUCK. COME ON. 

In the first like 4 pages the reporter's lips or mouth are described as "luscious." Seriously? That's just kind of a gross description. And just after that we start off with some workplace sexual harassment. Classic. Basically her boss tells her he'll give her the big story for a kiss. When she threatens to sue for harassment, he gives a "confused laugh" and basically tells her she has no sense of humor. Because that's very funny. UGH. Going back to these parts and writing about it is making me livid again. 

Alright, if you can manage to get past the objectification of all the women, the story is really interesting. And it seems he wasn't too far off the real story; I of course had to look a little into the actual Psychopath.

But here's another part that's infuriating, this time true life: rich, famous, powerful people being untouchable. There was question in real life if the murderer was part of a powerful family, and Olivas took the story in that direction. Towards the end of the book, one of the policemen comments, "There's heavy pressure from powerful people who want to find whoever is responsible, at least during the elections." Sad but true. Politicians are so far removed from the general public and really don't care about justice or what's best for the common people. It's all about staying in power. 

Man, this is bleak. I was gripped by the actual story but now I'm just angry. How many times do I have to say it...do better, world!