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erincataldi's review
3.0
Wow, all I can say is... what a stone cold bitch! Serena is like a magestic, powerful panther that will gobble you up first chance she gets! I can hardly imagine how Jennifer Lawrence is going to play such a vile and twisted woman later this year on the big screen, so obviously I'll have to go see the movie version as well.
This award winning novel takes place in the North Carolina mountains amidst the Great Depression and follows newlyweds Serena and George Pemberton as they build focus on building and improving their timber empire in the mountains. Serena has decided that nothing or no one will get in their way, she is a resourceful woman and all men lay in awe of her, even her husband. When she discovers that she can bear no children she decides that if she can't have an heir then neither can her husband and she uses her one handed servant to track down and kill the illegitimate son that George sired before they had met.
This is a dark and twisting tale that explores just how deep greed and lust can go. Violence ensues.
Great book, but not a light read.
This award winning novel takes place in the North Carolina mountains amidst the Great Depression and follows newlyweds Serena and George Pemberton as they build focus on building and improving their timber empire in the mountains. Serena has decided that nothing or no one will get in their way, she is a resourceful woman and all men lay in awe of her, even her husband. When she discovers that she can bear no children she decides that if she can't have an heir then neither can her husband and she uses her one handed servant to track down and kill the illegitimate son that George sired before they had met.
This is a dark and twisting tale that explores just how deep greed and lust can go. Violence ensues.
Great book, but not a light read.
mmc6661's review
3.0
what a wicked lady ! Enjoyed the setting being that I live in NC and love the Asheville area. This book is not for one who enjoys a light read but delivers a hard edgy story.
lady_darkpelican's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
mysterious
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
ammbooks's review
4.0
I loved the glimpses into the creation of the Smokey Mountain National Park.....but never quite warmed up to the main characters. But not sure we are suppose to.
missy_evanko's review
2.0
A little weird. Slow going to get to the plot that the back cover describes.
hatrireads's review
4.0
I'm so glad to discover Ron Rash, thanks to Richard Howorth of Square Books. This was an engrossing read and a great story!
jessicatempleton's review
4.0
I watched the movie and was confused by the plot, so I did what I always do in cases like that, find the book. The book was way better than the movie, a good read.
kpendergraft's review
2.0
Ok, so there is a lot going on in this book. I tried to read it a few times but each time I ended up putting it down. I am not a huge fan of this book now that I have finished but there were some aspects that I enjoyed and some that I really did not. I am going to try and be a vague as possible so as not to give away parts of the novel if you are interested in reading it.
Strong, self-sufficient female characters do not need to be blood-crazy psychopaths. They really don't. It seems like I have read a few novels that proudly say their main female character is "strong" or "self-sufficient" and then end up psychopaths. Ugh! If any female character is strong and self-sufficient in this novel, it would be Rachel and not Serena. She takes care of herself and her baby when her father dies and does what she has to do when her life and the life of her child is threatened. However, she of course committed the terrible sin of getting pregnant before she was married and therefore is shunned by most of the characters in this novel and by some readers.
The animal cruelty in this novel is insane. I think what makes it even sadder and more depressing is that it happened then and in some ways it happens now. People did this to animals and people still do this to animals in some respects. I get though that the animal cruelty and the cruelty toward humans and nature in general was there to show just how little the "bad characters" cared about the people and things around them. All the characters cared about was money. Their determination to keep cutting trees and destroying the forest until they absolutely had to stop, their senseless killing of animals and leaving their bodies to rot and their determination that everyone should bow to their will, just paints a picture of the true character of these people. So much death that by the end, death didn't seem to matter anymore.
I did like the use of the work crew as they gave their opinion on the events happening in the novel. It was almost like the Greek Tragedies with their chorus' stating what the people thought of these events. I actually began to look forward to those parts because it was so well written. Their insight into the events was interesting because they became as trapped as the main characters were because there was no place for them to escape to. They were dependent on their jobs and even though they hated every minute of it and what they were doing to the forest, they had no choice because they had families to feed. I think of them as I think of the animals, the way they were treated just goes to show the reader the true nature of the main characters.
The truth is that I will never read this book again and I was a little disappointed in it. However, I would be interested in looking at other things that Ron Rash has written and perhaps give them a try. Right now, I need to read something happy or just less depressing.
Strong, self-sufficient female characters do not need to be blood-crazy psychopaths. They really don't. It seems like I have read a few novels that proudly say their main female character is "strong" or "self-sufficient" and then end up psychopaths. Ugh! If any female character is strong and self-sufficient in this novel, it would be Rachel and not Serena. She takes care of herself and her baby when her father dies and does what she has to do when her life and the life of her child is threatened. However, she of course committed the terrible sin of getting pregnant before she was married and therefore is shunned by most of the characters in this novel and by some readers.
The animal cruelty in this novel is insane. I think what makes it even sadder and more depressing is that it happened then and in some ways it happens now. People did this to animals and people still do this to animals in some respects. I get though that the animal cruelty and the cruelty toward humans and nature in general was there to show just how little the "bad characters" cared about the people and things around them. All the characters cared about was money. Their determination to keep cutting trees and destroying the forest until they absolutely had to stop, their senseless killing of animals and leaving their bodies to rot and their determination that everyone should bow to their will, just paints a picture of the true character of these people. So much death that by the end, death didn't seem to matter anymore.
I did like the use of the work crew as they gave their opinion on the events happening in the novel. It was almost like the Greek Tragedies with their chorus' stating what the people thought of these events. I actually began to look forward to those parts because it was so well written. Their insight into the events was interesting because they became as trapped as the main characters were because there was no place for them to escape to. They were dependent on their jobs and even though they hated every minute of it and what they were doing to the forest, they had no choice because they had families to feed. I think of them as I think of the animals, the way they were treated just goes to show the reader the true nature of the main characters.
The truth is that I will never read this book again and I was a little disappointed in it. However, I would be interested in looking at other things that Ron Rash has written and perhaps give them a try. Right now, I need to read something happy or just less depressing.
librarian_wenn's review
3.0
I really hated the female protagonist. I can appreciate that she was a strong woman, but she was pretty damn evil. I did not like the treatment of the animals. I did not like Mr. Pemberton. He was a totally weak male when it came to his wife. But it was a good story. An interesting one. And I liked the lumber dudes that sat back and watched everything going on and had their commentary. If you're looking for a good story, read this book. And call the Pembertons every mean name you can think of. Happy reading!