by Dennis Ruane (Author)

While horseback riding in Great Smoky Mountains National Park, Layla Turner discovers Abe Ramsey, a buckskin-clad hunter who lives in the Cataloochee Valley. Only after she falls in love with Abe does Layla learn that he is a fugitive from the FBI and a member of the Panther Patrol, an eco-terrorist band that opposes logging in nearby Pisgah National Forest. Only after Abe falls in love with Layla, does he learn that she is the daughter-in-law of the Governor of North Carolina. The Governor advocates for logging of North Carolina's national forests. His friend, a wealthy logging magnate and ruthless businessman, receives a lucrative contract to log in Pisgah National Forest.While Layla and Abe reveal the details of their lives, skirmishes between the Panther Patrol, the FBI, and Kenneth Leyman's henchmen escalate into a deadly conflict. The final confrontation brings an end to the logging of Pisgah National Forest and forever alters the course of Layla's life.

Author Biography

In 1978, while a graduate student at the University of Wisconsin, Dennis Ruane had two hobbies, writing and woodcarving. At that time, he began keeping a journal with the intention of writing a novel one day. Two years later, he turned his woodcarving hobby into a part-time business when he began carving and selling wooden spoons. In 1982, Dennis abandoned his science career to follow the life of a craftsman and moved back to his native Pennsylvania. At present, Dennis has been self-employed as a woodcarver for twenty-seven years. He continued to write in his journal, but a number of attempts at writing a novel over the years proved unsuccessful. Dennis was never satisfied with these efforts to the extent that he was inspired to continue. Four years ago, as he approached his fiftieth birthday, the urge to write a novel returned. This time a story came together to his satisfaction and a year later, his first novel, "Wooden Spoons", was completed. Because of the encouraging reception of Wooden Spoons by the public, Dennis was inspired to try again. His second novel, "Cataloochee Man", is a story that was inspired by the many hikes that he took through the Cataloochee Valley in Great Smoky Mountains National Park. Dennis carves and writes from his home and studio near the town of Marshall, North Carolina.

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