Igor Shamuilov

Everyday in Halifax, a ceremonial blast fires from a canon. The Noon Gun sends a rattle through the old wooden homes of the North End. Within one of these homes, an elderly woman dotes over her graffiti writer grandson. An interracial couple walk tensely down a side street. A recovering alcoholic cop lectures his street-wizened young partner as they walk the beat. On one day in particular, the Noon Gun blast ties these groups into a sequence of events. As these events unfold, each group’s perspective grows, obscuring reality and ultimately effecting each other’s lives.

Miriam Gordon lives in a fog of grief while working in a downtown public library branch. When a burgeoning love affair coincides with her receiving a series of oddly threatening letters, Miriam's sheltered existence is cracked open.

This is a story about the actor Shchiptsov, a man of robust build, who became famous not so much for his stage talent as for his extraordinary physical strength. He had a quarrel with the theater director during the intermission, and in the midst of the quarrel, he suddenly felt as if something had given way in his chest. Shchiptsov feels that he will die soon; he sits in the dressing room and quietly repeats that he wants to go back to his homeland — to Vyazma, but none of the actors fully believes that he is seriously ill; they “jokingly” encourage him. When the second act begins, everyone calmly leaves the stage; he, alone and using his last remaining strength, climbs onto the roof and falls dead.

When 14 year old genius Luke Ellis is kidnapped, he awakens at The Institute, a facility full of children who all got there the same way he did, and who are all possessed of unusual abilities. In a nearby town, haunted former police officer Tim Jamieson has come looking to start a new life, but the peace and quiet won’t last, as his story and Luke’s are destined to collide.