Press Reviews

"The Running Waves is far more than a coming of age book. It is a wonderful period piece and skillfully drawn family drama featuring brothers whom I quickly grew to care about. The Running Waves was an absorbing pleasure to read, and I could smell the salt air of 'my' Cape Cod on every page."

~ Michael Palmer, NY Times Bestselling Author of THE LAST SURGEON

When I first heard that my old pal Seton Murphy had written a book with his older brother Ted my first thought was of course… can Seton even read? Let alone write? Does he have opposable thumbs to hold a pen with? So many questions…

I kept hearing of this book, The Running Waves. I kept hearing these rumors that went something like this; “Seton has written a book with T.M. Murphy (Ted, really, but I’m still not 100% sure of the proper etiquette when referring to a professional of T.M.’s caliber, while simultaneously mentioning a friend as well) and it is about Marc and Pete”.

Marc and Pete were friends of ours, they died in a boating accident between myself and Setons Junior and Senior years in High School.

Like most people who are friends of the brothers Murphy and from this area, the combination, or juxtaposition if you will, of a book with a subject matter that carved so deeply into my own psyche and the general excitement I felt for a friend having achieved such a wonderful milestone could certainly become a double edged sword.

I mention these thoughts because this is a local website and most of the people reading this were also in some way affected by the accident that took Marc and Pete’s lives that summer. It is natural to place expectations on a book that hits so close to home, but after talking with Seton I realized that the single most important thing to remember about The Running Waves was that it is indeed a work of fiction, and it is not about Marc and Pete.

Like all works of fiction the book is certainly influenced by the experiences of the authors, but it is also by no means a memoir or a chronicle of events. No matter what the reader wants The Running Waves to be or the preconcieved notions one brings into reading this book, it is important to remember that The Running Waves is indeed fiction. While our familiarity with the authors makes the book that much more interesting for us Cape people, it also makes it difficult for us to not get caught up in trying to figure out who exactly each character is supposed to be and micromanaging our assesment of the storyline.

I for one was glad to have talked with Seton and that he stressed this point to me prior to reading the book, it allowed me to read The Running Waves as it should be read, it allowed me to read it with an open mind.

The Running Waves is really two books. On the surface the book is an entertaining and at times laugh out loud funny story about the lives of two brothers in Silver Shores (Cape Cod). The book brings the reader back to the mid nineties on the Cape, with tales of using a little nose grease to combat the foam in a beer funnel, playing games like high or low, and detailing the process of properly breaking in the bill on a baseball hat. This book is full of “Oh my god remember that” moments.

If you have ever pondered how drunk you could get by licking the sweat pouring out of your pores in the summer sun after a night of drinking or enjoyed a keg party with a delightful mix of townies and summer stuck ups The Running Waves will bring you right back to the freewheeling days that was summer on The Cape for a young adult.

While there are plenty of funny stories and situations to keep you entertained, the backbone of this side of the story is the dialouge. Whether it be banter between friends on a car ride, nervous chats with the opposite sex or, one of my favorites, the talking between co-workers who spend long days together, The Running Waves is full of the type of spontaneous dialouge we have all had at times and wished we had a tape recorder to be able to remember it.

The other side to this book is also expressed by dialouge, all be it of a different manner. The inner dialouge the two brothers have with themselves, the little voice we all have inside our heads but never fully share with anyone. The writers bravely let us eavesdrop into the thoughts of the two main characters as they deal with their insecurities and inner pain.

One brother is battling with himself trying to deal with the loss of dear friends, a loss that came early enough in life that he was in no way prepared for it. Colin Brennan is at an age where he is dealing with the confusion of becoming an adult and deciding what he wants in life. Unfortunately he is simultaneously forced to deal with the reality of facing death.

This proves to be a formidable challenge and the lines between partying and self medicating become blurred. Colin has found himself overcome with a laundry list of emotions and inequipped to handle them so he decides to escape the best way he knows how; getting fucked up whenever he can, however he can.

While Colin is slipping away many people look towards his older brother to reach him. Dermot Brennan has just returned to town to find his younger brother going down a bad road and feels compelled to get him turned around, but Dermot has his own issues involving a failed romantic relationship and insecurities about his professional future.

This is where we get to the heart of The Running Waves. How can a teenager become a man and move on when his life is seemingly crashing down around him? How can his older brother save him while deep down he feels as though he is the one who needs saving?

At its core the Running Waves is a generous book. What I mean is that we all travel through our lives with our own insecurities and our own inner voice which we feel is unique to us and secludes us from everyone else. The Running Waves, through introspective honesty, gives us the ablility to realize that we are not alone, each and every one of us has our own achilles heel, our own fears about love, abandonment, success, failure, strength and weakness.

To find out what happens with the brothers, well you’ll just have to read the book, but let’s just say that the coming of age of Colin and Dermot Brennan in essence reminds us that no matter what, as long as we are honest and true to ourselves we will never be alone.

The Running Waves is our book, yours and mine, in that it was born in our little corner of the world. Our community. Our friends and our past. Just as it is important for us to support local talent by travelling to the Garden when the FHS Basketball team makes the State Championship, or buying 2′ x 4’s at Falmouth Lumber instead of Home Depot. This is OUR community and this is our book written by our people, so support your local artists and click on the link below to get your own copy of The Running Waves, and as tempting as it is, don’t borrow it, go get your own. I would be willing to bet that if you emailed Ted or Seton you could even get it signed.

The Running Waves is hilarious, witty, engaging and so deeply introspective at the same time that it certainly took guts to write. Show the brother’s Murphy that you are as proud of them as I am by buying a copy of the book and then passing the word on.

~ Damien Palanza, www.go2536.com

"Finally - a novel that captures the tone and tenor of the place where I grew up. The Running Waves shows us what lies beneath the beautiful imagery of Cape Cod where villagers are often torn between their own aspirations and a stubborn loyalty to the place they call home. The Murphy Brothers have found a big fan in me."

~ Casey Sherman, Bestselling author of The Finest Hours and Bad Blood: Freedom and Death in the White Mountains