This might be my favourite book of the year. It’s only January, but I really think this book will stay with me for a long time.

I was tense throughout the entire book. I could really feel the peril and pain Thanh was in and my desire for justice was immense. Her emotions came through so strongly and I really felt anger and injustice at her treatment.
I have not enjoyed a book as much as I enjoyed ‘The Last Thing to Burn’ in a long time. Although I was desperate for a resolution, I was really sad when the book finished. In fact I want to read it again.

I cannot recommend this book enough.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publishers for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Wow. Just, wow. I genuinely don't think I've ever read anything like this. I mean, sure, I've read thrillers about captivity before, but never one this well-written, or with such a strong lead character, or such a downright disturbing series of events contained within its pages. The tension is palpable, and you almost feel uncomfortable as you're reading it just due to stress levels! The best comparison I can think of is to the film Misery - that stomach churning feeling of dread as you realise the true horror of the situation.

The plot also highlights a very important societal issue, which should become obvious as you read it but which I won't reveal in case of spoilers. This made the story even worse disturbing and heartbreaking as you realise that this is not just some dark, made up story, but is actually something that happens around the world.

All in all, an absolutely fantastic book which I thoroughly recommend. I've never read anything by Dean before, but I'll definitely be adding him to my list of must read authors.

Disclaimer - I was fortunate enough to be provided with an advance reading copy of this book by NetGalley. This has not affected my review in any way, and all opinions are my own.

Her husband calls her Jane. But that is not her name and she is his captive.

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 for a chance to escape from him.

Oh my goodness! This book is so amazingly written. I felt like I was right there watching it all happen in front of my eyes.

This is a truly powerful story of a Vietnamese immigrant, Thanh Dao, who along with her sister had illegally entered into the UK with a hope for better future.

But once in UK, she is sold to Lenn who hold her captive. He has taken everything away from her including her name and identity. She has few of her possessions which are her only reminder and connection she has to her family, but Lenn systematically destroys one of them each time she defines any of his rules or orders.
Lenn also keeps on threatening of ensuring her sister being deported but informing the authorities, so as to make sure that she will not try to escape and will always stay, cook for him and never do anything that would upset him.

Reading of the emotional and physical abuse that Jane had to face was really agonizing, but at the same time I was able to appreciate and admire her love towards her sister and the extent she would go endure any torture so as to ensure that her sister is safe and has a better life.

Through Jane’s story, the author has been able to highlight and cover a very delicate but important issue of human trafficking that exists in the society in detailed and empathic manner.

Overall, an excellent book which will be on my mind for a very long time!

Thank You NetGalley and Hodder & Stoughton for this ARC!

Well where do I even start! I was instantly drawn into this book- dragged in, forced in once I had read the opening couple of paragraphs. This book hits you hard and fast, it is a book that will engulf you and I read it within a day as I became quickly obsessed.
The characters are fantastic, so believable and I could picture every detail of Lenn and feel every emotion of “Jane”
The setting of the house and the flatlands around it were instantly etched onto my brain, so wonderfully written that I felt I had been there, that I knew every part.
I have already started recommending this book to my friends, it is a book that will stick with me for a very long time and I cannot wait to see it’s inevitable successes

Ooof. What a book. The Last Thing to Burn by Will Dean is one of the most terrifying, compelling and yet hopeful books I have ever read. I am a huge fan of Will Dean’s Tuva Moodyson series of books which are set in Sweden and centre around a deaf journalist and couldn’t wait to see what his standalone novel would be like. The answer is; very different. This is a book which centres around a young woman named Thanh Dao who lives on a farm in the middle of nowhere with her husband Lenn. Except he doesn’t call her Thanh Dao, he calls her Jane, and that stark, flat landscape which surrounds the farm are the walls to her prison.

Thanh Dao is a Vietnamese woman who illegally travelled to the UK with her sister a number of years earlier. Somewhere along the way she and her sister have become separated and Thanh Dao is now trapped on a farm with, quite possibly, one of the most horrific people I have ever read about in a work of fiction. Lenn rules with fear. There is CCTV in the house which he watches every evening to make sure she doesn’t try and escape, he has rules around what they eat; white bread, frozen fish and ham mainly, and he controls any pain medication she may need with a quietly terrifying control. If she breaks one of his myriad of rules he burns one of her possessions. Or worse.

Her possessions are the only connection she has to home and to her family. He has stripped her of everything, including her name and controls every aspect of her life. He dangles the threat of her sister being deported over her, making sure that she will stay in his dilapidated farm house cooking for him, cleaning for him and servicing him whenever he wants.

Whilst this is very different to the Tuva Moodyson books, it has one thing in common; a close, oppressive setting. The book takes place solely in the farmhouse and just as Thanh Dao feels imprisoned so did I. I could smell the mould creeping up the walls of the bathroom, feel the heat from the furnace used to heat the house and felt utterly trapped by the circumstances Thanh Dao found herself in.

I read most of the book with my heart in my mouth and tore through the last 50 pages so quickly that I had to go back and re-read them. It is perfectly paced with an overarching sense of mounting terror seeping from the pages. It made me angry and terrified for the women like Thanh Dao who are lost somewhere in terrible circumstances.

Yes, this is a dark read but I ended it feeling hopeful and that is because Thanh Dao is written with such power that I was cheering her on. She is a brave and fearless woman whose mental strength allows her to survive the atrocities she faces at the hands of Lenn. It is an exceptional read from an exceptional writer. Highly recommended.

The Last Thing to Burn is a horrifyingly scintillating standalone thriller and is at once a stark, brutal tale of human trafficking, hopelessness and good versus evil, and love, family, the burning embers of hope and the unbounded resilience of the human spirit. Vietnamese sisters Thanh Dao and Kim-Ly are both in eighteen thousand pounds worth of debt, the price charged for ruthless human traffickers to sneak them into the UK in a shipping container for a chance at a better life. Kim-Ly is employed at a nail bar in the heart of Manchester and only has just over two years to go until she's free of said debt but Thanh, or Jane as she is called by her captor, after his deceased wife, hasn't been so lucky. To pay off her debt of passage she's been sold to an old farmer named Lenn and is told that her sister will be shipped back to Vietnam with the full costs to pay if she attempts to escape Lenn’s property. Desperate to evade her captor’s clutches the only thing that has kept her with Lenn close to a decade is the love she has for her sister. He assumes her as his wife but the disgusting treatment she receives at his hands doesn't resemble any sort of love I know; she's forced to slave away day in day out cooking, cleaning and tending to his every whim. But now Thanh realises she's pregnant, turning circumstances on their head and she knows she must also consider the baby alongside herself and Kim-Ly.

Deeming it worth the risk, Thanh formulates a plan to escape her daily hell and on a brisk October day takes her chance. Leaving with a mere five-pound note in her pocket she hobbles as quick as is possible with a painful, swollen ankle away from the isolated East Anglian Fenland farm. However, she's caught and taken back to the nightmare after a brief glimpse of freedom and for each infraction of his strict rulebook he burns one of her precious belongings on his Rayburn stove. But then another woman is brought into the fold on the farm. Can Thanh save herself, her child, and this innocent woman at the same time? Or is she doomed to spend the remainder of her life captive on this farm? This is a riveting, heartbreaking and powerful thriller with so much originality and brutally honest yet exquisite writing that I was invested and immersed in the story from the opening page. It's one of the most intensely claustrophobic thrillers that I've ever read and the fact that we know these situations very much exist and are reality for those often seeking nothing more than a better hand in life made it all the more palpitation-inducing. My adrenaline was pumping and the more I read the more I longed to see the women free of their chains. A sinister, chilling and ultimately terrifying tale; I am in no doubt I will remember this unforgettable novel even a decade down the line. A harrowing, yet hopeful and emotionally resonant tour de force I urge crime connoisseurs to jump on. Highly recommended.

Thrilling, dark, compelling and tense. Will Dean has created a compulsive, rollercoaster of a novel. This book will keep you up at night. Perfect for a screenplay 5 *****

What a harrowing and heart wrenching read this was! This was one of the best survivor stories I have read!

From the very first pages you are plunged into this world of abuse and captiveness. TRIGGER WARNING for throughout the book though, there is a lot of insensitive and destructive treatment to another person, but if you can and that doesn’t trigger you, stick with it and you will be very happy you did.

Bravo to Will Dean for such a terrific read!! Thank you to NetGalley and Hodder and Stoughton for the ARC!!
Great read to start of my 2021 reading!!

Jane is trapped living with a man she hates but he won't let her leave. If she escapes he always finds her and takes away another of her meagre possessions. Then she finds out she's pregnant and now she has an even bigger reason to escape but can she?

Wow what a thrill ride this was. By the end I was totally gripped, terrified of every word and hoping for a happy ending. The plot starts slowly but builds to a fast pace by the end. The story is well written and so gripping. The bleakness of the landscape is conveyed so well through the text. Jane is an interesting character and her strength is incredible. I loved the twists in the plot. A brilliant thriller.

Rating 4.5/5

I have not read any of Will Dean’s books before but I had heard great things about his writing, so I was keen to read this book when it popped up on my radar. I have to say I think this is the first book in quite a while that I have managed to read in one day, I was really surprised because reading hasn’t been as easy for me recently but as soon as I picked this book up I was loath to put it down.

The fact that I found it so consuming was also a little unexpected because it is not an easy story, it is dark and at times almost feels unbearable, especially the more we get to know Jane, but even when I felt desolate about Jane’s circumstances and situations in the book became more desperate I was entirely transfixed by it, I felt like there was always a glimmer of hope hiding just out of sight.

There is something amazing about Will Dean’s writing, he manages to conjure his bleak setting effortlessly, I have never visited the area of England that the book is set in but I can visualise it and Lenn’s isolated farm so easily in my mind just through his words, I honestly felt as if I could feel the cold of the house and smell the damp the more I read. It is also able to keep a pervasive sense of dread throughout the story and captures a horrific situation without sensation, it reveals itself in a slow and subtle way that gave a chillingly realistic portrayal of trafficking and abuse.

Jane is an exceptional character, her strength and will to survive given the cruelty and degradation she has to live with is what makes the book so compelling. It is very easy to become emotionally linked with Jane and feel like you are right there with her, I don’t want to say too much because a lot of this book needs to be experienced as you read it, but the heartbreak as she lost parts of her identity was palpable. However, there does come a point when she starts to slowly reclaim little parts of herself and it does give you the belief that things could get better.

I feel like I haven’t said enough to tell you how amazing The Last Thing to Burn is but I don’t want to say too much because this is a journey that you need to take with Jane. What I will say though is that the writing is amazing, the story is at the same time hideous and magnificent, and you will feel a range of emotions going through this story with the characters.

The Last Thing to Burn is a book that will haunt me. Will Dean has written a book that I read with an increasing feeling of sickness and disgust, but was deeply touched by the hope and strength of spirit shown by the female characters.
Our main character is ‘Jane’, who when we are introduced to her in the opening chapter sounds like a young child. She is running away from the farm where she lives with Len, and it quickly becomes clear that things are not at all as they seemed.
‘Jane’ is a Vietnamese woman, trapped in a hostile environment. Lured to Britain under the promise of a better life, she has been held captive and forced to endure the kind of life that nobody deserves or should have to endure.
Watching the emotional and physical abuse this woman was subject to was awful. It was very clear why she did not try to escape, but I spent most of the book imagining just what it might take for her to snap and decide the risk was worth it.
Viewing events through Than’s eyes I was filled with horror that such events could ever occur. When she is forced to become privy to another woman being taken prisoner, it felt as if I was watching a dry tinderbox waiting for the match to be lit and send everything up in flames.
Her situation alone was bad enough, but once she becomes a mother it felt as if it were only a matter of time before something snapped. That was, indeed, the case and what transpired towards the end was bleak, though it gave some semblance of hope. It was certainly testimony to the strength of the human spirit.
Thanks to the publishers and NetGalley for allowing me to read this prior to publication. Highly recommended.

Jane is an unwilling participant in her marriage. She is a captive. She stays only to keep someone else safe, although her husband has made it impossible to escape his clutches. Hope seems to be a thing of the past until something changes her determination to break free of the chains that bind her so tightly.

Dean certainly is full of surprises, which isn’t a bad thing when it comes to writing or creating captivating stories. Just when you think you have the measure of the flair, spectrum and ability, and then he goes and writes a complete curveball. A brilliantly engaging, intense and incredibly important one.

Aside from the immaculate plotting and on point characters there is another element of the story that absolutely deserves a kudos. The way Dean was able to immerse himself into the world of coercive, mental, physical abuse and the psychological abuse that goes hand-in-hand with trafficking and modern day slavery. You’ll often hear or read cries of indignation ‘why didn’t he/she leave or ask for help, which of course is one of the many reasons abusive relationships are incomprehensible to someone who hasn’t experienced them – the inability to comprehend the dynamics of control, power and abuse.

Whilst it is absolutely true that the young, vulnerable and inexperienced are statistically more likely to become victims, abuse does not halt before the intelligent, educated mind or person. It is far more complex than that. Anyway I digress.

My point is that Dean writes this with such an in-depth perception it made me wonder about the ability of certain storytellers to write beyond the construct and patriarchal dogma or bias of their gender, which is important depending on the topic and the gender of their characters. This story would have been ruined by tropes, instead it is a hard-hitting piece of fiction set in realism.

It is also written in an almost minimalistic style and mindset, which captures the isolation of the main character and the surroundings. An element I found extremely intriguing given where the story takes place. It serves as a stark reminder as to how disconnected the majority of us are from each other. Easier to look away and ignore the obvious signs than to become involved and help.

Above all Dean shines a spotlight on one of the most prevalent crimes of our modern era, although one could argue that slavery and human trafficking has merely evolved with the times and the demand. Unfortunately it’s a very profitable, albeit completely despicable business and crime.

This is a cracking read. Oh and kudos to the author for the name and identity part of the story, especially in relation to Mary. Subtle, and yet simultaneously gut-wrenching and visceral.

I was hooked, just wanted to find out if she made it. Sad and disturbing, gives you something to think about. Difficult to read at times due to the nature of the plot. Human trafficking, kidnapping, abuse.
She is Jane but not Jane. He is Lenn, her husband, but not really. She can't leave. Shes trapped. Her every move watched. Recorded. Until she has something to fight for.

Thank you netgalley for the ARC in exchange for my honest review.

Gosh.

This is a scorching, claustrophobic and intense thriller that you'll want to read from behind the sofa, if that makes sense. Its protagonist, a woman everyone calls "Jane" ('My name isn't Jane') is in a desperate situation, robbed of her identify, her family and (almost) all agency yet possessing a steely determination to survive - for her own sake, for her parents' and above all for her sister, who will suffer if Jane ('My name isn't Jane') despairs and finds a way to die.

Thanh Dao - her real name - is from Vietnam. She and her sister were trafficked to the UK in a shipping container with 17 others (16 survived). While her sister works off the cost of her passage in a Manchester nail bar, Thanh Dao has been sold on to a brutish farmer called Lenn. They live alone in his ramshackle cottage on a great flat expanse of land which Len works. Thanh Dao cooks and cleans, obeying all Lenn's wishes - what to cook on what day, exactly how brown a sausage should be fried, how to meet his needs in the bedroom. When Lenn is displeased, even over minor things, Thanh Dao is punished - one by one, her remaining possessions are burned (she has few things left, a handful of things - everything else in the book is Lenn's (his food, his bed, his willow logs in his Rayburn stove, his keys, his house, his land) or his (dead) mother's (the clothes Thanh Dao wears, the cloths she uses because he won't provide her with tampons). She's under perpetual threat that if she runs away or even if she kills herself, her sister Kim-Ly will suffer for it.

It is a cold, violent and suffocating life, the wide horizons and open fields a cruel lie as Thanh Dao, often in pain, lives from day to day, sustaining herself by reading her sister's letters and an old dog-eared copy of Of Mice and Men. Her suffering is so intense, so unrelieved that at times this book is almost painful to read. That's even before factoring in the reader's foresight - which Thanh Dao shares - that worse is in store. She's never allowed to leave the farm, not to visit the shops, to see a doctor or to chat with a neighbour. Len has cameras around the house and reviews 'the tapes' every night (chatting about the state of the farm) before punishing any failings (Was Lenn's pie a little cold? Has Thanh Dao neglected to paint over the mould spores in his bathroom?) and unlocking his TV to watch Match of the Day or the snooker. Doors are never to be closed in his house - if Thanh Dao goes to use his bathroom at the back, she must leave the door open. On that flat farm, as Len often points out, he can see the house from anywhere. Thanh Dao can't walk out - he's seen to that - she can't call for help and, as I have said, she can't even die.

I honestly don't know when I read anything as dark as this. Often, I didn't want to know what happened next, how bad things could get. At the same time, I had to know, I had to be there with Thanh Dao as she sustains herself with memories of home, her parents, joyful meals (she offers to make Lenn proper home cooked meals, to grow vegetables, herbs and spices - but he just wants what his mother gave him: build in the bag cod, and white bread, from the Spar shop, sausages cooked right, pies). I had to be there as Thanh Dao keeps her courage, carrying out tiny acts of defiance. I had to be there as, driven to ever greater lengths of desperation - things happen that raise the stakes yet higher - Thanh Dao somehow holds onto her sense of self.

The lines are starkly drawn; Lenn is a brute and an oaf, but a clever brute and an oaf. We know early on some of what he's done, and that's bad enough, but there are hints of worse throughout the book and even late in the story, more revelations of just how bad he is. At times, Thanh Dao is surprised by what one might see as small kindnesses. At times, Lenn complacently boasts that 'It's all right, ain't it, this life... We're warm, under decent roof, full bellies, together, not all bad, is it?' Does he believe this - even as he knowingly inflicts pain? Is he parroting something he's been brought up with? Somewhere in that bleak landscape, that house of horror, there's an answer, a reason, for Lenn and the reader understand that: but he's such a monster that one draws back, at the end, from wanting to understand that darkest of mysteries.

Certainly, Thanh Dao isn't taken in by a man whose answer to her toothache is to fetch his pliers from the shed. She is a woman at full stretch, a woman whose energy, focus and resources are completely committed to one cause - survival - with nothing left over. Or so she thinks - as things get worse and worse, Thanh Dao does find space in her heart for more, in glorious scenes (From nothing more than two women willing it to happen: two women, strangers, friends, forcing their own warmth together to make a family of sorts out there')' that just had me gobsmacked at Dean's writing, his vision and his empathy.

Yes this is a dark book but it's also often uplifting, a study of courage and endurance and even love. I knew that Will Dean could write - his Tuva Moodyson crime novels are glorious - but The Last Thing to Burn is just revelatory. You want this book, you really do.

The Last Thing to Burn is a powerful, harrowing novel of a young womans will to survive. "Jane" is being held captive on a remote farm in the fens after being trafficked in a shipping container to England with her sister from Vietnam and sold to farmer Leonard. He calls her Jane, the same as his deceased mother, Lenn expects her to keep the house the same and if she doesn't she is punished. Her existence is pittiful, everything she does is captured on camera with no hopes of escape but she is determined to survive.

This is a powerful story of trafficking and modern slavery, full of fear pain but still hope. The writing is so intense and descriptive, you feel trapped in the cold, claustrophobic and hostile atmosphere of the cottage with Jane as you read. Not a subject matter you can really enjoy, unbearably unhuman at points but it is gripping and so well written, Will Dean conveys the threat and despair impecably.

This book is so highly rated and reviewed and for good reason. An extraordinary book, one I challenge anyone not to be affected by.

Phenomenal! Suspenseful doesn't even begin to describe the feelings this novel evokes.

Jane lives an isolated life; she is subjected to the whims and demands of a man who calls himself her husband - but he isn't. She interacts with no-one - he sees to that. She has lost everything, including her own name, and although she dreams of escape he has a hold over her so immense that she cannot contemplate going through with it. He has cameras watching her for every hour that he's not there. Then something happens which changes things . . .

I was first aware of Will Dean when I saw his posts on Twitter; he has the most magnificent dog and anyone who knows me will realise that it was Bernie who grabbed my attention. When I saw that he had a new novel on it's way, of course I requested it. Had I known his writing is of this calibre, I would have rushed out and bought them all before now! This is one of those rare novels that you begin reading, a little unsure of what it's all about and, truth be told, not too sure you're going to like it. Then, before you know it, you are completely invested and whilst you want to rush through it as fast as you can, you force to read and digest every single word thoroughly in fear of missing something vital. An absolutely awesome read, and one I wish I could read all over again without knowing where it was heading. A stunning novel, so cleverly written, and one which sets the benchmark for the coming year. No less than a full house of stars and the highest recommendation will do for this book; if you haven't read anything by this author then I strongly suggest that you add this one to your list - pronto!

My thanks to the publisher for my copy via NetGalley; this is - as always - my honest, original and unbiased review.

A woman’s pretend husband Lenn calls her Jane (her real name is Thanh Dao) is kept captive on a farm, he watches everything she does on his cameras and she is punished if she does anything wrong.

Thanh Dao and her sister Kym-Lyn thought they were travelling from Vietnam to a better life, where they would find employment and be able to send money to their struggling families.

Jane is determined to escape this horrendous life she has found herself in and to find her sister.

At times this is a harrowing and powerful story depicting abuse, but it has been written in a sensitive way, where you can’t help but back Jane and will her to escape.

This story will stay with me long after reading it.

Thank you to Netgalley for my copy in exchange for a review.

A difficult subject matter which ultimately felt too uncomfortable for me to be able to say I enjoyed it in any way. The tension seemed better at the start because of the necessary repetition as the story unfolded.
I thought the choice of setting unusual and fairly original but the story would have been more believable if the “ voice” had maybe come across with an accent.

Such was my keenness to read Will Dean’s stand-alone, I came to this book without even reading the blurb – which, as it turns out, was the perfect way to approach it, so I have omitted the publisher’s blurb and I’m going to work hard not to give too much away.

This is the story of a woman whom we will not call Jane. She is a woman in the most awful circumstances and the story Will Dean tells is told entirely in her voice. It is a story that I did not want to hear, but could not draw back from and is more compelling for that. It is certainly a story that sadly carries far more resonance that we should be comfortable with in our ‘free’ society.

From the start Dean’s writing grasps your attention. This woman’s voice is stark and compelling; her situation is heart-breaking and her spirit, though diminished, still manages to keep her going, spurred on by thoughts of others. She is at once fragile and yet determined.

The sense of place – an open, desolate countryside – adds to a story of isolation and disconnection and contrasts perfectly with the stifling, claustrophobic atmosphere indoors. Chilling, with a tension so taut you can almost touch it; there are strange moments in this story where you feel a connection between the two main characters and want to turn away from what that might mean.

Reading it is an intense experience, both emotional and utterly captivating. Though the woman’s voice and experience is what engages and fixes the attention, this is not a book about one woman, it is about two people and one of the real achievements of this book is that the other person comes across as a fully formed character, the language and actions telling you all you need to know about his upbringing attitudes and life experience.

Writing like this is special. It is spare and yet it conveys so much. The story is a simple one, yet the layers are there to be peeled back. You think there can be no surprises, but you’d be wrong. Though this is a dark, bleak book it ultimately turns out to be the most inspiring of stories – one that shows us how even in the depth of misery, the human spirit can prevail.

Verdict: This book is a triumph. Beautifully written with depth, power and an intense, emotional engagement it sears through you, engaging, captivating and holding you in its thrall until you can’t look away. I don’t think I have ever wanted a character to succeed more. In these Co-vid days it makes the need for human warmth so poignant and to stand out as the most important thing you will ever need. Buy this book. I have.

This book is not the type you go around recommending to everyone, though I wish I could as it’s a very insightful read. You follow the story of a young woman who has ended up being separated from her sister after they come to the UK via illegal means. The people in charge of their human traffic ring play a big part in this story. I really can’t tell you an awful lot more about this without spoiling the plot. Just know that the women in this book are strong fighters who you want to win at every turn. Meanwhile the main male character we see makes you sick to your stomach. This is an incredibly difficult book to read. At times it turned my stomach, made me bite my fingers to bits (not just my nails), and honestly just made me incredibly tense. We have horrific descriptions of awful injuries and how they happen, other physical abuse, sexual abuse and difficult scenes of suffering of both adults and a baby. I can’t remember ever reading anything that I struggled to read to this extent. I have a strong stomach, but even I considered putting this book down permanently. I couldn’t though, as I was just so gripped and needed to be there to support our main character.

If you can handle this book, you absolutely must read it!