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.

The Heronmaster includes the title story, which is the tale of Leaper who grows from a tadpole to become a legend. Murder in the Woods is a noir style mystery with animals rather than people. Nick, a young wolf, is forced to seek out the answer to Bob the moose's disappearance. Sammy is a the story of a young man on a cruise with his new car, the elderly man he takes with him and a red balloon. Madison's Meteor tells the story of Frank Madison, a farmer outside of the town of Madison which has fallen on hard times with the closing of the plant - the main employer for the town. Frank finds a meteor one night and changes start in both him and the town.

The Heronmaster

I basked in the glow of my new car. She was a gem--a little red MGB--my last extravagance before settling down as a responsible adult. 


We drove through one of those fragile fall days which held a painful clarity. The breeze blew cool and the sun shone warm. People moved on the sidewalks with a conscious briskness as if such a day could not possibly last and, if they stopped to enjoy it, it would turn to cold and rain. This day belonged to the adults of the city since the children were safely ensconced in school. 


The MGB wove in and out of traffic passing secretaries and businessmen, storekeepers and shoppers. They formed a spectacle not as colourful as the dance of the falling leaves, but more purposeful.


Chapter 26: Sammy, Part 1