The Last Execution

Set in Svendborg, Denmark, on February 22, 1852, this historical novel follows fifteen-year-old Niels Nielsen through the hours before his execution for arson and the murder of a sheriff’s son. Alone in his cell except for a fly he imagines speaking with, Niels recalls a childhood of hunger, cold, wandering, and occasional kindness. As the appointed hour approaches, the story also shifts to villagers, including the baker, messenger, and carpenter making Niels’s coffin.