Killing Neptunes Daughter

Rating:
Summary: dark high school ¿friends¿ tale
Review: After all the bad things she did and the things that were done to her, Tina left Woods Hole on Cape Cod when she finished eleventh grade. She totally remade herself into another woman named Noelle and married a famous rock star who was a heavy drug user and wife cheater. Their names were household words and their exploits were featured in the media at every opportunity. One night she leaves her village apartment and goes to her favorite spot, the St. Lukes-in-the-Fields, where a man rapes her and then kills her with a marlinspike.

Also living in the village is sports reporter Billy Bagswell and even though he only met her once in New York City, he returns home for her funeral. When Tina was living in Woods Hole, she was a slut, having sex with who she chose and reveling in the power it gave her. Billy and his friend who really cared for her think the killer is living in Woods Hole and has nothing to do with her New York lifestyle. They reminisce about the bad old days and begin to piece together the various puzzle parts of Tina's life, trying to find the perpetrator.

KILLING NEPTUNE'S DAUGHTER is not a pretty book but it accurately reflects the darker goings that go on between high school students. One can't help but feel sorry for the victim because circumstances forced her to behave the way she did and each of her "friends" have their own guilt to bear. Randall Peffer is a talented writer who gives new meaning to the words vigilante justice.

Harriet Klausner

Rating:
Summary: Unforgettable
Review: From the instant you open this book, you become entranced by the riveting plot and beautiful lines of description. The rape and murder of Noelle Werlin, known to everyone else Tina, brings back vivid childhood memories to Billy Bagwell, as he returns to Woods Hole for her funeral. After decades of burying his past, Billy relives it in a thrilling ride back through his adolescence to find her killer. Randall Peffer's work has been compared by some to such works by Quentin Tarantino and David Lynch.

Killing Neptune's Daughter is not simply a dark suspence novel about rape, murder, and violence. It sends a profound message to teens and adults alike about coping with current and past demons. It is a story of coming of age and breaking the code of silence. It is a book that will neither bore you nor leave you empty handed. And the ending is truly unforgettable.

No book that I've come across has had such a complete and lasting impact like Killing Neptune's Daughter. It's a masterpiece of human emotions.