By Stephen Ronson @Stephen_Ronson
Published Hodder & Stoughton https://www.hodder.co.uk/ @HodderBooks
336 pages ISBN 9781399721257
Publication date 16 November 2023
I was allowed access to a pdf review copy on Net Galley in exchange for a fair review. I would like to thank Net Galley https://www.netgalley.com/ @NetGalley, and of course the Author and Publisher for granting this access.
The Cover
A dog fight over the chalk cliffs of Southern England, with a Messerschmitt on fire. That certainly grabs the attention, which is the primary function, but it’s slightly misleading if you are expecting aerial battles, although fighter planes and their pilots have a role to play in the story.
My thoughts
It is May 1940 and Europe, in particular Great Britain, is becoming aware of the enormity of the task ahead of them. The so-called ‘phoney war’ is over and cold reality has arrived like a slap across the face. The Wehrmacht have stormed through the Low Countries, thereby somewhat un-sportingly circumventing the impressive fortifications of French Maginot line, and the British terror weapon of George Formby signing “Imagine Me in the Maginot Line.” This war is not going to be fought in trenches, the German’s have developed Blitzkrieg and soon the British Expeditionary Force (BEF) is about to be encircled and cut off with a huge loss of manpower and weaponry. For them the army life is not fine, George helped to keep spirits high, but now the war may be lost before its even started. This is the backdrop for a fine novel that captures the dawning realisation of what lies ahead for people back in Britain.
John Cook is a prosperous farmer, a veteran of the First World War, who then went on to create commando units in the Far East, thereby developing an array of unorthodox fighting skill. He wants to serve his country but is turned down. Instead, they want him set up an off-the-books clandestine auxiliary unit to fight back once the Germans invade. As the title implies, they will become The Last Line of defence. Weaponry will be provided but they would be on their own and if discovered before invasion they could be taken as German spies. Desperate measures for desperate times. Here the author has done an excellent job picturing the sense of inevitability amongst civilian population as it prepares for invasion along with the tentative steps taken. The barbed wire on beaches, Cook preparing his land to prevent the progress of tanks across it, the sort of touches easily overlooked but which add real period detail. The scenes set in the pub manage to convey the sense of trepidation as the coming invasion takes over conversations. With recent societal changes its easy to overlook the importance of the public house at that point in time as a place for people to gather and express themselves.
The Germans are not the only enemy though, as we find ones closer to home. The black marketeer in fiction is so often portrayed as a loveable, cheeky spiv (think James Beck as private Walker in Dad’s Army) the man who could lay his hands on what you wanted for a price. Here they are more accurately seen as serious criminals, willing to exploit anyone and anything at the right price. For me their only redeeming factor is their dress sense. The author pays a small homage to Brighton Rock by Graham Greene, with the spivs based in Brighton and sharing the cold-blooded psychosis of Pinky Brown. Young men of fighting age dodging call up and their duty who decide to put self-interest ahead of anything else. As Cook muses ‘nothing good ever came out of Brighton’ and he is eventually proved right, though it does prove the backdrop for some great action scenes against real villains.
The plot centres on the criminal activity of the spivs, complicity within the police force and instances of missing persons. I don’t want to give too much away, but much of the plot could almost be transplanted into 2023 and work just as well. There are no new crimes they just manifest in different guises. That Cook gets drawn into an investigation is a given but the flow of it still manages to surprise even when you think you know the answer. It’s a case of good versus evil, but one in which the boundaries between the two are a little smudged, which add to the interest.
The pacing is perfectly judged, starting off on the slow side before increasing as action set pieces, of which there are several, become imminent but all the while still building up a head of steam for the finale. The early chapters can feel a little short (it is the current trend) but in the latter third they really do inject a sense of urgency There is bloodshed and violence, how could there not be in such a story, but it’s nicely handled without being too gratuitous (and they deserved it!) An excellent job for a debut novel.
Cook is a killer too, but a trained one with a sense of morality, albeit with rules set by himself. A violent man, but a considered one, with an outlook moulded from bitter personal experience, thereby being part hero part antihero. Here we have an honest portrayal of the effects of war which is often glossed over by other authors, a whole generation who survived but returned changed men. Cook couldn’t switch himself off when the fighting ended and Nob is so shellshocked he is effectively dumb, but even minor characters carry physical and mental scars. The interaction between Cook, his best friend Doc and Doc’s wife (and Cook’s ex-fiancé) Jane is both complex and subtle, with mere looks conveying more than words. Lady Margaret is the woman to keep Cook on his toes and possesses much more spirit than hard cash, a formidable young woman to say the least. The novel has the feel of a stand-alone, but after introducing the reader to an interesting cast of characters I hope there is more to come.
Packed with action, superb characters and a real feel for the time and place for the setting, The Last Line is everything you would want from an intelligent war-time thriller.
The Last Line can be purchased via the publisher’s website here
The author
Stephen Ronson grew up in Sussex, and spent a large part of his childhood exploring the woods and fields around Uckfield, many of which were still dotted with reminders of WW2 – pill boxes, tank traps, nissen huts, and graffiti left by soldiers awaiting D-Day. He is a passionate student of local history, and when he learnt about Auxiliary Units – groups of men who were instructed to lay low during the predicted nazi invasion and lead the fight back, he knew he had to write about a Sussex farmer, one with a love of the land, and a natural desire and ability to get the job done. Many of the locations and characters in the John Cook series are inspired by real places and real people. In particular, Stephen was inspired by his grandparents, Eric, Bessie, Peter and Vera, each of whom did their bit on the home front. Nowadays, Stephen divides his time between Vermont, USA, and Uckfield, East Sussex. When he’s not writing, he can be found renovating his house, or walking the woods and the fields.
Source: Publisher’s website
Peter turns the page 