Author:
Alex McGilvery has been reading since before he can remember, and writing almost that long. He has published 18 books and is author and editor at his imprint Celticfrog Publishing. He lives in Kamloops with his dog and the stories clawing their way out of his head.

They’re chasing a myth in the name of science.

Calliope works for her explorer father as an artist, recording what he brings back from his journeys in her sketchbooks. When she’s given a chance to go along on a trip to capture a sea serpent she doesn’t hesitate.

Life at sea isn't what she expected, and she ends up fascinated by the engine room of the steamship HMRV Peregrine. A tragedy makes her assistant engineer, but Pentam, her father’s protégé, is even more determined than her father to make Cal a fine lady. That means protecting her from danger, even if it drives her crazy.
When science and legend collide, Cal is the one who must take up the challenge of survival, even if it means risking her new-found feelings for Pentam.

Calliope

"Did you check with the Captain?" Thomas looked up for a moment. 


"Henrichs said it should be OK. We haven't seen any of the serpents this far out. If something grabs the line, I'll let it go."


Cal set up to draw Pentam fishing. He tossed the line out gracefully and let it sink before hauling 


it up and doing again. On the third cast he caught a fish. He snapped its neck and kept on fishing. By the time the sun had moved to the west, he had a pile of fish on the deck.


On this cast, he must have hooked onto a larger fish. Pentam grunted as he hauled it in. It broke the surface and flapped desperately. Thomas run over with a long boathook and leaned over. Cal stood to get a better angle on their struggle. That was going to be a huge catch. 


A shadow moved under the water. Shark, they'd seen a few, but nothing that big. It kept growing. Cal had a flash of the teeth pulling the net down.


Chapter 38: The Maw of the Serpent Part 3