The author is a former foreign correspondent who has lived in Budapest on and off from 1991 onwards. He became fascinated with the history of Hungary during World War Two and wrote this mammoth work, using uncovered documents, firsthand reports of the events from personal diaries, and interviews with survivors.
It portrays the heroic good of many people, the evil of others who used the situation for their own purposes, and those who did nothing or delayed decisions that could have saved many lives. A major part is dedicated to the Nazi persecution of the large Jewish population in Budapest; the Nazis unfortunately had Hungarian sympathisers who assisted in the atrocities.
Like all histories of war, it contains the horrible consequences of armed conflict: bombing, fires, terror, betrayal, agonising death, and graphic descriptions of torture, including sexual torture.
Longlisted for the Baillie Gifford Prize for Non-Fiction 2025.