Rash, better known for his poetry, won the 2002 Novello Festival Press Literary Award for the manuscript of this compelling first novel. The plot combines a love triangle and a murder. From the beginning, you know who done it and, soon enough, why; the mystery is in the disappearance of Holland Winchester's body. Rash uses this plot device successfully by dividing the novel into five sections, narrated by the sheriff, the wife, the husband, the son, and the deputy. Each perspective reveals more about the characters and their motivations and actions while exploring themes of love, infidelity, revenge, justice, and fate. The conversations tell the thoughts and superstitions of various family members, neighbors, and the local witch to create the Appalachian South immediately after World War II. Beautiful writing -- it's easy to see he is a poet. This is a book I could reread just for the nuances of language. A quiet storm of a book.