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The Legend of Charlie Fish
As an unlikely found-family flees toward Galveston, a psychic young girl bonds with Charlie Fish, an enigmatic gill-man. Meanwhile, they are pursued by bounty hunters determined to profit from the spectacle of Charlie. But the Great Storm—the worst natural disaster in U.S. history—is on its way. Josh Rountree’s strikingly original debut novel ranges effortlessly between the Gothic, pulp, literary, Western, and comedic. With his vivid imagery, evocative storytelling, and uncanny wit, Rountree enters the fine tradition of Texan storytellers, wading into True Grit by way of The Shape of Water.
As always, Floyd Betts rides into town alone. He arrives for his father’s funeral, but he is returning to Galveston, Texas, with two orphaned siblings he has rescued. Nellie, who is descended from a long line of witches, has visions from other people’s minds. Hank, her impulsive younger brother, just wants to break out his outsized revolver.
Along the way home, Floyd, Nellie, and Jim encounter a dubious traveling salesman, Professor Finn, and his henchman, Kentucky Jim. They are struggling to capture a fish-man in order to put him on cruel display. When Nellie taps into the peril of the gentle Charlie Fish, Floyd’s makeshift family expands to include the lost, two-legged amphibian.
With the circus charlatans in pursuit, ominous winds are picking up from an impending hurricane. Meanwhile, all Charlie Fish wants is to return to his home at sea.
Cover art by John Coulthart
As always, Floyd Betts rides into town alone. He arrives for his father’s funeral, but he is returning to Galveston, Texas, with two orphaned siblings he has rescued. Nellie, who is descended from a long line of witches, has visions from other people’s minds. Hank, her impulsive younger brother, just wants to break out his outsized revolver.
Along the way home, Floyd, Nellie, and Jim encounter a dubious traveling salesman, Professor Finn, and his henchman, Kentucky Jim. They are struggling to capture a fish-man in order to put him on cruel display. When Nellie taps into the peril of the gentle Charlie Fish, Floyd’s makeshift family expands to include the lost, two-legged amphibian.
With the circus charlatans in pursuit, ominous winds are picking up from an impending hurricane. Meanwhile, all Charlie Fish wants is to return to his home at sea.
Cover art by John Coulthart
192 pages, Paperback
First published July 25, 2023
17 people are currently reading
5435 people want to read
About the author
Josh Rountree
40 books105 followersJosh Rountree is a novelist and short story writer who works across multiple genres, focusing mostly on horror and dark fantasy. His novel The Legend of Charlie Fish was released by Tachyon Publications in 2023 to wide acclaim, making the Locus Recommended Reading List, and being named one of Los Angeles Public Library’s best books of the year.
More than seventy of his short stories have been published in a variety of venues, including The Deadlands, Beneath Ceaseless Skies, Bourbon Penn, Realms of Fantasy, PseudoPod, Weird Horror, and The Year’s Best Dark Fantasy & Horror. Several collections of his short fiction have been published, including Fantastic Americana, and most recently, Death Aesthetic, featuring tales of death and transformation.
Rountree lives in the greater Austin, TX metro with his lovely wife of many years, and a pair of half-feral dogs who command his obedience.
More than seventy of his short stories have been published in a variety of venues, including The Deadlands, Beneath Ceaseless Skies, Bourbon Penn, Realms of Fantasy, PseudoPod, Weird Horror, and The Year’s Best Dark Fantasy & Horror. Several collections of his short fiction have been published, including Fantastic Americana, and most recently, Death Aesthetic, featuring tales of death and transformation.
Rountree lives in the greater Austin, TX metro with his lovely wife of many years, and a pair of half-feral dogs who command his obedience.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 88 reviews
May 22, 2023
I inhaled this book. Is it about Charlie Fish? Sort of. It's also very much about Nellie and Hank, a little bit about Floyd, and quite a bit about Galveston, Texas.
You know what it isn't about? 90% of the Goodreads blurb, so don't read it. How do you get it right while getting it so wrong? It's like the Great British Baking Show event where you are given the recipe without proportions, heat and time. Please don't let it sway you one way or another. This is a fast novella that feels a lot like Vo's What the Dead Know and Clark's The Black God's Drums and Winter Tide.
"Everyone has dark thoughts, selfish notions they're ashamed of. But the only thing that really matters is how they handle themselves in the living world."
The characters really came to life, even the ones we love to hate. I felt like I was watching the scenes in person. The plotting, perhaps, was the least strong aspect, as it was largely predictable until the ending. The emotional content and build was spot-on.
"'Have I ever given you the impression that I'm a soft flower in need of your care?' she asked."
I do have some notes, as they like to say in the performing business. The title is--and this is shocking, I know--misleading. I'd argue it is not about Charlie's legend, and Nellie is the thread that holds it together. The prose can be a bit colorful in spots, which is great for building an atmosphere, but doesn't do the characters any favors when it's used similarly for each narrator.
Quibbles aside, this was fast and fun, if fun is the right word for creepy, dead-end towns, men with evil in their hearts, and the uncanny.
Four and a half stars, rounding down just because I save that fifth one for the truly amazing book that I want to read again and again. But you never know if I'll change my mind.
Thanks to Netgalley and Tachyon Publications for an advance reader copy. As always, all opinions my own, all quotes subject to change in final pubs, etc., etc.*
*You know, someday I'm going to have to sit down with the people that believe opinions are grown in a void and have a little philosophical discussion.
You know what it isn't about? 90% of the Goodreads blurb, so don't read it. How do you get it right while getting it so wrong? It's like the Great British Baking Show event where you are given the recipe without proportions, heat and time. Please don't let it sway you one way or another. This is a fast novella that feels a lot like Vo's What the Dead Know and Clark's The Black God's Drums and Winter Tide.
"Everyone has dark thoughts, selfish notions they're ashamed of. But the only thing that really matters is how they handle themselves in the living world."
The characters really came to life, even the ones we love to hate. I felt like I was watching the scenes in person. The plotting, perhaps, was the least strong aspect, as it was largely predictable until the ending. The emotional content and build was spot-on.
"'Have I ever given you the impression that I'm a soft flower in need of your care?' she asked."
I do have some notes, as they like to say in the performing business. The title is--and this is shocking, I know--misleading. I'd argue it is not about Charlie's legend, and Nellie is the thread that holds it together. The prose can be a bit colorful in spots, which is great for building an atmosphere, but doesn't do the characters any favors when it's used similarly for each narrator.
Quibbles aside, this was fast and fun, if fun is the right word for creepy, dead-end towns, men with evil in their hearts, and the uncanny.
Four and a half stars, rounding down just because I save that fifth one for the truly amazing book that I want to read again and again. But you never know if I'll change my mind.
Thanks to Netgalley and Tachyon Publications for an advance reader copy. As always, all opinions my own, all quotes subject to change in final pubs, etc., etc.*
*You know, someday I'm going to have to sit down with the people that believe opinions are grown in a void and have a little philosophical discussion.
Read
July 26, 2023The Legend of Charlie Fish by Josh Rountree
Affiliate Link: https://bookshop.org/a/7576/978161696...
Release Date: July 25th, 2023
General Genre: BISAC Categories: Fantasy - Historical, Southern
Listen to me read this response:
https://open.substack.com/pub/sadieha...
Subgenre/Themes: Psychic phenomena, creature-feature, paranormal, Western, historical, natural disasters,
Writing Style: pulpy, humorous, heartfelt, multiple POVs
What You Need to Know: Where to even start? I suppose before you dive into this you should know that you’re going to need the time to finish it in one sitting. I could have easily sat in one place with some snacks and tea blissfully unaware of the world passing me by just so I could stay in Galveston, Texas with Floyd Betts, Nellie, Hank, and Charlie Fish all the way until the end of this journey without stopping. A whimsical, dark fantasy story with fish people, talk of witches, and “whisper talk”. I would totally show up for more Charlie Fish tails (tales)
My Reading Experience:
“Magic always works,” Mother said, “just not always the way you expect it to.”
This book utilizes two beloved tropes, well maybe even three. Let’s see if I can explain them all properly. First is the whole “older gentleman with a heart of gold who is maybe suffering from some kind of loss or personal setback, maybe even a little hardened or grumpy, who is forced/willing to look after children who are not his own on some kind of epic journey”. That’s one trope. Another is anthropomorphic creatures in a human world, you know like animals that can talk and act like humans, robots with human emotions, and even appliances like in The Brave Little Toaster. I love that shit. But it’s also very hard on my emotions if cruel, unkind people hurt our soft creatures! I have been known to walk out on those stories. The Shape of Water was like that and the character, Charlie Fish totally reminds me of the Amphibian Man or The Creature From the Black Lagoon. I fell in love with him immediately and all of his scenes in this book are my favorite. He’s hilarious and stouthearted, and sweet. I love him. Oh, and the third trope is the “other”, the alien, the outsider, the sojourner just trying to get back home trope…like in E. T.
I enjoyed all our supporting characters to Charlie Fish’s larger-than-life presence in this book. Floyd Betts, especially Nellie, and even Hank (the crack-shot shooter) took up residence in my reader’s heart. The villains, Professor Finn and Kentucky Jim are great and I loved to hate them.
“I mean you like to put on like you’re educated and civilized, but in truth, you’re a low man, cut through with a violent streak. Is my meaning clear now?”
Later, our band of misfits meets up with a lady friend of Floyd’s and she’s great too.
“You’ll find that life don’t get no easier the older you get,” she said. “Just misery heaped on top of misery until you die.”
Perhaps my only smallish complaint is that Hank needed a bit more page time. Maybe more dialogue or backstory I could really invest in. He has some great lines and the scenes he does have are some of my favorite moments, but I just needed a bit more. The timeline of events was slightly muddy and once the natural disaster starts, there’s one thing the characters did that was perplexing to me, but overall, I absolutely loved my time in this book.
Final Recommendation: Josh Rountree knows how to spin a yarn. Great storytelling ability bringing Charlie Fish to life so I could fall in love with him. More of his adventures would be awesome! Highly recommend this to people who enjoy magic, whimsy, characters to invest in, and an emotional journey.
Comps: The Shape of Water (2017), Frankenstein by Mary Shelley, Creature From the Black Lagoon (1954)
Affiliate Link: https://bookshop.org/a/7576/978161696...
Release Date: July 25th, 2023
General Genre: BISAC Categories: Fantasy - Historical, Southern
Listen to me read this response:
https://open.substack.com/pub/sadieha...
Subgenre/Themes: Psychic phenomena, creature-feature, paranormal, Western, historical, natural disasters,
Writing Style: pulpy, humorous, heartfelt, multiple POVs
What You Need to Know: Where to even start? I suppose before you dive into this you should know that you’re going to need the time to finish it in one sitting. I could have easily sat in one place with some snacks and tea blissfully unaware of the world passing me by just so I could stay in Galveston, Texas with Floyd Betts, Nellie, Hank, and Charlie Fish all the way until the end of this journey without stopping. A whimsical, dark fantasy story with fish people, talk of witches, and “whisper talk”. I would totally show up for more Charlie Fish tails (tales)
My Reading Experience:
“Magic always works,” Mother said, “just not always the way you expect it to.”
This book utilizes two beloved tropes, well maybe even three. Let’s see if I can explain them all properly. First is the whole “older gentleman with a heart of gold who is maybe suffering from some kind of loss or personal setback, maybe even a little hardened or grumpy, who is forced/willing to look after children who are not his own on some kind of epic journey”. That’s one trope. Another is anthropomorphic creatures in a human world, you know like animals that can talk and act like humans, robots with human emotions, and even appliances like in The Brave Little Toaster. I love that shit. But it’s also very hard on my emotions if cruel, unkind people hurt our soft creatures! I have been known to walk out on those stories. The Shape of Water was like that and the character, Charlie Fish totally reminds me of the Amphibian Man or The Creature From the Black Lagoon. I fell in love with him immediately and all of his scenes in this book are my favorite. He’s hilarious and stouthearted, and sweet. I love him. Oh, and the third trope is the “other”, the alien, the outsider, the sojourner just trying to get back home trope…like in E. T.
I enjoyed all our supporting characters to Charlie Fish’s larger-than-life presence in this book. Floyd Betts, especially Nellie, and even Hank (the crack-shot shooter) took up residence in my reader’s heart. The villains, Professor Finn and Kentucky Jim are great and I loved to hate them.
“I mean you like to put on like you’re educated and civilized, but in truth, you’re a low man, cut through with a violent streak. Is my meaning clear now?”
Later, our band of misfits meets up with a lady friend of Floyd’s and she’s great too.
“You’ll find that life don’t get no easier the older you get,” she said. “Just misery heaped on top of misery until you die.”
Perhaps my only smallish complaint is that Hank needed a bit more page time. Maybe more dialogue or backstory I could really invest in. He has some great lines and the scenes he does have are some of my favorite moments, but I just needed a bit more. The timeline of events was slightly muddy and once the natural disaster starts, there’s one thing the characters did that was perplexing to me, but overall, I absolutely loved my time in this book.
Final Recommendation: Josh Rountree knows how to spin a yarn. Great storytelling ability bringing Charlie Fish to life so I could fall in love with him. More of his adventures would be awesome! Highly recommend this to people who enjoy magic, whimsy, characters to invest in, and an emotional journey.
Comps: The Shape of Water (2017), Frankenstein by Mary Shelley, Creature From the Black Lagoon (1954)
January 21, 2023
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
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
Want to read
June 5, 2025For their 30th anniversary Tachyon is giving away one e-book per month. This month, it's this one.
I'm kind of psyched because right now I'm reading The Unkillable Frank Lightning and I am digging this author's style quite a bit!
Thanks, Tachyon!
I'm kind of psyched because right now I'm reading The Unkillable Frank Lightning and I am digging this author's style quite a bit!
Thanks, Tachyon!
February 3, 2023
I’ve stated time and again that describing new works using existing ones is lazy and reductive. But this book is impossible not to compare. So here we go. A western Shape of Water tale.
And if you’re thinking what? how? The west is dusty and arid and aquatic creatures need…well, aqua, then you’re absolutely right. It’s an undeniable fact and one the author inexplicably chooses not to address. At all. At no point during the 190 or so pages of this volume is it mentioned that the eponymous Charlie Fish, fished out and forced to live on land, needs or requires or might die without water. Go figure.
But then again, the author kind of gets away with that logistical snafu because the book is so good. I don’t even particularly like westerns and I can recognize the beauty within these pages, the easy-flowing, organic narrative style, the profoundly engaging characters, the almost-musicality of writing.
The story itself is very simple and straight-forward. In 1900 Galveston, Texas, a freshly cobbled-by-circumstance-together family (a widow, a lone man, two young orphan siblings–a seer and a gunslinger, and a sea creature) fights to survive a pair of scoundrels AND the most devastating natural disaster to hit US.
Their abode might not be high enough for the rising waters, but their moral ground is as elevated as K2, which in many ways doubles their work and the danger.
All in all, this book was an absolutely pleasure to read, one that went by quickly, delighting and entertaining throughout. Recommended. Thanks Netgalley.
This and more at https://advancetheplot.weebly.com/
And if you’re thinking what? how? The west is dusty and arid and aquatic creatures need…well, aqua, then you’re absolutely right. It’s an undeniable fact and one the author inexplicably chooses not to address. At all. At no point during the 190 or so pages of this volume is it mentioned that the eponymous Charlie Fish, fished out and forced to live on land, needs or requires or might die without water. Go figure.
But then again, the author kind of gets away with that logistical snafu because the book is so good. I don’t even particularly like westerns and I can recognize the beauty within these pages, the easy-flowing, organic narrative style, the profoundly engaging characters, the almost-musicality of writing.
The story itself is very simple and straight-forward. In 1900 Galveston, Texas, a freshly cobbled-by-circumstance-together family (a widow, a lone man, two young orphan siblings–a seer and a gunslinger, and a sea creature) fights to survive a pair of scoundrels AND the most devastating natural disaster to hit US.
Their abode might not be high enough for the rising waters, but their moral ground is as elevated as K2, which in many ways doubles their work and the danger.
All in all, this book was an absolutely pleasure to read, one that went by quickly, delighting and entertaining throughout. Recommended. Thanks Netgalley.
This and more at https://advancetheplot.weebly.com/
February 24, 2023
I was enthralled with The Legend of Charlie Fish from start to finish. A quick, satisfying read that ended just as it should. I loved Nellie, Hank, Floyd, and Abigail. Their bond was touching and the threads of longing expressed throughout the book caused more than a few quiet tears. I really enjoyed this story.
April 3, 2023
This unique and atmospheric story centers around a lonely middle-aged man, the proprietress of a boarding house, two orphans (one with secret powers), and a mysterious being that’s part fish and part man.
It sounds bizarre (and it kind of is!), but somehow it all works together to form a tale that I had a hard time putting down. Interesting and heartwarming characters, and a plot that’s very original.
I think it’s actually better to go in to this book not knowing much about it, to have it all be a bit of a surprise.
My thanks to Tachyon Publishing, NetGalley, and Josh Rountree for providing me an arc in exchange for an honest review.
It sounds bizarre (and it kind of is!), but somehow it all works together to form a tale that I had a hard time putting down. Interesting and heartwarming characters, and a plot that’s very original.
I think it’s actually better to go in to this book not knowing much about it, to have it all be a bit of a surprise.
My thanks to Tachyon Publishing, NetGalley, and Josh Rountree for providing me an arc in exchange for an honest review.
August 4, 2023
Period piece set during the flood of Galveston that has a hint of Lovecraft with some witchcraft thrown in for good measure.
7/10
7/10
March 1, 2025
Loved every moment of this book ✨✨✨✨✨
September 18, 2023
Superbly written, well paced, and an intriguing plot driven by characters with heart and resolve! This is just as good or better than all the short works of Rountree's I've read! Highly recommended for fans of magical realism and historical fiction!
October 17, 2023
Floyd Betts is a bit of a loner. He lives a solitary existence in Galveston, Texas. He works construction on local building projects and rents a room at Abigail Elder’s boarding house. It’s a quiet life, and Floyd likes it. But all of that is about to change.
When Floyd returns to Old Cypress, Texas, for his father’s funeral, he encounters Nellie and Hank. Nellie is 12 years old and Hank is 9. They were recently orphaned under mysterious circumstances as their family was preparing to leave Old Cypress. Nellie’s mother was accused of being a witch. It is very, very possible that Nellie may have inherited some of her mother’s abilities, including her “whisper talk,” which allows her to communicate with others using a hybrid form of empathy/telepathy. Hank doesn’t share these abilities with Nellie, but his father did teach him to be a crack shot.
Floyd feels that he can’t leave the children in such a hostile environment and impulsively decides to take them back to Galveston with him. Along the way, they pass a wagon for Professor Finn’s Healing Spirits, Waters, and Mystical Tinctures. As they pass, they see two men wrestling with someone, or something, in the creek near the road. Nellie immediately attempts to intervene, demanding that the men (She repeatedly calls them scoundrels.), not hurt the person they are attempting to subdue. Nellie can tell they want to make him, or whatever he is, into a sideshow exhibit while all he wants is to go home, wherever that is. Floyd steps in to help with the rescue and Hank, who is a crack shot, disables their wagon.
As the group sets off again for Galveston, taking the amphibian-man, whom the children name Charlie Fish, with them, they know they have made enemies of Professor Finn and his travelling companion, Kentucky Jim. What they don’t know is that, as they make their way towards Galveston, something else is moving in as well. The biggest storm this area has ever seen is on its way and when it hits Galveston, it will change all of their lives forever.
Josh Rountree’s debut novel, The Legend of Charlie Fish, is a bit difficult to describe briefly. It is definitely a western given the time period, and some of the story elements. It is also a love letter to early 20th century Galveston, a city for which Rountree admits a fondness in his afterword. Nellie’s abilities, and family history, add a generous amount of fantasy, while Charlie, the amphibious humanoid, will bring to mind science fiction films like The Creature from the Black Lagoon and The Shape of Water. Rountree expertly weaves these disparate story threads together into a gripping tall tale, which is anchored by the historic storm, the largest to hit the US before or since, in which part of the story takes place.
Rountree’s characters are marvelous, working as both archetypes of the western genre and also nicely developed individuals, who at times are a pleasant surprise by being just a bit more than the reader may have been expecting. Charlie is the central mystery of the novel. Rountree provides just enough background, sensed by Nellie in her mental exchanges with Charlie, to make his appearance in a Texas creek seem plausible and his desire to return home a necessary goal the other characters feel compelled to help him achieve. Rountree’s descriptions of Texas, in general, and Galveston specifically, are lush and evocative.
More than anything else, The Legend of Charlie Fish is fun! It is, to quote Kirk Douglas from Disney’s 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea, “a whale of a tale.” But it is also grounded enough in human desires and experiences, in human frailties and strengths, in the shared experiences of longing for a home and how we often create the families that we sometimes lack by birth. Readers will find more than merely a sense of spectacle and wonder within Rountree’s yarn.
Read an interview with the author here.
Reviewed by Daryl M., Librarian, West Valley Regional Branch Library
When Floyd returns to Old Cypress, Texas, for his father’s funeral, he encounters Nellie and Hank. Nellie is 12 years old and Hank is 9. They were recently orphaned under mysterious circumstances as their family was preparing to leave Old Cypress. Nellie’s mother was accused of being a witch. It is very, very possible that Nellie may have inherited some of her mother’s abilities, including her “whisper talk,” which allows her to communicate with others using a hybrid form of empathy/telepathy. Hank doesn’t share these abilities with Nellie, but his father did teach him to be a crack shot.
Floyd feels that he can’t leave the children in such a hostile environment and impulsively decides to take them back to Galveston with him. Along the way, they pass a wagon for Professor Finn’s Healing Spirits, Waters, and Mystical Tinctures. As they pass, they see two men wrestling with someone, or something, in the creek near the road. Nellie immediately attempts to intervene, demanding that the men (She repeatedly calls them scoundrels.), not hurt the person they are attempting to subdue. Nellie can tell they want to make him, or whatever he is, into a sideshow exhibit while all he wants is to go home, wherever that is. Floyd steps in to help with the rescue and Hank, who is a crack shot, disables their wagon.
As the group sets off again for Galveston, taking the amphibian-man, whom the children name Charlie Fish, with them, they know they have made enemies of Professor Finn and his travelling companion, Kentucky Jim. What they don’t know is that, as they make their way towards Galveston, something else is moving in as well. The biggest storm this area has ever seen is on its way and when it hits Galveston, it will change all of their lives forever.
Josh Rountree’s debut novel, The Legend of Charlie Fish, is a bit difficult to describe briefly. It is definitely a western given the time period, and some of the story elements. It is also a love letter to early 20th century Galveston, a city for which Rountree admits a fondness in his afterword. Nellie’s abilities, and family history, add a generous amount of fantasy, while Charlie, the amphibious humanoid, will bring to mind science fiction films like The Creature from the Black Lagoon and The Shape of Water. Rountree expertly weaves these disparate story threads together into a gripping tall tale, which is anchored by the historic storm, the largest to hit the US before or since, in which part of the story takes place.
Rountree’s characters are marvelous, working as both archetypes of the western genre and also nicely developed individuals, who at times are a pleasant surprise by being just a bit more than the reader may have been expecting. Charlie is the central mystery of the novel. Rountree provides just enough background, sensed by Nellie in her mental exchanges with Charlie, to make his appearance in a Texas creek seem plausible and his desire to return home a necessary goal the other characters feel compelled to help him achieve. Rountree’s descriptions of Texas, in general, and Galveston specifically, are lush and evocative.
More than anything else, The Legend of Charlie Fish is fun! It is, to quote Kirk Douglas from Disney’s 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea, “a whale of a tale.” But it is also grounded enough in human desires and experiences, in human frailties and strengths, in the shared experiences of longing for a home and how we often create the families that we sometimes lack by birth. Readers will find more than merely a sense of spectacle and wonder within Rountree’s yarn.
Read an interview with the author here.
Reviewed by Daryl M., Librarian, West Valley Regional Branch Library
December 20, 2023
I read this cover to cover sitting outside in front of a fire on a chilly afternoon. It reminds me of the magic of Big Fish x the larger than life cast of O Brother, Where Art Thou.
Rountree is the kind of author others can learn from, one of the best I’ve read this year to be sure.
What a beautiful, magical story of love and heartache and loss.
Rountree is the kind of author others can learn from, one of the best I’ve read this year to be sure.
What a beautiful, magical story of love and heartache and loss.
July 25, 2023
out today! i received an ARC through edelweiss from tachyon publishing.
a slim book with a big heart. a wonderful story about family, grief, and a fish-man named charlie. highly recommend for anyone looking for a quick western full of history about the real galveston and found family.
a slim book with a big heart. a wonderful story about family, grief, and a fish-man named charlie. highly recommend for anyone looking for a quick western full of history about the real galveston and found family.
July 18, 2023
Quite delightful. Blurbs adduce Charles Portis, which is an impossibly high standard, and in practice usually means "something that will remind you of True Grit, meaning a Western narrated by a girl with an extensive vocabulary and an ornate manner of speaking." But danged if he doesn't get close--there's enjoyably salty repartee, likably hard-bitten kids, dry frontier wit, and that love of humbug that animates every Portis novel. (Which reminds me to reread a couple pretty soon, since I didn't love Masters of Atlantis or Gringos the first time through--not as much as Dog of the South, Norwood or True Grit, at least. The fault is mine.) Here we've got an empathic/telepathic/witchy girl who shares the narrative load, her nine-year-old pistoleer (his zesty word for it) brother, some shady patent-medicine vendors, and of course the titular fish-man, all against the backdrop of the hurricane that destroyed Galveston in 1900. (I read Isaac's Storm YEARS ago, yet a detail about floodwaters' rising four feet in four seconds has always stuck with me.) Rollicking yet somehow melancholy--just a treat all around.
March 5, 2023
On the surface the story of a displaced brother and sister with strange powers, a exploited fish-man from the ocean, and the couple that recuses them striving to survive through the The Great Storm hurricane that devastated Galveston in 1900.
But at its heart. this is an emotional tale of family, both those we are born into, and those we chose to be with.
Engaging from the first page to the last, the central cast are richly developed, while the encroaching, growing threat of the storm adds a feeling of tension and foreboding that keeps you turning the page.
But at its heart. this is an emotional tale of family, both those we are born into, and those we chose to be with.
Engaging from the first page to the last, the central cast are richly developed, while the encroaching, growing threat of the storm adds a feeling of tension and foreboding that keeps you turning the page.
July 24, 2025
Oh man! Josh Rountree is a masterful storyteller!
This found family magical realism story, set in the 1900 Galveston hurricane (still the deadliest in US history), reads like a classic Steinbeck or Hemingway in that his words matter. They bear meaning and weight of importance without coming across as pretentious or getting in the way of a good story.
It is a wonderful story as well! The rotating first person narrative layers multiple understandings and detailings that seem to tell the story between the words.
The characters are flawed and real and lovely. It did not take long for me to start pulling for them, not long at all. Floyd, Hank, and Nellie (especially Nellie) are wonderful and you will quickly care about them, you will. As a matter of fact, I’m still a little destroyed by some of the story, and without me saying, you’ll know when it hits. It still hurts.
I am going to attempt to order a classroom set for my junior English class, if we still have any funding left, fingers crossed!
This found family magical realism story, set in the 1900 Galveston hurricane (still the deadliest in US history), reads like a classic Steinbeck or Hemingway in that his words matter. They bear meaning and weight of importance without coming across as pretentious or getting in the way of a good story.
It is a wonderful story as well! The rotating first person narrative layers multiple understandings and detailings that seem to tell the story between the words.
The characters are flawed and real and lovely. It did not take long for me to start pulling for them, not long at all. Floyd, Hank, and Nellie (especially Nellie) are wonderful and you will quickly care about them, you will. As a matter of fact, I’m still a little destroyed by some of the story, and without me saying, you’ll know when it hits. It still hurts.
I am going to attempt to order a classroom set for my junior English class, if we still have any funding left, fingers crossed!
August 18, 2023
First, thank you for the opportunity to read this book and go on an adventure with these characters.
This book was a great story about loss, family/found family, perseverance, with a little magic. The characters are all interconnected in different ways and shows their paths lining up and the choices they make for one another.
We have a wide array of characters from your average human, to fish people, some smart witches, and a young sharpshooter.
I like the addition of real historical events which makes the story much more interesting. In this case, the Galveston hurricane of 1900.
It held my attention the entire way and I could not put it down so I could see what happened next. The ending was bittersweet but nonetheless a good ending to a good story.
Anyone who picks this one up will not regret it !
This book was a great story about loss, family/found family, perseverance, with a little magic. The characters are all interconnected in different ways and shows their paths lining up and the choices they make for one another.
We have a wide array of characters from your average human, to fish people, some smart witches, and a young sharpshooter.
I like the addition of real historical events which makes the story much more interesting. In this case, the Galveston hurricane of 1900.
It held my attention the entire way and I could not put it down so I could see what happened next. The ending was bittersweet but nonetheless a good ending to a good story.
Anyone who picks this one up will not regret it !
April 30, 2023
This is masterful storytelling. A story that crosses genres in a way that works perfectly, it kept me glued to the pages. This is easily one of my favorite books of the year already. I must read more from this writer.
January 29, 2023
When Joe R Lansdale says 'You Need This', I say I have to take the advice, particularly if he is pointing to a Weird Western by an author I have not read before.
Floyd Betts is traveling to the small town he grew up in to give the preacher 10 dollars to bury his old man, his Aunt is too cheap and too nasty to pay the bill. Mid argument with the preacher he finds a pair of recently orphaned children and decides to rescue them. The family grows buy one more on the trip home to Galveston, this time is not another orphan but a man/fish/sea creature named Charlie Fish. But the rescue of Charlie results in two scoundrels becoming the found family enemy. Thrown in the worst natural disaster ever to hit Northern American and some of the best dialogue you get this side of True Grit (no doubt one of the author's favourite books, loving tributes are within).
I have no doubt this will be in my top five reads of the year (and I am saying this in January!), and I am now looking to get my hands on some of the authors short story collections.
Floyd Betts is traveling to the small town he grew up in to give the preacher 10 dollars to bury his old man, his Aunt is too cheap and too nasty to pay the bill. Mid argument with the preacher he finds a pair of recently orphaned children and decides to rescue them. The family grows buy one more on the trip home to Galveston, this time is not another orphan but a man/fish/sea creature named Charlie Fish. But the rescue of Charlie results in two scoundrels becoming the found family enemy. Thrown in the worst natural disaster ever to hit Northern American and some of the best dialogue you get this side of True Grit (no doubt one of the author's favourite books, loving tributes are within).
I have no doubt this will be in my top five reads of the year (and I am saying this in January!), and I am now looking to get my hands on some of the authors short story collections.
February 2, 2024
This is a fantastic novella that takes historical events and mixes it with a spellbinding story about loss and grief.
Set in Galveston Texas in 1900, a hurricane unlike any other is about to unleash its wrath. But in this book we have a fish-man (who is just as you would think), two orphans, a man who is lonely, and a tough as nails woman.
The orphans are a brother and sister. The girl has a psychic kind of gift and the boy is a crack shot with a pistol. There's also a couple of very bad men who would just as soon see them all dead in order to get their hands on the fish-man, Charlie.
During a devastating hurricane (a real life event) they are all going to find themselves together in a deadly struggle for survival.
There's more to this story than just those basics. But the less you know going in the better. This is an emotionally charged book, filled with loss and longing. Guilt and fear. And also redemption and hope.
I highly recommend this one especially if you want historical fiction, a heart wrenching but action packed narrative, and characters you'll love.
Set in Galveston Texas in 1900, a hurricane unlike any other is about to unleash its wrath. But in this book we have a fish-man (who is just as you would think), two orphans, a man who is lonely, and a tough as nails woman.
The orphans are a brother and sister. The girl has a psychic kind of gift and the boy is a crack shot with a pistol. There's also a couple of very bad men who would just as soon see them all dead in order to get their hands on the fish-man, Charlie.
During a devastating hurricane (a real life event) they are all going to find themselves together in a deadly struggle for survival.
There's more to this story than just those basics. But the less you know going in the better. This is an emotionally charged book, filled with loss and longing. Guilt and fear. And also redemption and hope.
I highly recommend this one especially if you want historical fiction, a heart wrenching but action packed narrative, and characters you'll love.
August 5, 2023
Paradise was a whirlpool of unnatural greens and gold coral reefs, phosphorescent flowers and palaces cut into the heart of undersea caverns.
THE LEGEND OF CHARLIE FISH is quite simply one of the best novels I have read this year. Set at the turn of the 20th Century, a time when the American Old West was beginning to disappear, it is the story of damaged characters - Floyd Betts, estranged from the late father whom he arrives in town to bury, and the orphans he ‘adopts’, Nellie and Hank, whose parents have been murdered by the townspeople who condemned their as a witch. On the return to Galveston, the trio rescue a creature from two ‘scoundrels’ they encounter on the road. While Floyd initially thinks the men have captured a huge fish, Nellie, who has inherited a form of telepathy, ‘whisper talk’, from her mother, recognises the captive as a sentient being, whom she names Charlie Fish.
There are obviously fantastical elements - the titular character is a Creature From The Black Lagoon-like amphibious man - but it is thoroughly grounded in reality, and what a reality; the climax plays out against the Great Galveston Hurricane of 1900. Josh Rountree’s description of the storm is frighteningly visceral; you really hear, and feel, the wind and surging water, the buildings moving, the almost complete disorientation. I would have to think long and hard to find a better evocation of the destructive power of nature.
I believe this is Josh Rountree’s first novel but his prose is beautiful, even when describing intense violence, either of the storm or the swift retribution of a semi-lawless society. THE LEGEND OF CHARLIE FISH is reminiscent of Ray Bradbury, Neil Gaiman, of Joe R. Lansdale, but Rountree has his own voice. I thoroughly enjoyed it and rushed breathlessly through the story. I will reread it and look forward to see what comes next from the author.
THE LEGEND OF CHARLIE FISH is quite simply one of the best novels I have read this year. Set at the turn of the 20th Century, a time when the American Old West was beginning to disappear, it is the story of damaged characters - Floyd Betts, estranged from the late father whom he arrives in town to bury, and the orphans he ‘adopts’, Nellie and Hank, whose parents have been murdered by the townspeople who condemned their as a witch. On the return to Galveston, the trio rescue a creature from two ‘scoundrels’ they encounter on the road. While Floyd initially thinks the men have captured a huge fish, Nellie, who has inherited a form of telepathy, ‘whisper talk’, from her mother, recognises the captive as a sentient being, whom she names Charlie Fish.
There are obviously fantastical elements - the titular character is a Creature From The Black Lagoon-like amphibious man - but it is thoroughly grounded in reality, and what a reality; the climax plays out against the Great Galveston Hurricane of 1900. Josh Rountree’s description of the storm is frighteningly visceral; you really hear, and feel, the wind and surging water, the buildings moving, the almost complete disorientation. I would have to think long and hard to find a better evocation of the destructive power of nature.
I believe this is Josh Rountree’s first novel but his prose is beautiful, even when describing intense violence, either of the storm or the swift retribution of a semi-lawless society. THE LEGEND OF CHARLIE FISH is reminiscent of Ray Bradbury, Neil Gaiman, of Joe R. Lansdale, but Rountree has his own voice. I thoroughly enjoyed it and rushed breathlessly through the story. I will reread it and look forward to see what comes next from the author.
July 29, 2023
This is a long novella or a short novel I read in one sitting even if I’m not the biggest fan of Western setting. This is a gripping, compelling and highly entertaining novel that kept hooked and turning pages and surprised me at each turn with new marvels and wonderful twists.
It’s poignant, full of emotions, a bit weird at times: it made me cry buckets and smile. It made me discover a new author and I thoroughly enjoyed this story
I strongly recommend it because it’s a brilliant novel.
Many thanks to Tachyon Publications for this arc, all opinions are mine
It’s poignant, full of emotions, a bit weird at times: it made me cry buckets and smile. It made me discover a new author and I thoroughly enjoyed this story
I strongly recommend it because it’s a brilliant novel.
Many thanks to Tachyon Publications for this arc, all opinions are mine
February 3, 2024
not knowing what to expect, the overview was appropriately enticing-- if not only timely in its eccentric tug towards a short respite of a read-- this Roundtree read was just what was needed. an unusual mix of fantastical creatures, magic, and Western drama... it also brought a historical fiction surprise. so much more than anticipated. so much better than the odd cover and short under-200 pages would lead readers to believe.
will be checking out some of Josh's other stories soon now.
will be checking out some of Josh's other stories soon now.
July 3, 2024
Excellent. I can't say enough good about this book. It reads like a regular story of bigotry and hurricanes. But then, in a very casual manner, a fish man and witches are thrown in. But to the author's credit, everything stays rooted in reality, even with those fantastic elements. And the author was clever to make this fantasy story take place during a real event. The hurricane is described in such exquisite, terrifying detail, that I found myself hanging onto every word, waiting for things to work out. Which they mostly did but not all the way. Hank's death was surprising, considering Charlie had gone out right away. But that's the way the world works. Some things work out. Others don't. But life goes on. I devoured this book.
November 28, 2025
I hated for this book to end. I’m always down for magical realism, and I absolutely love atmospheric writing—this story gave me the best of both worlds. I could feel the oppressive heat and the ominous energy of the coming storm. I loved every character, even the scoundrels.
The story starts with a bang and never slows down. And the cherry on top? The writing is beautiful without ever drifting into being overly flowery or stuffed with filler. This one is easily in my top three.
The story starts with a bang and never slows down. And the cherry on top? The writing is beautiful without ever drifting into being overly flowery or stuffed with filler. This one is easily in my top three.
September 25, 2024
If Joe Lansdale's name wasn't at the very top of this novel, recommending it in a quote, we'd know soon enough just how much his influence is all over the book like a rash. It's not just that it's set in Texas, in a period setting no less, but that it's a tall tale that just might be true, put down onto its pages by a born storyteller. He may not be as smooth as Lansdale yet, but the potential is obvious.
That said, the beginning is a little awkward, because we naturally assume that the prologue, set in the dim and distant year of 1932, is in the past, but it isn't to the characters who we'll soon meet. It counts as their dim and distant future, when we flash back to their present in what we're bizarrely not initially told is 1900. That may well be because we're in Galveston, Texas and that year carries a serious weight to it for that town. Then again, once we realise that we're in the past, we can't fail to realise that we're in the vicinity of the famous Galveston Flood, the deadliest natural disaster in the history of the United States.
We start right before it, in time and place, as Josh Rountree introduces us to most of the principal cast of characters, then he backtracks a couple of weeks to tell us why we should care and gradually adds in the other people we need to watch. Chief among them is Floyd Betts, who starts the novel in Galveston but promptly leaves because he's received a telegram from his Aunt Constance. She's letting him know that his dad has died and she needs him to come to Old Cypress to pay the funeral expenses. She's mean and has no intention of paying to put her brother in the ground.
Floyd isn't surprised by any of this and takes care of business, so quickly and efficiently, given how laid back everyone is, that we have to wonder if it's remotely important. And it isn't, of course. The important thing to the story at hand is that Floyd finds himself in Old Cypress and there, parked in the church like lost lambs, are a couple of kids unwanted by anyone in the town. They're Nellie and Hank Abernathy, freshly orphaned after their home burned down under mysterious circumstances, and now in need of serious help.
Just in case the subtext didn't come through there, I ought to translate. Nellie and Hank's mother was a wise woman who healed the folk of Old Cypress far more efficiently than Mr. O'Casey, whose general store includes a selection of snake oil in its stock. And so he presumably goads them into a quick march on the witch's house with torches and pitchforks and burns the building to the ground. With the Abernathy family still inside it. And so Floyd finds himself with a pair of unexpected extra bodies on board as he sets off back to Galveston.
If you're wondering why the book is called 'The Legend of Charlie Fish', let me add that the journey back from Old Cypress takes far more pages than the journey there and part of that is to increase the party yet again. Now, we've already met Charlie, courtesy of a grand reveal before we jumped a couple of weeks backwards, so we know that he's basically the Creature from the Black Lagoon. He is a bona fide gillman, fished out of an east Texas creek by Kentucky Jim, all-purpose assistant to a travelling conman, one Professor Finn of Professor Finn's Healing Spirits, Waters and Mystical Tinctures.
Nellie, who has inherited her mother's second sight—mum called it "seeing inside" but she prefers "whisper talk"—, can hear Charlie's despair from a distance in a vaguely telepathic fashion, so she guides Floyd in and they mount a successful rescue attempt, making a couple of powerful enemies in the process. Nellie calls them "scoundrels", which feels as applicable a term as any, and it sticks. Off they all chase to Galveston with the scoundrels inevitably close on their tail and a large storm brewing that will change everything for everyone.
This isn't a long book, likely a novella rather than a novel, but it does a surprising amount with its page count. The central theme is family and, in particular, what makes one. Floyd didn't have much to do with his alcoholic father and skinflint aunt, but they're kin and he does his duty with regards to the former. Nellie and Hank have lost their family but found someone willing to step in because it needs to be done. Charlie Fish has lost his family too, by foolishly swimming away from them, but finds his protectors as well.
The one important character I haven't mentioned yet, Mrs. Elder, who runs a bed and breakfast in Galveston, accepts them all because Floyd does, but has her own story to tell too with regards to a dark family history. Between the five of them, only two are related, but they combine into what we learn is a powerful family nonetheless, much stronger than any of those forged by blood. If family means belonging, then that's the primary reason Charlie Fish is here, because he's as different as anyone can be in Texas in 1900. That he's accepted, too, speaks volumes about so many other people who generally weren't. He's an avatar for everyone else clearly not the Texan norm.
Now, if we're going to jump the shark in the very title by introducing a gillman, then why not take it all a little further into the supernatural by adding witches, albeit benign and helpful ones rather than cackling hags in black hats? If we're going to accept Charlie Fish, given what he is, then we're surely not going to baulk at Nellie and her whisper talk. "Magic always works," her mum told her, "just not always the way you expect it to," and that has meaning as the story wraps up.
The lesson is that these characters are all merely people and a simple act of acceptance by Floyd in regards to each of them hammers that message home to us, grounding them as the storm builds in power and we realise that whatever petty differences we might have in our world are not going to anything when faced with the majesty of Mother Nature. She doesn't care either. We're all equal in her eye. And that eye, hiding inside a growing hurricane, is very much on its way to wreak havoc on the town of Galveston. More than six thousand Texans wouldn't see the next morning.
Once I realised the timeframe, after that awkward opening, this flowed for me. Rountree keeps a small cast but grows each of them, ironically Charlie Fish perhaps least of all, and it's easy to care about them, especially with those scoundrels probably just round the bend waiting to pounce. We actively root for them, because we know they're going to be up against it with the storm, and they just can't lose to a pair of scoundrels before they get a shot at surviving that, surely? I liked where Rountree took them and I can't argue with his difficult choices. The setting is pristine too.
He's written a lot of short stories, but this looks like his first work at a more substantial length. I'd pick up the next one in a heartbeat.
Originally posted at the Nameless Zine in August 2023:
https://www.thenamelesszine.org/Books...
Index of all my Nameless Zine reviews:
https://books.apocalypselaterempire.com/
That said, the beginning is a little awkward, because we naturally assume that the prologue, set in the dim and distant year of 1932, is in the past, but it isn't to the characters who we'll soon meet. It counts as their dim and distant future, when we flash back to their present in what we're bizarrely not initially told is 1900. That may well be because we're in Galveston, Texas and that year carries a serious weight to it for that town. Then again, once we realise that we're in the past, we can't fail to realise that we're in the vicinity of the famous Galveston Flood, the deadliest natural disaster in the history of the United States.
We start right before it, in time and place, as Josh Rountree introduces us to most of the principal cast of characters, then he backtracks a couple of weeks to tell us why we should care and gradually adds in the other people we need to watch. Chief among them is Floyd Betts, who starts the novel in Galveston but promptly leaves because he's received a telegram from his Aunt Constance. She's letting him know that his dad has died and she needs him to come to Old Cypress to pay the funeral expenses. She's mean and has no intention of paying to put her brother in the ground.
Floyd isn't surprised by any of this and takes care of business, so quickly and efficiently, given how laid back everyone is, that we have to wonder if it's remotely important. And it isn't, of course. The important thing to the story at hand is that Floyd finds himself in Old Cypress and there, parked in the church like lost lambs, are a couple of kids unwanted by anyone in the town. They're Nellie and Hank Abernathy, freshly orphaned after their home burned down under mysterious circumstances, and now in need of serious help.
Just in case the subtext didn't come through there, I ought to translate. Nellie and Hank's mother was a wise woman who healed the folk of Old Cypress far more efficiently than Mr. O'Casey, whose general store includes a selection of snake oil in its stock. And so he presumably goads them into a quick march on the witch's house with torches and pitchforks and burns the building to the ground. With the Abernathy family still inside it. And so Floyd finds himself with a pair of unexpected extra bodies on board as he sets off back to Galveston.
If you're wondering why the book is called 'The Legend of Charlie Fish', let me add that the journey back from Old Cypress takes far more pages than the journey there and part of that is to increase the party yet again. Now, we've already met Charlie, courtesy of a grand reveal before we jumped a couple of weeks backwards, so we know that he's basically the Creature from the Black Lagoon. He is a bona fide gillman, fished out of an east Texas creek by Kentucky Jim, all-purpose assistant to a travelling conman, one Professor Finn of Professor Finn's Healing Spirits, Waters and Mystical Tinctures.
Nellie, who has inherited her mother's second sight—mum called it "seeing inside" but she prefers "whisper talk"—, can hear Charlie's despair from a distance in a vaguely telepathic fashion, so she guides Floyd in and they mount a successful rescue attempt, making a couple of powerful enemies in the process. Nellie calls them "scoundrels", which feels as applicable a term as any, and it sticks. Off they all chase to Galveston with the scoundrels inevitably close on their tail and a large storm brewing that will change everything for everyone.
This isn't a long book, likely a novella rather than a novel, but it does a surprising amount with its page count. The central theme is family and, in particular, what makes one. Floyd didn't have much to do with his alcoholic father and skinflint aunt, but they're kin and he does his duty with regards to the former. Nellie and Hank have lost their family but found someone willing to step in because it needs to be done. Charlie Fish has lost his family too, by foolishly swimming away from them, but finds his protectors as well.
The one important character I haven't mentioned yet, Mrs. Elder, who runs a bed and breakfast in Galveston, accepts them all because Floyd does, but has her own story to tell too with regards to a dark family history. Between the five of them, only two are related, but they combine into what we learn is a powerful family nonetheless, much stronger than any of those forged by blood. If family means belonging, then that's the primary reason Charlie Fish is here, because he's as different as anyone can be in Texas in 1900. That he's accepted, too, speaks volumes about so many other people who generally weren't. He's an avatar for everyone else clearly not the Texan norm.
Now, if we're going to jump the shark in the very title by introducing a gillman, then why not take it all a little further into the supernatural by adding witches, albeit benign and helpful ones rather than cackling hags in black hats? If we're going to accept Charlie Fish, given what he is, then we're surely not going to baulk at Nellie and her whisper talk. "Magic always works," her mum told her, "just not always the way you expect it to," and that has meaning as the story wraps up.
The lesson is that these characters are all merely people and a simple act of acceptance by Floyd in regards to each of them hammers that message home to us, grounding them as the storm builds in power and we realise that whatever petty differences we might have in our world are not going to anything when faced with the majesty of Mother Nature. She doesn't care either. We're all equal in her eye. And that eye, hiding inside a growing hurricane, is very much on its way to wreak havoc on the town of Galveston. More than six thousand Texans wouldn't see the next morning.
Once I realised the timeframe, after that awkward opening, this flowed for me. Rountree keeps a small cast but grows each of them, ironically Charlie Fish perhaps least of all, and it's easy to care about them, especially with those scoundrels probably just round the bend waiting to pounce. We actively root for them, because we know they're going to be up against it with the storm, and they just can't lose to a pair of scoundrels before they get a shot at surviving that, surely? I liked where Rountree took them and I can't argue with his difficult choices. The setting is pristine too.
He's written a lot of short stories, but this looks like his first work at a more substantial length. I'd pick up the next one in a heartbeat.
Originally posted at the Nameless Zine in August 2023:
https://www.thenamelesszine.org/Books...
Index of all my Nameless Zine reviews:
https://books.apocalypselaterempire.com/
July 25, 2023
If I hadn't known the author's name, I would have sworn it was Landsdale, and I was very close since this novel is published by his publishing house. Several themes also return: monsters, the hurricane, paranormal powers.
I enjoyed it quite a bit and read it in an afternoon so I can only recommend it if you like the above-mentioned topics.
Se non avessi saputo il nome dell'autore, avrei giurato che fosse Landsdale, e ci sono andata molto vicino visto che questo romanzo lo pubblica la sua casa editrice. Parecchi sono anche i temi che tornano: i mostri, l'uragano, i poteri paranormali.
Mi é piaciuto parecchio e l'ho letto in un pomeriggio quindi non posso che consigliarlo, se vi piacciono gli argomenti soprammenzionati.
I received from the Publisher a complimentary digital advanced review copy of the book in exchange for a honest review.
I enjoyed it quite a bit and read it in an afternoon so I can only recommend it if you like the above-mentioned topics.
Se non avessi saputo il nome dell'autore, avrei giurato che fosse Landsdale, e ci sono andata molto vicino visto che questo romanzo lo pubblica la sua casa editrice. Parecchi sono anche i temi che tornano: i mostri, l'uragano, i poteri paranormali.
Mi é piaciuto parecchio e l'ho letto in un pomeriggio quindi non posso che consigliarlo, se vi piacciono gli argomenti soprammenzionati.
I received from the Publisher a complimentary digital advanced review copy of the book in exchange for a honest review.
May 7, 2023
The Good: Texas western with paranormal leanings
The Bad: Too short; would have enjoyed more development from Hank and Charlie
The Literary: Alternating POV; historical backdrop of the Great Galveston Hurricane
Floyd Betts returns to his hometown after many years to attend his father's funeral and quickly remembers why he left in the first place. Before he leaves, he's finds two orphaned and starved children, and decides to bring them back to his home in Galveston, Texas. Nellie, the precocious sister, is a witch, and her brother Hank, a sharp shooter with his deceased father's colt revolver.
Traveling through Texas backcountry in 1900, Floyd, Nellie, and Hank happen upon a traveling salesman, Professor Finn, his henchman, Kentucky Jim, and a fish-man they are trying to capture. Nellie understand they mean to beat and chain the fish-man to put him on display for profit, and soon learns she can also communicate empathically with the fish-man, an intelligent and sentient creature. They fight off the charlatans, escape, and decide to bring newly named Charlie Fish to Galveston with them in the hopes his family might find him by way of the ocean.
Mix a pulpy western with southern gothic fantasy, and you've got this addictive and satisfying short novel in the vein of True Grit and The Shape of Water. I love both of those movies. The tropes of hardened men making it in a rough world, found families, and exploitation of those just a little different are just as effective here in The Legend of Charlie Fish.
Rountree uses alternating POV chapters between Floyd and Nellie to bring in backstory that reveals the hardships these characters have already faced, which helps to make the characters immediately sympathetic. I initially thought Nellie's perspective is to allow explanation of her witchy powers and "whisper talk", but I soon came to realize she is as much of a protagonist as Floyd, maybe even more so.
In addition to the chapter structure, the stakes and anticipation steadily rise as the little family is pursued by Finn and Jim, and Galveston city is under threat of a storm that only gets worse and worse. Their story is captivating enough, but add in the backdrop of the Great Storm, the deadliest natural disaster in U.S. history, and you've got a real nail-biter. While I really appreciate the technical aspects and construction of the story, what I love most of all is how well it reads, how fast I care about the characters, and how the story sweeps me away.
Highly recommended for my fellow Texans, but also western and literary fantasy fans!
The Bad: Too short; would have enjoyed more development from Hank and Charlie
The Literary: Alternating POV; historical backdrop of the Great Galveston Hurricane
Floyd Betts returns to his hometown after many years to attend his father's funeral and quickly remembers why he left in the first place. Before he leaves, he's finds two orphaned and starved children, and decides to bring them back to his home in Galveston, Texas. Nellie, the precocious sister, is a witch, and her brother Hank, a sharp shooter with his deceased father's colt revolver.
Traveling through Texas backcountry in 1900, Floyd, Nellie, and Hank happen upon a traveling salesman, Professor Finn, his henchman, Kentucky Jim, and a fish-man they are trying to capture. Nellie understand they mean to beat and chain the fish-man to put him on display for profit, and soon learns she can also communicate empathically with the fish-man, an intelligent and sentient creature. They fight off the charlatans, escape, and decide to bring newly named Charlie Fish to Galveston with them in the hopes his family might find him by way of the ocean.
Mix a pulpy western with southern gothic fantasy, and you've got this addictive and satisfying short novel in the vein of True Grit and The Shape of Water. I love both of those movies. The tropes of hardened men making it in a rough world, found families, and exploitation of those just a little different are just as effective here in The Legend of Charlie Fish.
Rountree uses alternating POV chapters between Floyd and Nellie to bring in backstory that reveals the hardships these characters have already faced, which helps to make the characters immediately sympathetic. I initially thought Nellie's perspective is to allow explanation of her witchy powers and "whisper talk", but I soon came to realize she is as much of a protagonist as Floyd, maybe even more so.
In addition to the chapter structure, the stakes and anticipation steadily rise as the little family is pursued by Finn and Jim, and Galveston city is under threat of a storm that only gets worse and worse. Their story is captivating enough, but add in the backdrop of the Great Storm, the deadliest natural disaster in U.S. history, and you've got a real nail-biter. While I really appreciate the technical aspects and construction of the story, what I love most of all is how well it reads, how fast I care about the characters, and how the story sweeps me away.
Highly recommended for my fellow Texans, but also western and literary fantasy fans!
March 27, 2023
(Review copy from netgalley for review consideration)
'The Legend of Charlie Fish' starts with a storm, and with a strong Weird Western vibe. "Ghosts were my only company." The protagonist has made a home in Galveston, Texas, despite not meaning to necessarily. He has been convinced that his death is overdue and he's not sure if he can keep outrunning death. He hears Charlie, who has been gone for decades...or not. The protagonist is convinced this will be his last day in Galveston. With alternating points of view, the character, Nellie, reveals to the reader that her mother used to send her and her brother to gather ingredients for spells. When trying to buy something from the general store, the children face the wrath of Mr. O'Casey, who doesn't like 'witchy' children Nellie and her brother. Although he sells the items the children have been instructed to buy for their mother, O'Casey seems to be aware that their mother makes remedies of her own, and he doesn't hide his disdain for that. He, of course, sells his own medical brown bottles and tins, raising the cost as much as it suits him. But the people of the town know that the children's mother's remedies are more effective, and she doesn't rip them off quite as much.
It doesn't help, of course, that the mother character goes around town in bare feet with hair unbound, spending most of her time in nature. She walks alone at night frequently, and so it doesn't take very much effort for O'Casey to convince the townspeople that she's a witch.
While it could be difficult at times to follow the different points of view, having settled and connected with one more than the others, the book continues its entertaining story. When the children eventually meet the titular Charlie Fish, things turn to an interesting direction.
The author's afterword adds an interesting dimension to this text as well, about how hurricanes and tropical storms threaten Galveston from the Gulf of Mexico every year. Galveston has a close call with a powerful hurricane on average every three years. It suffers a direct strike every nine. The Great Storm comes along and repeats itself about once every thirty years. Even though predicting the storms has become perhaps easier, there's no one to turn the storms away, to send them back to the sea. The tropical storms hampered the famous people like John Lafitte, the famous New Orleans pirate who claimed Galveston as a base for his smuggling operation.
'The Legend of Charlie Fish' starts with a storm, and with a strong Weird Western vibe. "Ghosts were my only company." The protagonist has made a home in Galveston, Texas, despite not meaning to necessarily. He has been convinced that his death is overdue and he's not sure if he can keep outrunning death. He hears Charlie, who has been gone for decades...or not. The protagonist is convinced this will be his last day in Galveston. With alternating points of view, the character, Nellie, reveals to the reader that her mother used to send her and her brother to gather ingredients for spells. When trying to buy something from the general store, the children face the wrath of Mr. O'Casey, who doesn't like 'witchy' children Nellie and her brother. Although he sells the items the children have been instructed to buy for their mother, O'Casey seems to be aware that their mother makes remedies of her own, and he doesn't hide his disdain for that. He, of course, sells his own medical brown bottles and tins, raising the cost as much as it suits him. But the people of the town know that the children's mother's remedies are more effective, and she doesn't rip them off quite as much.
It doesn't help, of course, that the mother character goes around town in bare feet with hair unbound, spending most of her time in nature. She walks alone at night frequently, and so it doesn't take very much effort for O'Casey to convince the townspeople that she's a witch.
While it could be difficult at times to follow the different points of view, having settled and connected with one more than the others, the book continues its entertaining story. When the children eventually meet the titular Charlie Fish, things turn to an interesting direction.
The author's afterword adds an interesting dimension to this text as well, about how hurricanes and tropical storms threaten Galveston from the Gulf of Mexico every year. Galveston has a close call with a powerful hurricane on average every three years. It suffers a direct strike every nine. The Great Storm comes along and repeats itself about once every thirty years. Even though predicting the storms has become perhaps easier, there's no one to turn the storms away, to send them back to the sea. The tropical storms hampered the famous people like John Lafitte, the famous New Orleans pirate who claimed Galveston as a base for his smuggling operation.
November 22, 2024
My first encounter with Josh Rountree was a story of his I read in
Found: An Anthology of Found Footage Horror Stories
and it was so good that I immediately ordered this book. That story and this novella are very different genre-wise – the former is straightforward horror and the latter is a Weird Western – but they are just as incredible.
The Legend of Charlie Fish follows a kind of found family on a quest to protect its members, most of all the titular Charlie Fish, a humanoid fish creature with a love for cigarettes (literally me). Then, the biggest natural disaster in US history hits them... The climax of the book takes place in a massive storm that is an actual historical event.
I was totally transported into this book's world, and initially I wasn't even sure if I was in the mood for it. I really don't know how the author managed to flesh out these characters and make me care for them so much in so few pages. This short book also felt chock-full of plot, which was elevated by beautiful prose and interesting narrative structure. The final act read like a glorious high-stakes action sequence. It (like the whole book, really) kept me super invested because, on top of everything else, this story is also full of big feels.
Honestly, it doesn't even matter if you like Weird Westerns or not. If you like anything remotely weird, or even just fantasy, or if you just want to be transported into another world by a surprisingly short book, read this. We should all read more Josh Rountree
The Legend of Charlie Fish follows a kind of found family on a quest to protect its members, most of all the titular Charlie Fish, a humanoid fish creature with a love for cigarettes (literally me). Then, the biggest natural disaster in US history hits them... The climax of the book takes place in a massive storm that is an actual historical event.
I was totally transported into this book's world, and initially I wasn't even sure if I was in the mood for it. I really don't know how the author managed to flesh out these characters and make me care for them so much in so few pages. This short book also felt chock-full of plot, which was elevated by beautiful prose and interesting narrative structure. The final act read like a glorious high-stakes action sequence. It (like the whole book, really) kept me super invested because, on top of everything else, this story is also full of big feels.
Honestly, it doesn't even matter if you like Weird Westerns or not. If you like anything remotely weird, or even just fantasy, or if you just want to be transported into another world by a surprisingly short book, read this. We should all read more Josh Rountree
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