Serena: A Novel by Ron Rash

I have been trying to wait to post the review for this book until closer to the discussion date, but I can't wait any longer. This book swept me away, and I'm bursting to talk about it!

The novel opens with the two main characters, George and Serena Pemberton, arriving in North Carolina at the train station near the couple's logging camp in the Appalachian mountains. Within pages, the first killing of the novel occurs, and from there on what can only be called a thirst for blood becomes the siren song for Serena. The man who was killed was the father of Rachel, the girl who has born a child as a result of Pemberton's attentions and third main character of the novel. For daring to challenge Pemberton on behalf of his daughter, he is neatly dispensed of with Pemberton's knife, and as his blood spills on the platform, Serena calmy steps over the body and hands the father's knife to Rachel, saying that she should keep it for its monetary value and that though she may have had a child, but it would be her last with Pemberton.

While at first Serena seems a beguiling, strong female character, she becomes increasingly powerful, her evil feeding off of the blood that begins to spill all around her as those who oppose Pemberton's and, increasingly, Serena's will. Using the henchman whose life she saves, she has her opponents mowed down on a road of bribes and threats, and soon turns her laser eyes to Rachel and her son, who has caught the attention of Pemberton and is, therefore, a seen as a threat to Serena, who is barren as a result of miscarriage.

This novel has many, many ties to previous literary works, Macbeth being the most obvious, and I enjoyed mapping the similarities in my mind as I read. Also of interest is the historical backround of logging in Appalachia, and of the government's quest to acquire the lands for a national parks project through threats and bribes of its own. I believe the novel is best summed up by a photo taken of Serena by the local photographer; it is of Serena, astride her massive horse with her hunting eagle on her arm, Pemberton at her side, and behind them 'a wasteland of stumps and downed limbs whose limits the frame could not encompass'. This is both connotative of the actual scene and the uncountable number of limbs and lives lost in the swath of the Pemberton's success. Interestingly, Serena's face is blurred in the photo, as if in motion, but also almost as if she was the devil itself, unable to be caught in still photography much as a vampire cannot be seen in a mirror.

One minor problem with the novel was that the killing spree went on almost too long; it grew slightly stagnant for a few chapters during the scene-setting for the final act. Also, some of the social event scenes seemd a bit forced, and the chapters about Rachel were pale compared to the blaze of the rest of the story. However, the climax, while not entirely unexpected, was well worth the wait, and the coda following the novel was perfect.

Rating: Five out of five stars. Absorbing, menacing, and unrepentant, Serena is overwhelming.