Happy publication day to Will Dean for the incredible The Last Thing to Burn! Thank you to Jenny Platt and Hodder & Stoughton for allowing me to read a proof copy via NetGalley and for joining the tour. Before I give you my thoughts here’s the blurb.
The Blurb
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 …
My Review
Where to begin? I haven’t read a book this devastating and claustrophobic since Room. As much as I wanted to keep on reading there were times when I had to stop and put the book down. I was so affected by the narrative and Jane’s (not her real name) terrible plight. Will Dean captures her voice beautifully. A woman desperately trying to hang onto herself and her sense of worth whilst systematically stripped of her few possessions and her humanity. A woman forced to slave for a man who claims to be her husband, watched by cameras when he’s out. A woman physically, sexually and mentally abused. A woman whose life seemed incredibly real to me. But in this dark, dark place there is a spark of joy for ‘Jane’. I’m not going to say any more about it but it’s this spark that lights a beacon of hope and points to a way forward.
I know Will Dean does a lot of research for all his books and aims to make them as accurate as possible. I’m sure he’s done the same here. As I’ve already said, this story was all too real for me. My hope is that people don’t just read this and wax lyrical about how wonderful it is (which it is) but will be spurred into action too. And that’s the whole point. This may be fiction but it’s a fact for so many people trapped in modern day slavery. The Last Thing to Burn highlights this so clearly and setting it in the Fens in the UK makes it our problem, something that can’t be ignored.
But there is one problem that I have. It’s only the beginning of the year and I’ve already read another truly magnificent book that should have been published in 2020 but was pushed back to April 21. My dilemma? There may be a tie for my top read of 2021. Does it matter? I guess not. So it may only be the first week in January but I’m going to say it – The Last Thing To Burn is truly extraordinary.
You can buy The Last Thing To Burn here.
Or check out your local bookshop or bookshop.org
If you want to know more about modern day slavery and how you can help then check out these charities to find out more.
The Joint Council for the Welfare of Immigrants
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.