I have not read a thriller that kept me up late at night and left my heart pounding. This was a masterclass in suspense and pacing. An absolutely stunning psychological thriller that left me literally breathless at the end of it.

In hindsight, I should have known. I am the kind of reader who, when things get too tense, I flip ahead to see if everything will be OK. (or to brace myself for the worst) It's unusual that I can get through a crime novel without peeking at the last pages. But that is exactly the kind of behaviour that will ruin a book like this. In short, for this one, it's not you Will Dean, it's me. I had a hard time reading this to the extent I didn't enjoy it. I found it unbearably tense without much let up. Although it was very well written, the fact that I could not relax whilst reading it made it more like watching a horror movie from behind the cushions instead of a fun or entertaining experience. I did finish it but with a kind of nervous skim to the end and I was relieved to put it down.

There is no doubt that Will Dean is a talented writer and I have very much enjoyed his other books. In this case though, it just wasn't for me. If you do like nerve-shredding, heart- pounding, edge of your seat kind of reads, this is excellent. I'll give it four stars in recognition of that (and bear in mind, my review is probably the minority opinion overall).

I love being given the opportunity to update our school library which is a unique space for both senior students and staff to access high quality literature. This is definitely a must-buy. It kept me absolutely gripped from cover to cover and is exactly the kind of read that just flies off the shelves. It has exactly the right combination of credible characters and a compelling plot thatI just could not put down. This is a great read that I couldn't stop thinking about and it made for a hugely satisfying read. I'm definitely going to order a copy and think it will immediately become a popular addition to our fiction shelves. 10/10 would absolutely recommend.

Oooft this one hit hard!
Jane - Thanh Doh, has been held captive for 7 years and this story was dark 😭 it follows a young woman who’s trafficked from Vietnam to the UK with her sister. Her sister is being held elsewhere and we follow “Jane” as she tries to get through her situation which gets worse as each day passes. I couldn’t put this down!

This is the first I’ve read from this author and it did not disappoint . It was a very harrowing read at times with the abuse . I would like to have read more about his past life with his mother and any past victims . It was definitely worth a read and I would recommend this book . 5 stars from me

This blew me away from start to finish. Will has a beautiful way of writing and it was completely compelling. Desperately sad in places and filled with hope in others.

The book was a gripping read, but the abuse and the human trafficking part of it wasn't really for me. Book was still well written, just didn't like those parts.

An amazing thriller that had me gripped from the first page. A compelling read I couldn't put down. Love Dean's writing and can't wait for the next one! A total sleep stealer I'll be recommending to everyone.

What a whirlwind of a read!
I read it in one sitting with my heart in my mouth.
Would highly recommend to anyone that loves a thrilling read.

I’m not a sensitive flower by any means but this was a harrowing and utterly brutal read. I devoured it in a matter of hours because I couldn’t bear to stop reading; I knew I wouldn’t be able to just go on with my day until it was finished and there was some (hoped-for!) resolution.

The author says at the end that he wrote it because he said that it’s not the agents and traffickers that are the worst abusers of refugees - they are only responding to what people are willing to buy and the rest of us are willing to overloook. By not being willing to tolerate refugees and let them into our countries in a way that works for all, we set up a vector for the desperate and the greedy. For anyone who can handle the utter terror of this book it’s an important story of what’s behind the headlines about modern slavery.

Dark, devastating and visceral. I struggled to know what rating to give this book. A tense and disturbing look at the plight of trafficked people. Not for the faint hearted, the depictions of injury and recovery were extremely difficult to read in places. Both heartbreaking and heartwarming, the writing had me hooked from start to finish. I will be thinking about this story for a long time to come

This is my first Will Dean novel and what a novel to begin with. A woman is trapped on a farm by her husband. Why? Why is she not free to come and go as she pleases?
'The Last Thing to Burn' is a rollercoaster of a read. It is brilliant and horrifying at the same time. I found myself holding my breath through most of it. Will Dean writes so beautifully and thoughtfully. The tension is compelling and runs all the way through, the book. A must read.

Thank you to Hodder & Stoughton and Netgalley for my ARC

I had heard good things about this book, so I thought it was about time I dusted it off my TBR pile and now I understand what everyone was on about, but it certainly left my head a bit fried by the end of it.
“Jane” has travelled from Vietnam with the promise of a better life. What she finds is far from that. Living on a remote farm she has become the property of Lenn who controls everything she does, and should she step out of line then she will suffer consequences.
The Last Thing to Burn is a book that once read is likely to stay with you highlighting the very real issue of human trafficking and the only too distressing realities for those who believe they are going to something better. You can’t help but wonder what they are trying to escape if they are willing to put their trust in total strangers to provide the one thing they are searching for.
Despite the circumstances “Jane” still has hope and that is what keeps her going and fuels her little acts of defiance, acts that are quite often just in her head but give you a sense of the person she really is and give the reader the hope that eventually she will get that better life that she was promised.
Whilst the abuse that she suffers is often as much mental as it is physical the way in which the book is written fuels the readers imagination as to what she must truly be going through, and this is far more powerful than having every last thing written on the page. This may be the first of Will Dean’s books that I have read but if he can make such an impact in 250 pages I cant wait to read some of the other books I have of his in my TBR pile.

Why did I wait so long to read this book? Marian Keyes summed it up perfectly: Misery, meet Room. I don't think I can describe it any more accurately than that.
This book is brutal in its depiction of a young Vietnamese woman who, along with her sister, paid for the opportunity of a better life in the UK. They were promised work in the retail trade, safe accommodation and once they had paid the agreed fee, they would be able to choose whether they moved on to different jobs in other towns - basically a new life with a better future than they would have experienced if they stayed in their homeland.
The reality is that they are trafficked and after their first job fruit-picking they are separated; one of the sisters is sold to Lenn, a farmer who changes her name to Jane and keeps her locked in the house under video surveillance so he can check whether she does her chores or tries to escape. Her sister, Lenn tells her, is living in Manchester working as a technician in a nail bar. This may be true at the start, and it is what keeps Thanh Dao going during the living nightmare she is experiencing. Everything she does is in the hope that she will see Kim-Ly again soon. That she is not suffering as she herself is.
This is such an emotional read, your heart breaks for poor Thanh Dao. Every opportunity that arises to either get word to the outside world that she's there and is desperate for help or to escape along the farm track to the nearest house or passer-by has you totally invested and willing her to succeed. The story had my heart racing in a comparable way to American Dirt by Jeanine Cummins, the suspense ratcheted up to maximum.
The title made heartbreaking sense as I worked my way through the chapters, and I could have happily disposed of Lenn and his cronies myself given half a chance!
Despite the upsetting nature of the story content, I would strongly recommend this as an essential addition to everyone's TBR shelf.

My first book, that I have read by this author, absolutely brilliant! Highly recommended, and I will definitely read others written by this author!

I heard so many good things about this but didn’t really know what it was about.
It’s the first book I’ve read with the storyline being about human trafficking so found it quite a hard read in that respect, knowing it was happening all over the world.
I did find it quite slow going and a bit repetitive.
I did however read it over 2 days since it wasn’t a very long book and was keen to find out what happened to ‘Jane’
I did enjoy the ending of the story. I really felt for Jane and Cynthia and was willing them on.
I will look out for more books by this author.

Unfortunately this book was not for me. Other readers may enjoy it more, but I could not get into it and ultimately did not finish it.

A really good addition to the genre; reliably suspenseful, if a little predictable in places. Would recommend if you know what you want from this sort of book, as it definitely delivers the creepiness and tension in large measures.

Wow! Such a dark and disturbing story but at the same time compelling. This book really moved me and will stay with me for a very long time.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publishers for the ARC in return for an honest and unbiased opinion.

I loved this book! I would highly recommend it if you enjoy a good thriller! I found that it reminded me somewhat of Misery by Stephen King! I was on the edge of my seat for a lot of it! The only thing I would say is that the ending seemed rushed for me! Nevertheless, I enjoyed it!