A young Vietnamese woman is held against her will in a cottage on a remote farm in England. Her “husband” controls every aspect of her life, records her every move, punishes any indiscretions.

This is something very different from Will Dean. Although I love his Tuva Moodyson mysteries, 'The Last Thing to Burn' is on another level. I was totally immersed in this book, which wasn't always a pleasant experience, but Dean builds atmosphere and tension so well. A short read that will leave a big impression.

Thank you to Hodder and Stoughton and #NetGalley for an advanced copy in exchange for an honest review.

WILL R DEAN –THE LAST THING TO BURN

I read this novel in advance of publication through NetGalley in return for an honest review.

This has to be one of the most claustrophobic and exhausting and yet compelling novels I have read in a very long time. I can’t recommend it highly enough.

It follows the story of a young Vietnamese girl, trafficked with her sister with the promise of a new life in England, only to find herself sold to the foulest man who could ever have bought her. The story is told in minute detail by her, a virtual slave in his ramshackle, cold and miserable and isolated farmhouse, frozen in time in the middle of the bleak flatness of the Fens; how, even with an ankle he has smashed beyond use to prevent her escape, her determination to do so and find her sister fills her every waking moment.

This is a triumphant story, both for the character and the author who wrote it. It deserves to be read, not just as a brilliant piece of writing, but as a behind the scenes look of what can happen to someone in her position. The human behind the headlines.

Her story will stay with me for long long time.

Wow I don’t how to start this review. This is not an easy read but a powerful and heart-breaking one. This story is about ‘Jane’. Not her real name but it’s the name that her captor Leonard has been calling her for the last seven years. She is held captive in an isolated farm. Where she is watched all day by cameras while her captor goes on and works on a pig farm. When he returns, she must cook and clean and does all duties that a wife does even in the bedroom. But she cannot escape because she is frightened what will happened to her sister who she came with her illegally from Vietnam and she herself will be severely punished. Anytime she disobeys her captor burns a personal object of hers. The only items that she has left from the outside world. As he has taken everything else from her and gave her dead mothers things even to wear to stop her from escaping.
This is an intense and frightening story about Human trafficking and modern-day slavery and of one person’s survival and the determination to escape the clutches of her captor. There is a lot of heart stopping and shocking moments and I really felt the pain for ‘Jane’ and what she was going through, and I was routing for her to escape. Even though this is a hard subject to portray I thought it was very well written so much that I couldn’t put this down.

Thank you for the advance review copy of this remarkable book. I hope it flies up the charts. Through the narrative of a trafficked Vietnamese woman, it relates the experience of a slave on a Lincolnshire farm. The setting is absolutely authentic - I'm a local and feel I know it well - and the voice is compelling. It's a slow burn that reaches a gripping climax. I found the voice of the perpetrator less than convincing in parts, but this did not detract from the overall creative endeavour of expressing real voices and addressing real themes.

One thing that i absolutely adored about The Last Thing To Burn was the I teeth grittingly toxicity between the characters. Early on we see that there is one shout – at – book worthy antagonist and a must protect fragile protagonist. Bit by bit we see Lenn chipping away at his wife Jane’s identity in manipulative and controlling ways. Through these acts we become to understand that identity isn’t always just who we are but the things that constantly remind us of who we are. As this torture continues and the storyline begins to unfold, we begin to further sympathise with our protagonist.
The last thing to burn has believable three dimensional characters, placed into a situation that is chilling and so brain, and completely plausible. I was quite surprised by the poignancy of Jane's narrative, It always surprises me how a character can strike you in the heart unexpectedly. But isn’t that the sign of a well written character? I think so. With every chapter, I rooted more for Jane and detested Lenn that little bit more. Will Dean has executed a perfectly thrilling yet emotively balanced novel, one that focuses on the individuals between the pages yet for me they also made the plot – that perfect partnership between both left me captivated and needing more.
The Last Thing To Burn is definitely a difficult book to put down and an easy book to pick up! The concept of this novel is a harrowing one, drenched with the shocking factors of some peoples real life situations. With each chapter i found myself sneaking further to the edge of my seat, the suspense and tension filled writing had me flying through the pages and feeling every gut-wrenching emotion Jane felt. The writing is just insanely great!
Will has created a scorching thriller that incorporates themes of identity, loss and possession, told through a female voice that will blow you away. This was the first novel I had read from Will Dean and of course I bought the first book in the Tuva series immediately afterwards.

Inevitably there will be comparisons to Room given the subject matter, but they will do The Last Thing to Burn a disservice. Focused on a Vietnamese woman who has been people trafficked and being kept against her will on a remote farm, the novel offers both a tense read (will she escape?) and a study of the horrors that people trafficking brings on both those trafficked and , tangentially, their families. There are extremely uncomfortable passages, told in a matter of fact way that accentuates both the horror and the occasional banality of the abuser. This is an at times difficult but rewarding read. Recommended!

An excellent book that held my interest throughout and kept me involved in the story line. The characters were good and well described. Although this book wasn't an edge of seater for me it was a thoroughly good read and I will read more this author.

Thank you to Netgalley and Hodder & Stoughton for giving me the opportunity to read this book.

This is a book that tugs at your heartstrings over and over again, a book that was so engrossing that I forgot about everything else I just lived every page it was that good. I had read a little about the premise of the book but nothing prepared me for the many emotions it brought out in me and I found myself stopping reading lot’s of times and taking a moment to ingest the words that had been written.
I knew I was in for a good read as I previously read the Tuva Moodyson series by Will Dean and I loved those but this book was something else it’s a read to make your heart break with some moments that are painful to bear but also some of the most tender scenes I have read that were filled with so much love and hope.
So beautifully written this is a book not to be missed, a book that will stay with me for a long long time and a book that goes straight to the top of my list of best reads this year and many many thanks to Will Dean for an amazing read.
So please don’t miss this one I can promise you want be disappointed its an important book and it everything you want from a fabulous read and more.
My thanks to NetGalley and Hodder & Stoughton for giving me the chance to read the ARC in exchange for my honest opinion.

Content warning: abuse, violence, trafficking

A young woman lives in a remote farmhouse in England, keeping house for the farmer. She doesn't leave the house- every move she makes, he is watching, controlling. He calls her Jane. To keep herself sane she reads and re-reads a favourite novels or the letters from her sister, who had made the long journey with her some years ago. She dreams of a time when she can escape and be reunited with her sister.


Wow! From the first page I was gripped and could not bear to put this down until I'd found out if 'Jane' would prevail.
It's grim reading a lot of the time, but breathlessly, beautifully written and so expertly plotted and paced I was in awe of the writing even as I wanted to race through the story.
An amazing book.

Oh my goodness. What a fantastic book. Will Dean has excelled with this novel.
Jane lives with her husband in a isolated cottage with no one for miles.
But Jane isn't her real name and he isn't her husband, Jane has been living there for over seven years with no one to help her apart from her husband Lenn.
She was sold to Lenn after leaving her home country of Vietnam with her sister Kim-Ly.
She believes that her sister is safe and sound in Manchester by the letters Lenn gives her and he has told her many times that if she tries to escape then her sister will be deported back and not clear their debt to bring them both over to the UK.
Lenn has a routine and every night he has to have the same different meals every time and God forbid if Jane doesn't get it right.
She did try to escape once but Lenn caught her and used a claw hammer to her ankle and foot so she cant walk properly again.
Once Jane finds out she is pregnant everything changes but is it for the best?
There maybe hope on the horizon by a way of a new neighbour, Cynthia but is Jane putting everyone in danger by telling Lenn about their new neighbour?

Wow. What a read. Dark yet compelling, the book is an eye-opener about victims of human trafficking. It certainly does not shy away from the realities of abuse or the lies people are told when trying to make a better life for themselves and their families.
A disturbing and powerful novel. Readers will certainly experience a wide range of emotions towards the characters and experiences.

What a tense story. The story of a young Vietnamese woman Thanh Dao coming to the UK for a better life only to find herself at the 'mercy' of a stranger, Lenn. He takes her to his home in the bleak East Anglian Fens as his modern day slave to cook for him, clean his home and be a wife to him. He expects her to keep house in completely the same way as his mother did, and refers to her as Jane, the name of his late wife, stripping Thanh of her identity. He further gradually erodes this as, piece by piece, he burns her valued possessions. She longs to escape but she is both physically terrified of him and afraid for her sister who arrived in England with her, and is threatened with deportation if she were to leave or if anything were to happen to Lenn.

She is trapped but then a turn of events culminates in a desperate need to flee. This story is told in the first person which helps with our understanding of how Thanh found herself in this situation and just how it is so hard for her to leave.

This proved to not only be a very tense story but also a very compelling one. It was quite hard to put down whilst at the same time a break from this seemingly impossible situation was needed! Thanh Dao is a strong character and a lot of time is spent willing her own. A very good read.

With thanks to NetGalley and Hodder & Stoughton for the ARC.

Harrowing story, captured false promises pure evil. The story tells of an immigrant promised a better life only to be trapped on a farm with Lenn. Many failed attempts 17 in total which result in another possession burned taking away identity but not memories. Pregnancy and the birth of her daughter Thanh Dao (Jane) endures more pain and discomfort. Lenn captures and imprisons Cynth under the house and together they escape with baby Huong only to find Kym-Ly Thanh Dao sister imprisoned in a caravan with a chain around her ankle. To save her sister Huong and Cynth return to the house where they escape leaving Lenn locked in the cellar burning they find safety and happiness.

This a dark yet engrossing read that really shines a light on the victims of human trafficking. This book doesn't shy away from the reality of domestic abuse and the lies that these woman are told when trying to make a better life for them and their family.
I really enjoyed (if that's the correct term) this book and felt a strong range of emotions towards each character. This is a disturbing and powerful read.

5 "my name is not Jane" Stars
Holy heck. This is 1o0% not the type of book I would ever ever pick up. It really grabs your attention and holds it. This book was emotional. You find yourself in this book as the main character, feeling her pain, feeling her loss and feeling her fight. This was wow.. I really cant figure out how to tell you anymore without ruining this intense book.... BURN IT ALL DOWN!

I really enjoyed Will Dean's writing in his Tuva Moodyson series, so I knew I wanted to read this stand-alone as soon as I first heard about it. I mean, have you seen that blurb?! A man keeping an illegal woman trapped in his home, pretending to be his wife... That most definitely sounds like a rock solid premise to build your story around. I had a feeling that I was going to enjoy my time with The Last Thing To Burn, and my instincts turned out to be absolutely right. You will want to clear your schedule for this one, as it will be REALLY hard to stop reading before you reach that final page. Unputdownable indeed!

Like I said, the premise itself is rock solid. While you can argue that nothing much is going on, as it is basically the two main characters inside the same house in the middle of nowhere during most of the story... But its power is in its simplicity. With other distractions stripped away, the sole spotlight is on that house and what happens inside. This gives the story an even bigger impact, and the descriptions of the tired house and its surroundings most definitely set the right tone for the story. An air of desperation, loneliness and a hint of foreboding... You will know things will escalate, and the future seems bleak, but you won't be able to stop reading to see if things will improve against all odds.

The Last Thing To Burn is a character-driven story, and the focus is mainly on Thanh (Jane) and her 'husband'. We see the events unfold through Thanh's eyes as we learn a little about the past, but mainly about what happens in the present. It's a truly terrifying and inhumane situation she finds herself in, something so hopeless that it is hard to imagine how she could ever find a way out of it all... Plot developments and twists will arrive along the way, both showing her strength and moral dilemma as she considers the consequences of her actions if he finds out. The last part of The Last Thing To Burn definitely amps up the suspense and action, and I was literally biting my nails as I kept turning those pages. The ending was more than satisfying!

All in all The Last Thing To Burn is a brilliantly written, atmospheric and suspenseful character-driven thriller and a title to watch out for in 2021. Enjoy thrillers and wonder what to put on your wishlist for next year? You have found your next addition.

Actual rating 4.5/5 stars.

'Jane' was not born with this name or in the country she now finds herself. She did not marry the man who controls her life nor decide upon her current role as his servant and slave. But 'Jane' is an illegal immigrant and without any rights or friends to aid her in this cold country and her captor uses her sister's safety as the carrot to keep her docile. His other measure is the steady violence he enacts upon her for her misdeeds, as the misshapen lump of flesh at the end of her leg, which was once a foot, can attest to.

This was a painful and harrowing read, which I thought showcased the hopeless case many women find themselves in, in a raw and open manner. Not one ounce of emotion was spared the reader, during this tense and unforgettable story. I absolutely tore through these pages and was tormented by all the characters were forced to endure, on every one of them.

When I first started this book, the first few pages trying to understand what was going on, I wasn’t sure this book was for me. Then a couple of pages in I felt intrigued and by the time I had read another couple of pages I was hooked. What a brilliant, well written book. Human trafficking is something I’ve very ignorantly not paid more attention to and I found myself feeling quite ashamed of myself for not making myself know more, be more aware. The whole book you are rooting for Thanh and her beautiful Huong - I loved the strength of a mother’s love shown in their relationship - and quite frankly, until I knew the end of the story I couldn’t put it down. Will be recommending this read to everyone!

Creepy from the outset this is a fast paced book with many moments when you just want to scream out loud at the characters!
Trapped in a small farm with a crippling leg injury "Jane" is captive and desperate. Her "husband" who is holding her captive is so remote and disassociated with reality that he becomes more and more menacing with each chapter- truly believing his life is just about perfect with his wife.
Desperate, Jane tries to escape on multiple occasions but never quite reaches civilisation until one day help comes in the form of a second captive.
I was on the edge of my seat for much of the latter third of the book, willing Jane on to make good her escape and devastated as each attempt was thwarted.

A brutal read, I have no words, but have donated to www.unseenuk.org. Thank you for opening my eyes.