L J Zinkand

Meteor Falls L J Zinkand

A humorous, bittersweet, somewhat irreverent feel-good story with fairytale-ish overtones. Nestled at the foot of mystical and majestic Mt. Shasta, the small town of Meteor Falls is host to the Barrel Shoot, a yearly event whose participants ride outlandish, homemade barrels over a fifty-foot waterfall on the Castle River. Ian Twickham, an environmental engineer with a troubled past, leaves his home in London to begin a job with Castle River Restoration. Kayla Brandt, a horticulturist looking to reinvent herself after her failed marriage in Baltimore, arrives in Meteor Falls a short time later to build her own barrel. Unaware of each other at first, they find the town polarized between the progressive eco-tourism trade and conservative ranchers. Pollution from the ranchers' cattle is clogging the Castle River threatening wildlife, recreation, and local revenue generated by the Barrel Shoot. Castle River Restoration offers to build riparian setbacks and cattle bridges, but the conservative landowners are resistant. Escalating tension between the producers of the Barrel Shoot and the ranchers creates a power struggle that takes a deadly turn.