Will Dean’s highly acclaimed thriller, THE LAST THING TO BURN, has been shortlisted for the 2022 Theakston Old Peculier Crime Novel of the Year Award.
The Theakston Old Peculier Crime Novel of the Year Award is one of the UK’s most prestigious crime-fiction awards, with its annual winner announced in a prize ceremony at the Harrogate Crime Festival. Members of the public can now vote for their favourite crime novel over at https://harrogatetheakstoncrimeaward.com/. Voting closes on Friday 8th July, with this year’s winner announced on the 21st of July.
The other shortlisted titles are: THE NIGHT HAWKS by Elly Griffiths, SLOUGH HOUSE by Mick Herron, MIDNIGHT AT MALADAR HOUSE by Vaseem Khan, TRUE CRIME STORY by Joseph Knox, and DAUGHTERS OF NIGHT by Laura Shepherd-Robinson. None of the shortlisted authors have ever won this coveted prize before, making this year’s competition even more exciting.
The prize’s executive director Simon Theakston said: ‘What a fantastic shortlist, six thrilling tales which deliver shocking twists and unforgettable characters! We raise a glass of Theakston Old Peculier to all of the shortlistees and look forward to revealing the winner in July as we kick off the Theakston Old Peculier Crime Writing Festival.’
Sharon Canavar, chief executive of Harrogate International Festivals, added: ‘We are delighted to announce this year’s Theakston Old Peculier Crime Novel of the Year shortlist, featuring six novels by some of the most exciting crime writers working today. Whisking readers around the world and through time, this shortlist is a fantastic demonstration of the variety to be found in crime fiction. The public have a tough task ahead choosing just one winner and we can’t wait to see who they vote for.’
THE LAST THING TO BURN is an extraordinary story of resilience and determination in the most horrific of circumstances. As well as winning praise from both readers and reviewers, THE LAST THING TO BURN has been longlisted for the CWA Gold Dagger and the Goldsboro Books Glass Bell Award, and was voted International Book of the Year by the Rick O’Shea Book Club. It was first published by Hodder Books in January 2021 and is now available to buy in paperback.
Will’s most recent standalone, FIRST BORN, was published by Hodder on the 14th of April 2022. He is also the author of the Tuva Moodyson Mysteries, a crime series set in Sweden and published by Oneworld. The fifth instalment of the series, WOLF PACK, will be published in the Autumn.
Praise for THE LAST THING TO BURN:
‘This is a brilliant, chilling depiction of life on the very edges of society. I read it in one sitting, and lived every second of the book with the characters. Compelling, horrifying and gripping, and written with such empathy and control, it's probably the best thing I will read this year’ — Jane Casey
‘MISERY meets ROOM ... a triumph’ — Marian Keyes
‘Ratchets up the tension to the point where I had to check my pulse’ — Liz Nugent
‘Brilliantly written... Terrifying’ — Ruth Ware
‘Outstanding. The best thriller in years’ — Martina Cole
Credit: Rosalind Hobley
‘THE LAST THING TO BURN is one of the best thrillers I have read in years: I consumed it in great gulps, desperate to find out how Thanh Dao’s story played out, and then read it again, more slowly, savouring her courage and her unvanquished sense of self, despite everything.’ — Alison Flood, The Observer
About Will Dean:
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.
Follow Will on Twitter and Instagram, and visit his YouTube channel.