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

The original three teams expanded as Cal added a group to design the gondola, another to work on steering and stabilizing mechanisms.


Models of airships crashed in an amazing variety of ways in the Shed.  Some lost pressure suddenly, while others hit the ceiling or walls and ruptured the envelope. One got too near a lamp and burst into flame. The envelope and steering teams argued through the days about how to make the craft safer.


Amidst all of this, Patrick called Cal to watch the first test of a prototype engine. It spun up as he fed steam into it until it howled painfully loud. Cal yelled at him to shut it down, but the howl became a scream as it tore itself to pieces. Patrick and Cal came out from where they'd taken shelter to find bits of steel were embedded in the wall, ceiling and floor in a ring around the engine.


"It isn't balanced right." Patrick kicked the table. "As soon as it got up to speed the wobble became destructive."


Chapter 28: Failure Is Necessary Part 1