The Last Days Of Night by Graham Moore

 

This book is set in the late 1880's and tells the story of how electricity was harnessed and used to light the world.  Thomas Edison was the first to market with his direct current light bulbs and held the patent.  George Westinghouse was trying to displace Edison in the market and had a competing product.  A brilliant inventor from Croatia came to the United States, Nikola Tesla.  Direct current worked but only over short distances.  Tesla had the idea of alternating current which worked over much longer distances, allowing an entire town to be lit with one large generator instead of the small individual generators direct current required. 

An epic legal battle ensued.  Westinghouse picked a young recent law graduate named Paul Cravath to represent him.  The battle went through the courts for several years with both legal and extralegal maneuvers abounding.  Paul fell in love with an opera singer who also was one of Tesla's few trusted friends.  Together, they watched out for Tesla and helped him during an epic breakdown after his laboratory was set of fire while he and Paul were inside.  

This was a fascinating story of how scientists and inventors work and the legal battles over patents that could make or break a man's financial standing.  This was the author's second novel and he also is known for writing screenplays.  Telling the story from the viewpoint of Paul and the legal battles is an interesting choice and made the novel more focused on the epic courtroom case that ultimately determined the success of AC current to light the world.  This book is recommended for readers of historical fiction.