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A review by katykelly
The Last Thing to Burn by Will Dean
5.0
Good lord, horrifying nightmarish experience that's impossible to clear from your mind.
Much like Into the Darkest Corner (Elizabeth Haynes), this had me agonising throughout, outside of but yet a part of this poor woman's unbearable and unescapable life.
A friend lent me the book, it's not one I'd heard of, and just reading the synopsis meant I knew both what I was in for and that it was going to be a painful read. I wasn't mistaken.
'Jane' has been living for 7 years as captive wife to a farmer, who has raped her repeatedly and hobbled her, who expects her to cook and clean for him every day, who watches her every movement on camera, and who she feels obligated towards for finding her sister work. We learn that the two young women were trafficked over to England with the promise of honest jobs and money to send home. Now 'Jane' has her sister's letters and a few meagre possessions of her own left. The ones Lenn hasn't burned yet.
Awful, yes? Appalling? It is. You clench throughout, not wanting to know what he's going to do next to her, if she can possibly get herself away from this living hell.
Too too real. Especially when you know that there are people that are treated badly every day, that are hidden from the authorities. This is powerful, upsetting and I am pretty sure - hard to dislodge from your head.
Much like Into the Darkest Corner (Elizabeth Haynes), this had me agonising throughout, outside of but yet a part of this poor woman's unbearable and unescapable life.
A friend lent me the book, it's not one I'd heard of, and just reading the synopsis meant I knew both what I was in for and that it was going to be a painful read. I wasn't mistaken.
'Jane' has been living for 7 years as captive wife to a farmer, who has raped her repeatedly and hobbled her, who expects her to cook and clean for him every day, who watches her every movement on camera, and who she feels obligated towards for finding her sister work. We learn that the two young women were trafficked over to England with the promise of honest jobs and money to send home. Now 'Jane' has her sister's letters and a few meagre possessions of her own left. The ones Lenn hasn't burned yet.
Awful, yes? Appalling? It is. You clench throughout, not wanting to know what he's going to do next to her, if she can possibly get herself away from this living hell.
Too too real. Especially when you know that there are people that are treated badly every day, that are hidden from the authorities. This is powerful, upsetting and I am pretty sure - hard to dislodge from your head.