The cover of the book states this novel is based on a true story. Does that peak your interest immediately? It does mine. The novel is based on the crimes of a group of women living in the village of Nagyrév, Hungary, between 1914 and 1929. After finishing the book, I went to the Internet in search of the real story. Comparing the two, I liked how Gregson fleshed out and embellished the story. Her characters are strong women that, on the one hand I grew to sympathize, even like; on the other, I can't fathom their actions. Regardless, the plot definitely held my attention and kept me quickly turning pages until the end.
Should you read this book and become curious about the true story, I am including some links below.
There is a video interview with Jessica Gregson at the end of this article.
You can read accounts of these crimes at Wikipedia, Laura James' articles, Part 1 and Part 2, a BBC recounting, and finally, an article in Spanish, if your browser will translate for you, if not there are still some interesting pictures.
Some typical Hungarian village homes:
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