“Rountree blends genres like he’s freestyling a casserole.” —San Antonio Current
Catherine Coldbridge is a complicated woman: a doctor, an occultist, and briefly, a widow. In 1879, her husband, Private Frank Humble, was killed in a Sioux attack. In this adventurous retelling of Frankenstein in the Wild West, a resourceful woman struggles with the man she loved before she made him into a monster.
With his signature lean, clean prose that reads like Raymond Chandler, Josh Rountree (The Legend of Charlie Fish) has penned a Frankenstein-inspired tale unlike any other. With equal parts Cormac McCarthy and Stephen Graham Jones, Rountree coalesces myth and legend into a dramatic tale of love, death, and its terrible aftermath.
Catherine Coldbridge is a complicated woman: a doctor, an occultist, and briefly, a widow. In 1879, her husband, Private Frank Humble, was killed in a Sioux attack. Consumed by grief, Catherine used her formidable skills to resurrect her husband. But after the reanimation, Frank lost his soul, becoming a vicious undead monster. Unable to face her failure or its murderous consequences, Catherine fled to grieve her failure.
Twenty-five years later, Catherine has decided she must make things right. She travels back to Texas with a pair of hired killers ready to destroy Frank. But Frank is no longer a monster; he is once again the kind man she knew. He has remade himself as the Unkillable Frank Lightning, traveling with the Wild West Show, and even taking on a mysterious young ward.
Now Catherine must face a series of moral dilemmas that cannot be resolved without considerable bloodshed.
Praise for The Legend of Charlie Fish
San Antonio Current10 Notable 2023 books from Texan Authors Los Angeles Public Library Best Books of 2023 Locus Recommended Reading List
“Rountree excels at creating new mythology and folktales that feel like they’ve always existed, and The Legend of Charlie Fish is no exception. A tense, exciting, and gorgeous read that will sweep you up immediately and not let go, lingering even after you turn the last page.”
—A. C. Wise, author of Wendy, Darling
“A winsome tale of wondrous misfits and unlikely kinships, The Legend of Charlie Fish channels all the wit and melancholy of the great Charles Portis. Part adventure story, part lament, the whole is a triumph of voice and heart.”
—Andy Davidson, author of The Hollow Kind
“Rountree blends genres like he’s freestyling a casserole. Recommended for fans of the Coen Brothers.”
—San Antonio Current
“A paean to turn of the 20th century Galveston, Tex., Rountree’s romp of a debut novel (after the collection Fantastic Americana) combines a historical disaster with fantastical elements, including a creature who would fit right in, in the Black Lagoon. Floyd Betts meets orphaned siblings Nellie, a 12-year-old telepath, and Hank, a nine-year-old marksman, while in Old Cypress, Tex., for his father’s funeral and decides to take them back with him to Abigail Elder’s boarding house in Galveston. On the way, Floyd, Hank, and Nellie infuriate of a pair of circus charlatans calling themselves Professor Finn and Kentucky Jim by liberating the scoundrels’ big score, a human-fish hybrid the children name Charlie Fish. Nellie’s ‘whisper talk,’ or empathetic telepathy, allows her to communicate with Charlie, who longs to reunite with his fellow fish people. Meanwhile, both Professor Finn and Kentucky Jim and an incoming hurricane pose threats even after the makeshift family is welcomed at Abigail’s. Despite a somewhat unfocused plot, which jumps around in both time and alternates between Floyd and Nellie’s points of view, a sense of looming doom keeps tension high, and Rountree’s talent for scene setting is on full display in lush descriptions of the Old West. This weird western should win Rountree plenty of fans.”
—Publishers Weekly
“A fantastic work of dark historical fiction, in the spirit of Lansdale, Gorman, Pronzini, and McMurtry.”
—Brian Keene, author of the Rising series
“Rountree’s debut novel serves as an ode to Texas storytellers such as Joe Lansdale and dark-fantasy spinners such as Guillermo del Toro. The story centers on a found family on their way to Galveston, TX. Along with taciturn carpenter Floyd Betts, there are two orphan children: Hank, whose mouth is as fast as his revolver, and Nellie, a girl with mind-reading powers. Nellie’s powers let her communicate with Charlie Fish, a fish man who says little, loves smoking, and wants very badly to go back to his home in the ocean. Following this group are two scoundrels who want to capture and exhibit Charlie—and a hurricane that will destroy Galveston. Rountree offers some excellent descriptions, and his characters are as folksy and complex as any created by Larry McMurtry or Louis L’Amour. The seemingly rushed ending, however, might disappoint readers who have fallen in love with the world Rountree has imagined; it’s a painful realization that their journey through his world is ending. VERDICT: Rountree’s colorful palette brings together Western and fantasy elements to create a magical tale about the deep bonds forged by circumstance.” —Library Journal
“Equal parts touching and bizarre, The Legend of Charlie Fish is a weird western with heart, and is a completely delightful read from start to finish.”
—David Liss, author of The Peculiarities
“Memorable characters, bad guys you’ll love to hate, a fast-moving plot, and the right amount of supernatural elements—all expertly used to immerse you in the story.”
—SF Signal
“After returning to the hometown that he ran from decades before, Floyd Betts inadvertently creates a found family outside of his wildest imagination. Floyd stumbles upon two young orphans: a girl with something she calls whisper talk—a power that allows her to see and project other people’s memories—and her sharpshooting younger brother. As they travel, the unlikely trio is forced to make an impulsive decision with lasting consequences. They interrupt the capture of a strange fish-man, who forms an instant connection with the girl. But the two charlatans who intended to profit off the two-legged amphibian in a freak show won’t let him go that easily. As the group returns to Galveston, a storm is brewing on the horizon. Only time will tell if it is a run-of-the-mill tempest or something darker. Set against the backdrop of the deadliest natural disaster in U.S. history, Rountree’s latest weaves an unforgettable tale about survival, resilience, and the power of forged relationships. Perfect for Ben Galley and Joe R. Lansdale fans, The Legend of Charlie Fish is a quintessential example of a weird western.”
—Booklist
“A fantastic novel about the power of family, be they blood, human or not. Of love and loyalty and strange talents. Of heat and violence and storms and a Fishman. A tight heart-filled tapestry of almost alternate history that hits all the notes I crave in weird fiction. I adored it.”
—John Boden, author of Jedi Summer, Spungunion, and Snarl
“An entertaining historical weird fantasy tale featuring a cigarette-smoking manphibian befriended by an orphaned witch girl and her gun-toting kid brother. Set in Galveston, Texas, during the deadliest hurricane to ever strike the United States, this strange self-made family not only must deal with the elements but a pair of scheming scoundrels intent on capturing Charlie as well. Author Josh Rountree knows the city of Galveston and its tragic history backwards and forwards. Recommended for those who enjoy a good ‘weird western.’”
—Nancy A. Collins, author of Sunglasses After Dark
“Odd, creepy, funny, The Black Lagoon meets the Six Gun universe. High up on the way-cool factor. You need this.” —Joe R. Lansdale, author of the Hap and Leonard series
“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.”
—The Speculative Shelf
“If there’s one thing I like more than strange fish-man stories, it’s a terrific weird western, and with The Legend of Charlie Fish, Josh Rountree fuses these two genres into the fishiest, weirdest of westerns!”
—Cullen Bunn, author of The Sixth Gun and Harrow County
“From the very first pages, Galveston and the Great Storm come alive alongside a cast of unique and compelling characters. The lyrical prose and sense of foreboding as undeniable as the first gusts of a hurricane make for an utterly charming and haunting tale.”
—KC Grifant, author of Melinda West: Monster Gunslinger
“The Legend of Charlie Fish is an exciting mashup of historical Texas, whispering magic, deadly hurricanes, and unlikely friends from unexpected places. It celebrates love and acceptance no matter how unusual the relationship is or how uncertain the future could be. Rountree deftly casts his characters into dangerous waters and tells a lyrical, stormy tale of chosen family that is wonderfully hopeful, even amidst loss and hardship. I loved it.”
—Patrick Swenson, author of Rain Music
“The monsters are human, the humans are monsters, and hope still lives in Pandora’s Box. It is a tale of today in yesterday’s clothes. Beautifully written.”
—Del Howison, author of The Survival of Margaret Thomas
“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.”
—Mother Horror
“A Weird Western novel of singular power. Mixing equal parts of Elmore Leonard toughness and Joe R. Lansdale wit in a Charles Portis-shaped shaker, The Legend of Charlie Fish is an old fashioned cocktail readers will savor.”
—C.S. Humble, author of The Massacre at Yellow Hill
“Amazing dialogue, plenty of action, and a group of memorable characters.”
—Locus
“Well-written, entertaining, and hugely original.”
—Booklover’s Boudoir
5/5 stars. “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 for western and literary fantasy fans!”
—The Book on the High Shelf
4.5/5 stars “I inhaled this book. . . . The emotional content and build was spot-on.”
—Book Reviews Forevermore
“The Legend of Charlie Fish is ultimately fun, full of deep character work and heartfelt emotion.”
—Horror DNA
“It’s a short book that feels expansive, a Western that feels modern, a horror novel that feels hopeful. That’s one hell of a Legend, and I recommend it.”
—Antick Musings
“Lean, clean prose that reads like Raymond Chandler whittled down by a Texas wind.”
—FanFiAddict
Josh Rountree is a novelist and short story writer who writes across multiple genres, and focuses mostly on horror and dark fantasy. His novel The Legend of Charlie Fish, released by Tachyon Publications to wide acclaim in 2023, selected for the Locus Recommended Reading List, and named one of Los Angeles Public Library’s best books of the year. More than seventy of Rountree’s 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, most recently, Death Aesthetic. Rountree lives in the greater Austin, Texas, metropolitan area with his lovely wife of many years and a pair of half-feral dogs who command his obedience.
The Unkillable Frank Lightning
Josh Rountree
“Rountree blends genres like he’s freestyling a casserole.” —San Antonio Current
Catherine Coldbridge is a complicated woman: a doctor, an occultist, and briefly, a widow. In 1879, her husband, Private Frank Humble, was killed in a Sioux attack. In this adventurous retelling of Frankenstein in the Wild West, a resourceful woman struggles with the man she loved before she made him into a monster.
The Unkillable Frank Lightning
by Josh Rountree
ISBN: 978-1-61696-436-8 (print); 978-1-61696-437-5 (digital)
Published: 15 July 2025
Available Format(s): digital, trade paperback
With his signature lean, clean prose that reads like Raymond Chandler, Josh Rountree (The Legend of Charlie Fish) has penned a Frankenstein-inspired tale unlike any other. With equal parts Cormac McCarthy and Stephen Graham Jones, Rountree coalesces myth and legend into a dramatic tale of love, death, and its terrible aftermath.
Catherine Coldbridge is a complicated woman: a doctor, an occultist, and briefly, a widow. In 1879, her husband, Private Frank Humble, was killed in a Sioux attack. Consumed by grief, Catherine used her formidable skills to resurrect her husband. But after the reanimation, Frank lost his soul, becoming a vicious undead monster. Unable to face her failure or its murderous consequences, Catherine fled to grieve her failure.
Twenty-five years later, Catherine has decided she must make things right. She travels back to Texas with a pair of hired killers ready to destroy Frank. But Frank is no longer a monster; he is once again the kind man she knew. He has remade himself as the Unkillable Frank Lightning, traveling with the Wild West Show, and even taking on a mysterious young ward.
Now Catherine must face a series of moral dilemmas that cannot be resolved without considerable bloodshed.
Praise for The Legend of Charlie Fish
San Antonio Current 10 Notable 2023 books from Texan Authors
Los Angeles Public Library Best Books of 2023
Locus Recommended Reading List
“Rountree excels at creating new mythology and folktales that feel like they’ve always existed, and The Legend of Charlie Fish is no exception. A tense, exciting, and gorgeous read that will sweep you up immediately and not let go, lingering even after you turn the last page.”
—A. C. Wise, author of Wendy, Darling
“A winsome tale of wondrous misfits and unlikely kinships, The Legend of Charlie Fish channels all the wit and melancholy of the great Charles Portis. Part adventure story, part lament, the whole is a triumph of voice and heart.”
—Andy Davidson, author of The Hollow Kind
“Rountree blends genres like he’s freestyling a casserole. Recommended for fans of the Coen Brothers.”
—San Antonio Current
“A paean to turn of the 20th century Galveston, Tex., Rountree’s romp of a debut novel (after the collection Fantastic Americana) combines a historical disaster with fantastical elements, including a creature who would fit right in, in the Black Lagoon. Floyd Betts meets orphaned siblings Nellie, a 12-year-old telepath, and Hank, a nine-year-old marksman, while in Old Cypress, Tex., for his father’s funeral and decides to take them back with him to Abigail Elder’s boarding house in Galveston. On the way, Floyd, Hank, and Nellie infuriate of a pair of circus charlatans calling themselves Professor Finn and Kentucky Jim by liberating the scoundrels’ big score, a human-fish hybrid the children name Charlie Fish. Nellie’s ‘whisper talk,’ or empathetic telepathy, allows her to communicate with Charlie, who longs to reunite with his fellow fish people. Meanwhile, both Professor Finn and Kentucky Jim and an incoming hurricane pose threats even after the makeshift family is welcomed at Abigail’s. Despite a somewhat unfocused plot, which jumps around in both time and alternates between Floyd and Nellie’s points of view, a sense of looming doom keeps tension high, and Rountree’s talent for scene setting is on full display in lush descriptions of the Old West. This weird western should win Rountree plenty of fans.”
—Publishers Weekly
“A fantastic work of dark historical fiction, in the spirit of Lansdale, Gorman, Pronzini, and McMurtry.”
—Brian Keene, author of the Rising series
“Rountree’s debut novel serves as an ode to Texas storytellers such as Joe Lansdale and dark-fantasy spinners such as Guillermo del Toro. The story centers on a found family on their way to Galveston, TX. Along with taciturn carpenter Floyd Betts, there are two orphan children: Hank, whose mouth is as fast as his revolver, and Nellie, a girl with mind-reading powers. Nellie’s powers let her communicate with Charlie Fish, a fish man who says little, loves smoking, and wants very badly to go back to his home in the ocean. Following this group are two scoundrels who want to capture and exhibit Charlie—and a hurricane that will destroy Galveston. Rountree offers some excellent descriptions, and his characters are as folksy and complex as any created by Larry McMurtry or Louis L’Amour. The seemingly rushed ending, however, might disappoint readers who have fallen in love with the world Rountree has imagined; it’s a painful realization that their journey through his world is ending. VERDICT: Rountree’s colorful palette brings together Western and fantasy elements to create a magical tale about the deep bonds forged by circumstance.”
—Library Journal
“Equal parts touching and bizarre, The Legend of Charlie Fish is a weird western with heart, and is a completely delightful read from start to finish.”
—David Liss, author of The Peculiarities
“Memorable characters, bad guys you’ll love to hate, a fast-moving plot, and the right amount of supernatural elements—all expertly used to immerse you in the story.”
—SF Signal
“After returning to the hometown that he ran from decades before, Floyd Betts inadvertently creates a found family outside of his wildest imagination. Floyd stumbles upon two young orphans: a girl with something she calls whisper talk—a power that allows her to see and project other people’s memories—and her sharpshooting younger brother. As they travel, the unlikely trio is forced to make an impulsive decision with lasting consequences. They interrupt the capture of a strange fish-man, who forms an instant connection with the girl. But the two charlatans who intended to profit off the two-legged amphibian in a freak show won’t let him go that easily. As the group returns to Galveston, a storm is brewing on the horizon. Only time will tell if it is a run-of-the-mill tempest or something darker. Set against the backdrop of the deadliest natural disaster in U.S. history, Rountree’s latest weaves an unforgettable tale about survival, resilience, and the power of forged relationships. Perfect for Ben Galley and Joe R. Lansdale fans, The Legend of Charlie Fish is a quintessential example of a weird western.”
—Booklist
“A fantastic novel about the power of family, be they blood, human or not. Of love and loyalty and strange talents. Of heat and violence and storms and a Fishman. A tight heart-filled tapestry of almost alternate history that hits all the notes I crave in weird fiction. I adored it.”
—John Boden, author of Jedi Summer, Spungunion, and Snarl
“An entertaining historical weird fantasy tale featuring a cigarette-smoking manphibian befriended by an orphaned witch girl and her gun-toting kid brother. Set in Galveston, Texas, during the deadliest hurricane to ever strike the United States, this strange self-made family not only must deal with the elements but a pair of scheming scoundrels intent on capturing Charlie as well. Author Josh Rountree knows the city of Galveston and its tragic history backwards and forwards. Recommended for those who enjoy a good ‘weird western.’”
—Nancy A. Collins, author of Sunglasses After Dark
“Odd, creepy, funny, The Black Lagoon meets the Six Gun universe. High up on the way-cool factor. You need this.”
—Joe R. Lansdale, author of the Hap and Leonard series
“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.”
—The Speculative Shelf
“If there’s one thing I like more than strange fish-man stories, it’s a terrific weird western, and with The Legend of Charlie Fish, Josh Rountree fuses these two genres into the fishiest, weirdest of westerns!”
—Cullen Bunn, author of The Sixth Gun and Harrow County
“From the very first pages, Galveston and the Great Storm come alive alongside a cast of unique and compelling characters. The lyrical prose and sense of foreboding as undeniable as the first gusts of a hurricane make for an utterly charming and haunting tale.”
—KC Grifant, author of Melinda West: Monster Gunslinger
“The Legend of Charlie Fish is an exciting mashup of historical Texas, whispering magic, deadly hurricanes, and unlikely friends from unexpected places. It celebrates love and acceptance no matter how unusual the relationship is or how uncertain the future could be. Rountree deftly casts his characters into dangerous waters and tells a lyrical, stormy tale of chosen family that is wonderfully hopeful, even amidst loss and hardship. I loved it.”
—Patrick Swenson, author of Rain Music
“The monsters are human, the humans are monsters, and hope still lives in Pandora’s Box. It is a tale of today in yesterday’s clothes. Beautifully written.”
—Del Howison, author of The Survival of Margaret Thomas
“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.”
—Mother Horror
“A Weird Western novel of singular power. Mixing equal parts of Elmore Leonard toughness and Joe R. Lansdale wit in a Charles Portis-shaped shaker, The Legend of Charlie Fish is an old fashioned cocktail readers will savor.”
—C.S. Humble, author of The Massacre at Yellow Hill
“Amazing dialogue, plenty of action, and a group of memorable characters.”
—Locus
“Well-written, entertaining, and hugely original.”
—Booklover’s Boudoir
5/5 stars. “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 for western and literary fantasy fans!”
—The Book on the High Shelf
4.5/5 stars “I inhaled this book. . . . The emotional content and build was spot-on.”
—Book Reviews Forevermore
“The Legend of Charlie Fish is ultimately fun, full of deep character work and heartfelt emotion.”
—Horror DNA
“It’s a short book that feels expansive, a Western that feels modern, a horror novel that feels hopeful. That’s one hell of a Legend, and I recommend it.”
—Antick Musings
“Lean, clean prose that reads like Raymond Chandler whittled down by a Texas wind.”
—FanFiAddict
Josh Rountree is a novelist and short story writer who writes across multiple genres, and focuses mostly on horror and dark fantasy. His novel The Legend of Charlie Fish, released by Tachyon Publications to wide acclaim in 2023, selected for the Locus Recommended Reading List, and named one of Los Angeles Public Library’s best books of the year. More than seventy of Rountree’s 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, most recently, Death Aesthetic. Rountree lives in the greater Austin, Texas, metropolitan area with his lovely wife of many years and a pair of half-feral dogs who command his obedience.