North Carolina mountains in the 1920s - newly-weds George (Cooper) and Serena Pemberton (Lawrence) begin to build a timber empire. Serena soon proves herself to be equal to any man - overseeing loggers, hunting rattle-snakes, even saving a man's life in the wilderness. With power and influence now in their hands, the Pembertons refuse to let anyone stand in the way of their inflated love and ambitions.