The Last Thing to Burn by Will Dean

 

He is her husband. She is his captive.

Her husband calls her Jane. That is not her name.

She lives in a small farm cottage, surrounded by vast, open fields. Everywhere she looks, there is space. But she is trapped. No one knows how she got to the UK: no one knows she is there. Visitors rarely come to the farm; if they do, she is never seen.

Her husband records her every movement during the day. If he doesn't like what he sees, she is punished.

For a long time, escape seemed impossible. But now, something has changed. She has a reason to live and a reason to fight. Now, she is watching him, and waiting . . .

Title: The Last Thing to Burn

Author: Will Dean

Published By:  Hodder & Stoughton

Publication Date:  7th Jan 2021

Links:  

UK:                        US:    Amazon

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Waterstones     

WHSmith

Our Review

Todays review is by our guest reviewer and aspiring crime writer J Daniels.

This is a dark, harrowing yet brilliant story delving into the world of human-trafficking. The protagonist of the story is ‘Jane’ however that is not her real name instead a name given to her when she was bought by husband Lenn. ‘Jane’ is reduced to serving Lenn, cooking for him, cleaning for him. She is constantly watched over by Lenn with any orders disobeyed being suitably punished with the destruction of her possessions. 

This was a very well written book, the fact that the number of characters within the book overall wasn’t high allowed the reader to become fully invested in the lead character without subplots which wouldn’t feel fully relevant to the story. I felt myself becoming invested in the story, sharing the same frustrations that the lead character felt, while despising the villain in the plot. Which is to the authors credit, the ability to create a truly despicable character. I thoroughly enjoyed the plot, the setting, the character development. This was the first novel I’ve read by the author – Will Dean. Based on the strength of this story I am confident it won’t be my last. 

J Daniels

About the Author

Will Dean grew up in the East Midlands, living in nine different villages before the age of eighteen. After studying law at the LSE, and working many varied jobs in London, he settled in rural Sweden with his wife. He built a wooden house in a boggy forest clearing and it's from this base that he compulsively reads and writes.