Maritime modern gothic fiction sees Free Press Book Club get spooky

Dozens, if not hundreds, of wounds inflicted on man, murder trial told

The body of a Winnipeg man beaten to death in a North End drug house was outside a Flora Avenue church for nearly a week before it was discovered, a court has been told.

Christopher Kyle Wattman, 38, Hazel Flett, 38 and Victoria Lee Andrews, 28, are on trial charged with first-degree murder in the December 2023 killing of 20-year-old Brooklyn Elijah Hiebert.

Prosecutor Theresa Cannon laid out the Crown’s theory of the case in an opening address before Court of King’s Bench Justice Joan McKelvey on Monday.

Hiebert and the three accused were at a Selkirk Avenue “trap house” on the evening of Dec. 24, 2023, when Hiebert got into an argument with Flett and a number of unidentified people.

Maple leaf love: Albertans vote strongly to stay in Canada

EDMONTON - O Canada, Alberta is staying put.

In a historic referendum Monday, voters marked their ballots in overwhelming numbers to remain in the country that made Alberta a province 121 years ago.

In early returns, about 76 per cent of Albertans said yes to Confederation, while 24 per cent said they wanted the province to hold a second, binding referendum on leaving.

Both Alberta Premier Danielle Smith and Prime Minister Mark Carney lauded the result.

Maritime modern gothic fiction sees Free Press Book Club get spooky

The Free Press Book Club is leaning into spooky season with its October pick, The Witch of Willow Sound. Author Vanessa F. Penney will join the book club meeting Tuesday, Oct. 27 at 7 p.m. to read from her novel and answer questions from readers, the Free Press and co-presenters McNally Robinson Booksellers.

Penney was born in Newfoundland, raised in rural Nova Scotia and is based in Dartmouth, where she works in the non-profit sector. The Witch of Willow Sound is her first novel.

Published in September 2025 by ECW Press, The Witch of Willow Sound follows Phaedra (Fade) Luck’s journey to find her missing aunt, Madeline Luck. When Fade arrives to the secluded, forested area of Willow Sound where Madeline lives, she finds her aunt’s once quaint cottage has fallen into disrepair; the wood is rotting, it’s damp and the vibes are very off.

As Fade searches for more information about her aunt and where she could have gone, the local townsfolk are not exactly keen on her presence, let alone her questions. For decades, they labelled Madeline as a witch and blamed any tragedies or misfortunes on her, including an impending hurricane.

New twist in Hellebuyck saga, suspension ends Friday

Connor Hellebuyck has played the reverse Uno card. What we don’t know is if he has any intention of coming back to friendly Manitoba or if this is simply the latest attempt to put the Winnipeg Jets' feet to the flames in an effort to move him to an American market.

‘Canada is the best.’ Kinew applauds separatists’ failure in Alberta

Manitoba's Premier threw both hands in the air Tuesday, celebrating Albertans’ rejection of separation from Canada in a referendum one day earlier.