The Last Lesson

by Jon Athan

A brutalized student. A gang-infested school. A vengeful teacher. After his star pupil, Rina Ogawa, is sexually assaulted in a school restroom, Edward Clifford sets out on a journey to find the truth and bring her attackers to justice. He finds himself delving head-first into the lives of his other students—lives filled with crime, violence, and hatred. What starts as a desperate attempt to achieve justice quickly sends Edward down the path of vengeance... Who attacked Rina Ogawa? Can Edward bring her attackers to justice? Or will he take matters into his own hands? From the provocative author of The Law of Retaliation and Grandfather’s House, Jon Athan brings you a shocking thriller packed with mystery, suspense, and extreme violence. This is a story of human horror. This novel contains graphic content. Reader discretion is advised.

Genres: Horror, Splatterpunk, Audiobook

223 pages, Kindle Edition

First published January 3, 2019

Reviews

[Peter Topside · Rating 4 out of 5]

I’m giving an A for effort here. I think Jon Athan touched on some really sensitive topics here, ie gang violence, racism, rape, but I just didn’t think it all came together. He gave it a really good attempt, but the story just felt too overloaded and the pertinent factors were not developed enough. It almost felt like one of the old Charles Bronson Death Wish films, but without a charismatic enough lead or satisfying amount of revenge to carry the whole thing. Edward, specifically, needed a ton more background. Majority of the story focuses on this mild mannered teacher, working in a not so great school, as violence occurs daily. When his star student is raped and brutalized, he makes it his mission to take revenge on those who did it. That alone is plenty to work with. But it did drag and take a very long time to build up to Edward eventually losing control of himself. The payoff was decent, but didn’t blow me away. I also really think if Athan picked racism or gang warfare as the focus, and not both, the story would have been much more refined. I also didn’t feel that the entire segment detailing the rape was needed. When the cell phone video was retrieved, a few descriptions of the clip would have been more than adequate. So, while this wasn’t a bad story at all, it was bogged down by too many plotpoints and a main character in desperate need of attention.

[Stu Corner · Rating 5 out of 5]

Shocking and brutal, but down to earth this time.

As usual with Jon Athan's books, if you need "trigger warnings" picture them all and walk away.
Unlike the last one I read -LOVELORN- this one is less over the top, and much more believable, which makes it all the more disturbing. It hits hard from the very first page and doesn't let up until the brutal conclusion.

It's about a teacher who has finally had enough of the racism and mindless brutality against his other students by a bunch of neo-nazis. It's not just a tale of revenge though. It makes you question the system along with vigilante justice. What is too small a punishment for such a terrible crime? What is too much?. What is justice?

Truly a nerve-racking experience. 4.5 Stars.

[MadameD · Rating 5 out of 5]

Story 5/5
Narration 4/5

The Last Lesson by Jon Athan, is a good vengeance story.

[Sea Caummisar · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was one tough listen. I guess that's a good thing. In the current climate of racial tension, I kinda wish I had chosen a different book. Just hearing the racial slurs disturbed me. However, I do see how it was pertinent to the story. In the end, justice was served. The slurrers ( is that a word?) get what they very greatly deserved. And of course with this being an Athan book, revenge is served brutally and bloody.
This is a story of a teacher who cares so much about his students, that when one gets raped, he takes matters in his own hands. The raped girl eventually kills herself and the teacher seeks revenge. Revenge stories are always fun.

[Tam French · Rating 5 out of 5]

Extremely intense read!!!

WOW!!! This was a very intense story!!! But it rings true , to an extent, with how things are going in this day and age with bullying and harassment with really no consequences for the instigator. Excellent writing and attention to detail!! Thanks for another great book!!

[Tam · Rating 4 out of 5]

Dark & twisty. Easy to imagine this happening in today's society. Another great Athan read.

[Matthew · Rating 5 out of 5]

An underrated book from an already underrated author.

The Last Lesson is less of a horror and more of a revenge thriller. It explores topics such as gang violence and flaws in the justice system.

Strongly recommend this one, as it is very suspenseful and keeps you on the edge of your seat all throughout.

[Art Putman]

Another enjoyable book though not as dark as some of the ones I have read, still good though

[CARLEEN · Rating 4 out of 5]

LESSON LEARNED!


A group of nazi sons of bitches bully, torture and violate other students.
Riduled with shame one student does the unthinkable, which is the last straw for teacher, Edward Clifford who decides to eliminate the problem....personally and permanently 🤷🏿‍♀️

[E The Creepy Girl · Rating 3 out of 5]

I’ve read quite a few Jon Athan books and I have so far really enjoyed them. I’d even consider him to be one of my favorite authors. This one felt different though. It didn’t feel like it had that same impact as the other ones I have read. His other books have made me feel a wide array of emotions, and this one made me feel flat. I think one of the things that went wrong here was we didn’t get a solid, developed relationship between Rina and the teacher. It felt weird that the teacher was the one getting revenge for her, and only after the events happen do we learn that the teacher is close to her family. But even then it felt like it was so under developed that I questioned why he was even doing this. I felt like the teacher got so unhinged so fast and the justification just felt off. Yes, it was a terrible event but when I was in school I don’t think any of my teachers would’ve done the same in that situation. It just felt weird. It would’ve been better if it were her boyfriend or a family member or even a friend that was doing this revenge, because the teacher angle was very strange.

Overall this story did not have the same impact as his other books. I think it had some important messages and themes but I wasn’t nearly as good as his other stuff. I still consider him to be very talented and one of my favorites but this one wasn’t as successful as his others.

[Carrie Shields · Rating 3 out of 5]

I really liked the storyline of this book. Edward Clifford is a teacher in a gang-infested school full of skinheads. The exchanges between teacher and problem students in the classroom were pretty accurate; however, there was never really any admin presence at the school. Maybe this was done to show that in crime-ridden areas, everyone is simply overworked and weary?

Violent physical assaults were the norm here...students are viciously attacked in bathrooms, in the cafeteria...there is no such thing as a safe place. Then one of Edward's prize students is attacked in the restroom and gang raped, and something in him breaks. He sets off on a bloody trek of vengeance that will leave no survivors.

I've recently become a fan of this author's work, and I did enjoy this one, but after comparing it to a few others I've read by him, the characters in this one felt like caricatures. None had real depth or complexity, and that may very well be due to the genre. With more than 50 books in his backlist, I have lots more to choose from.

[Evan Burton · Rating 4 out of 5]

To begin with, I must express that I do not support violence, racism, sexual assault, or any other form of harm directed at any group of individuals. With that established, let us proceed to the review of this book. Initially, it is important to note that this book addresses heavy themes, so I would like to issue a trigger warning to all potential readers, as it contains significant elements of racism, racial slurs, physical, sexual, and emotional bullying, torture, and graphic representations of body mutilation. However, regarding the writing style, I found it to be quite engaging. It was distinctive, detailed, fast-paced, and maintained my attention throughout, resulting in a rather enjoyable reading experience. Additionally, I perceived the characters to be well-developed and thought-provoking. They elicited feelings of sympathy for some and anger towards others. I also appreciated that this book, in my view, conveyed a deeper message beyond merely being a gruesome narrative; it served as a cautionary tale about how anyone can become both a victim and a perpetrator of bullying, including friends or mentors. In conclusion, I believe this book is exceptional and will undoubtedly keep readers on the edge of their seats, compelling them to finish it in one sitting while prompting reflection on the detrimental effects of bullying in society and on individuals, leading to significant adverse consequences.

[Thomas Hobbs · Rating 5 out of 5]

There are a few movies where out of control kids or even gangs take over the school. A few of my favorite include Dangerous Minds, The Principal, Lean on Me, Stand and Deliver. And my personal favorite Class of 1984. Class of 1984 and I believe The Principal both have rapes. In Class of 1984 the teachers wife was raped, and the principal a student was raped.
I never heard of any such incident when I was in public schools from early 80s until the mid 90s. Yes we had gangs but not like they are portrayed in movies.
Yes this book had a rape, not really a spoiler alert since it was in the book description. But a teacher goes out of his way for vigilante justice. Not really a horror book but a good book nonetheless.

[Bradley · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is easily one of the best of Athan’s books that I’ve read so far. It hit differently because the plot was so grounded that it made it darker than your crazed psycho slasher vibe.

From the prologue it had me pissed off and I was locked in.

If ‘Fuck Them Kids’ was a book, this would be it.

Edward was doing the most when it came to righting wrongs but I understood his motives.

We didn’t need a whole chapter about Rina’s assault. It was a little much.

The way the book wrapped up kind of had me upset because I wanted more of a payoff but then those last few paragraphs gave me what I wanted and I had to give it five stars.

[Becky · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wow! This is my first book by this author, but won't be my last. So real. So violent. So frustrating. So scary. High school bullying at its worst. Beatings. Rape. Disrespect. Gangs. All go unpunished. Vengeance. Who can set things straight? How can it ever get better? Who will give "The Last Lesson?"
This Audible version was so entertaining. The narrator did an awesome job of presenting this story.

[Page Turner · Rating 3 out of 5]

I guess this falls in line with a lot of the other books I've read by this author, but I didn't enjoy it as much, (if enjoy is even the right word for reading this type of gore. LOL) as I have other ones. Maybe it was the specific subject matter. Of course, the bad guys ended up getting what they deserved, but I just didn't like the journey.

[timj26 · Rating 5 out of 5]

American history X meets dangerous minds
Raw and violent Jon athan doesn’t pull punches
Well narrated and a must read for dark thriller fans
I received a free review audiobook and voluntarily left this review

[Michael · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great thriller. I love Jon Athan's books. I bought a kindle paperwhite mainly to make my way through his library. These characters are vile. This isn't as gory as his other books I've read, but it has some brutal disturbing scenes.

[Ginnie Mays · Rating 3 out of 5]

not too bad

The characters in this book were busy. It had a good story line. Again, not as gory as I was wanting- the reason I started reading his books was because of the gory words.

[Carri lynn · Rating 5 out of 5]

Brutal and Brilliant!

I think I've become a super fan of Jon Athan. I have loved every book I've read by him. Not only are his stories face paced and brutal, there's also an amazing story line. This particular book wasn't as gore filled as some of the others I've read by him, but it's still definitely one of my favorites.

[Lauren · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good read

I enjoyed this story. To me, I saw another side of teachers and their dedication to their students. An extreme side, yes. But a side nonetheless that was unique in the world of fiction. And I give cheers to Jon Athan for this one.

[Jade · Rating 5 out of 5]

Gripping from start to finish

Only took 2 nights to finish this couldn't put it down heart racing and constant want to know what happens next vengeance and how bad things can change good people excellent book

[JENNIFER FOREMAN · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great

This author books never disappoint me. Love his books. Great read. Suspenseful. I recommend his books always. You wont be disappointed.

[Melvyn · Rating 5 out of 5]

Powerful

If you are pro punch Nazis in the face (as you should be) this book takes it much farther with a heartwarming yet chaotic tale of vengeance

[kim wood · Rating 5 out of 5]

The Last Lesson

A dark , disturbing story in which a teacher seeks revenge for his star pupil. Another brilliant well written book

[Brooke · Rating 5 out of 5]

Satisfying.

[Adam Wilson · Rating 3 out of 5]

A fun and fast tail of extreme bullying and a teacher’s descent into revenge and madness.

[Nicole · Rating 3 out of 5]

Stumbled across the authors page while searching for extreme horror. Not sure I would classify this particular book as such. (Its entirely possible I'm jaded. Too much extreme horror. If it doesn't make my stomach turn...haha) I think I may not have chose well so I'll be going back to try again.
The story was ok. Somewhat entertaining, if not unoriginal. I found the main characters girlfriends attitude to be a bit perplexing. She came off pretty disinterested and even annoyed. She was hard to like, her views hard to sympathize with as they appeared mostly self serving.