Anyone who has followed the coverage of the payments to politicians tribunals in the Irish media over the past five years will be familiar with the subject, story and author of Haughey's Millions.

Gill & Macmillan, £8

Unfortunately, there is little in this contribution from Irish Times financial journalist Colm Keena that has not been written before, even by himself. So why should veteran tribunal watchers or those with a passing interest in our disgraced former taoiseach revisit old ground by reading this book?

Most know the story at this stage. One of our most controversial public servants, Charles J Haughey, receives millions from the big wallahs of Irish business to live like an aristocrat for, what he claims is, the greater good of the state. Both sides deny that any favours were sought or given.

High Court judge Mr Justice Brian McCracken finds that it is unacceptable for a taoiseach to be "supported in his personal lifestyle by gifts", particularly "from prominent businessmen", when there is "the possibility that political or financial favours could be sought in return for such gifts".

Efforts to prosecute Haughey have to be postponed, but he faces a large tax bill. Still, he continues to enjoy his pseudo-aristocratic lifestyle, thanks mostly to hand-outs from Ireland's big businessmen. Up to now that seems to be the extent of this lurid affair.

Keena's book describes this as a story that defies belief but the story of Haughey receiving millions no longer defies belief -- that was yesterday's headline.

What is beyond belief is the fact that Haughey retains nearly all of his solicited wealth and that some of his secrets remain hidden -- even after this book.

Too often in Haughey's Millions we are told that little is known about the source of some of his money.

For example, Keena writes: "In the story of Haughey's finances from 1979 to 1996, the year 1988 is a greater mystery than all the others. Although some funds were identified as having come in that year, these were not used to fund the bill-paying service that year, with the service being run with other donations of which nothing whatsoever is known."

So is this the time to tell "the whole tangled story from beginning to end", as the book describes it? The book claims it can untangle its myriad threads. And to an extent it can but the story is not finished yet.

The Moriarty Tribunal is months, maybe years, away from completion and has yet to draw its conclusions about Haughey's millions. The identities of nearly all of the Ansbacher depositors have not been revealed and, if and when they are, that could shed even more light on the origin of some of Haughey's millions. There is still a long way to go.

There has been no detailed examination of the political decisions made by Haughey: who benefited from them and who was disadvantaged by them? Nor has there been a careful study of the timing of the payments made to Haughey by business figures.

We are told that the cashflow to Haughey dried up when he moved to the opposition benches and positively gushed when he returned to power. Haughey claimed that this was purely coincidental but these trends need to be examined more closely.

To the uninitiated, this book serves as a comfortable introduction to the payments-to-Haughey saga -- although following the trail of money through the complex forest of transactions is tough going at times. The role played by Haughey's bagman, the late accountant Des Traynor, and the operation of the offshore Ansbacher accounts are explained in great detail here, as are Haughey's relationships with his donors.

The book shows how Haughey was shameless about asking people for money. Many of the top names in Irish business contributed and are described here.

We are told that Haughey would "simply expect people to give him money and when they did he would think no more of it. Others say that what you would get in return was inclusion. Many admired Haughey hugely and were anxious to secure or maintain his friendship."

Keena paints a colourful portrait of Haughey as an ambitious and conceited man. For example, businessman Dermot Desmond lent money for the refurbishment of Haughey's boat, the Celtic Mist, because "the boat used by the Taoiseach of the day should reflect the country in a good light", according to the former Fianna Fa´il leader himself.

Haughey is shown as being invincible to scrutiny and, for a short time, to the inquiries of an Oireachtas-appointed tribunal -- until, that is, there are no more rocks under which he can crawl.

The most engaging part of the book is its coverage of early 1997 when Haughey eventually realised that the disclosure of his financial secrets was inevitable. The conversations with solicitor Noel Smyth at the former taoiseach's Kinsealy home in 1997 show a nervous man struggling desperately to stop the truth from coming out.

Three bank drafts totalling stg£210,000 from supermarket tycoon Ben Dunne proved fatal, forcing Haughey to admit for the first time that the money could be "a source of embarrassment". It is fascinating reading, particularly when Haughey subsequently lies to the McCracken Tribunal to avoid admission, but ends up digging a much deeper hole.

Keena eschews detail about Haughey's personal life in favour of following the money and the book suffers as a result. The references to Haughey's affair with social columnist Terry Keane and his flamboyant lifestyle are intriguing but there could have been more to explain why Haughey felt he needed the hand-outs to survive. It would also have helped carry the complex financial detail.

Most of the material in this book may have come out during the tribunals but Keena tries to package the findings in an accessible read for the layman. He succeeds to a point: this is a cursory examination of Haughey's money trail, written in factual if uninspiring language.

The gaping hole at the end of the book is due mainly to the fact that the timing of this publication is premature. Few conclusions can be drawn and the truncated ending leaves the reader asking more questions and slightly frustrated that there is no closure to the story of Haughey's Millions.

Then again, we could be waiting years for that chapter.