More than a fisherman's tale, The Trout King is a story about fathers and sons, boyhood and manhood, many meanings fishing holds for those who love it, and how the unintended consequences of well-meaning choices can shape people's lives for good and ill.

The dramatic action unfolds over a summer contest in a small vacation community to determine the champion trout fisherman, "The Trout King," a competition that turns deadly serious when a rough-hewn local who has not been bested is challenged by a fly-fishing purist who hates to lose.