“Meet Detective Miller: unique, unconventional, and criminally underestimated…

He’s a detective, a dancer, he has no respect for authority ­- and he’s the best hope Blackpool has for keeping criminals off the streets. Meet Detective Declan Miller.

A double murder in a seaside hotel sees a grieving Miller return to work to solve what appears to be a case of mistaken identity. Just why were two completely unconnected men taken out?

Despite a somewhat dubious relationship with both reality and his new partner, can the eccentric, offbeat Miller find answers where his colleagues have found only an impossible puzzle?”

Hello and welcome to damppebbles. Today I am delighted to share my review of The Last Dance by Mark Billingham. The Last Dance was published by Sphere Books on 25th May 2023 and is available in hardcover, audio and digital formats with the paperback to follow next year. I chose to read a free eARC of The Last Dance via The Pigeonhole but that has in no way influenced my review.

Regular visitors to the blog may not be aware that I hold one person responsible for my becoming a crime fiction nut (and as a result, the creation of this predominantly crime focussed blog). That person is Mark Billingham. I remember picking up Sleepyhead, the first book in the Tom Thorne series, and feeling very apprehensive. I’d read the odd crime book here and there before, and ‘sort of’ enjoyed them. But I’d heard the author’s novels were a step up from everything I had read previously. With hindsight, there was no need for me to worry. I was swept away by a thoroughly gripping, insanely tense, dark story. And I fell in love. With both Tom Thorne and crime fiction as a whole. I was ridiculously excited to hear that Mark Billingham was going to be publishing a brand new series. One with a very different feel to everything that had gone before. And what an absolute joy The Last Dance is. I think I’ve fallen in love all over again.

Detective Declan Miller is about as far removed from Detective Tom Thorne as you can get. Recently bereaved Miller is eccentric, frustrating (to his colleagues) and the kind of character who worms their way into your heart without even trying. I adored him, although there’s a chance he could get on a couple of nerves. I read this book in conjunction with The Pigeonhole and my fellow readers predominantly liked Miller, whereas a few found him hard work. There’s no denying it, if you had to work with this man, I’m sure you’d find him hard work too! But that just made him all the more appealing to me. This new series is set in one of my favourite places, Blackpool. Billingham brings the town to life with ease making me want to return to the North West at the earliest opportunity. The book has a lovely sense of place which I only hope is built upon as the series progresses. Bringing both the touristy side of Blackpool to life, with donkey rides and ice creams on the beach, along with the darker, more sinister underbelly.

Would I recommend this book? I would, yes. I think The Last Dance is going to be one of my favourite books of the year. The characters are wonderful. On returning to work after the death of his wife, Declan Miller is teamed with DS Sara Xiu. However, if you look at things from Xiu’s point of view, she’s very much ‘lumbered’ with Miller! But their working relationship changes over the course of the book. Xiu still can’t understand why Miller does and says half the things he does but there’s a budding acceptance there. I cannot wait to see more of this pairing. The plot is paced well as you would expect from this author. The tension and suspense keep the reader engaged with the story and keen to discover the why and the wherefore of the investigation. As mentioned, I read this book via The Pigeonhole which meant I had a ‘stave’ delivered every day for ten days. So despite being incredibly keen to read on and find out what was going to happen next, I couldn’t. Had I read this book ‘normally’ I think I would have finished it in a day. I didn’t want to put it down! All in all, a bright start to what promises to be a new favourite series. I cannot wait to read the second book when it publishes next year. A hugely gripping, wonderfully written mystery by a master storyteller. Full of tension, and with the most engaging lead character I’ve met in a long time. I loved The Last Dance. Highly recommended.

I chose to read and review a free eARC of The Last Dance. The above review is my own unbiased opinion.

The Last Dance by Mark Billingham was published in the UK by Sphere Books on 25th May 2023 and is available in hardcover, audio and digital formats with the paperback to follow (please note, the following links are affiliate links which means I receive a small percentage of the purchase price at no extra cost to you): | amazon.co.uk | Waterstones | Foyles | bookshop.org | Goodreads | damppebbles bookshop.org shop | damppebbles amazon.co.uk shop | damppebbles amazon.com shop |

Mark Billingham is one of the UK’s most acclaimed and popular crime writers. A former actor, television writer and stand-up comedian, his series of novels featuring D.I. Tom Thorne has twice won him the Crime Novel Of The Year Award as well as the Sherlock Award for Best British Detective and been nominated for seven CWA Daggers. His standalone thriller IN THE DARK was chosen as one of the twelve best books of the year by the Times and his debut novel, SLEEPYHEAD was chosen by the Sunday Times as one of the 100 books that had shaped the decade. Each of his novels has been a Sunday Times Top Ten bestseller.