Serena: Simply Too Good to Put Down

I have read some of Ron Rash's works, and now Serena is by far my favorite.  Set in 1929, the novel focuses on Serena and George Pemberton who both find themselves brimming with power, sensuality, ruthlessness, and the desire for profit.  The Pembertons were timber barons trailblazing near Asheville, North Carolina, at the time that the U.S. government was trying to establish the Smoky Mountains as a national park.  Serena sets her sights on timber in Brazil, and assumes that her husband will want the same.  However, he can't quite let go of his interest in his young son whose mother was someone who worked briefly at the lumber camp, and now lives nearby.  The book ends tragically, but was very captivating, atmospheric, and even cinematic.  Nothing like a good old-fashioned novel!