First published 1980
Disease sweeps through his family, leaving a young man alone with questions that have no answers. His hometown holds too many memories of the people he has lost. He remembers fishing trips to an island off the North Carolina coast, times when his father taught him to cast nets in the shallow waters. The Outer Banks call to him now as a place to rebuild his shattered life. On the island, he must learn to survive without the family that once anchored his world. The late 19th century setting strips away modern comforts, forcing him to rely on his own hands and determination. Salt air and crashing waves replace familiar streets. He fishes the same waters where his father once guided his young hands, but now he casts alone. The isolation forces him to confront his grief and search for meaning beyond loss. Fleming weaves historical detail with the internal journey of a man who must discover who he is when everything he loved has been taken away. The island becomes both refuge and testing ground for his spirit.
Genres: literary-fiction, american-fiction, historical-fiction, 19th-century
Vibes: emotional, intimate, thought-provoking
Tropes: fish-out-of-water, found-family
Setting: North Carolina, Outer Banks
Period: Late 19th Century
400 pages · Paperback · Warner Books
Content warnings: death