The Legend of Charlie Fish

A found-family, a foreboding forecast, formidable foes, and a...fish man?

The Legend of Charlie Fish is a cracking Western yarn that hooked me from the start. Whether or not it actually needs its eponymous gill-man to be a compelling tale was a question I asked throughout my time with this book – but that's more of an aftereffect of how invested I became in the other characters that were the main focus of the story.

By recounting their past tales of loss and longing, Rountree effectively crafts deep characterizations for each of his cast members and makes you care for their plight, especially during the breathless final act as a colossal hurricane bears down on their Galveston locale.

I was thoroughly taken with this story, Rountree's writing, and the unique island setting. Definitely add this to your TBRs.

My thanks to Edelweiss and the publisher for an advanced reader copy in exchange for an honest review.

See this review and others at The Speculative Shelf
Follow me on Twitter @specshelf