Review: Briliant and fascinating twilight of fact and fiction
Rating: 5 out of 5
Date: 05 10, 2013
I was recommended this book by a friend. Admittedly I had no idea what it was about and had only a very vague memory of the public figure Nikola Tesla and went into the story with an opnen mind.I was very intrigued when the introduction ended with the sentence "..what if his story was true?"Jumping ahead to a brief chapter on Thomas Alva Edison the author brings in the world of inventors and probably the biggest rival.For a work of speculative fiction or a fictionalised biography this started with a great build of suspense and intrigue and I found myself eagerly pacing through the beginning of Tesla's career as inventor and genius.I loved the way the imaginative muse is being handled in the book. Although a vision or product of his mind to most peoples belief system Flacco has painted her so convincingly that she became just as real to me as she did with Tesla.The chapters follow Tesla's career in great detail and with much research that explains even for the less scientifically minded readers like myself, what his visions were.The huge injustices that Tesla suffered are well told in the twilight of fiction and fact, a concept that worked well in another favourite of mine, "The Bridge of Deaths" by MCV Egan.As far as historical facts go and scientific accuracy I will have to trust the author, but given his artistic approach which is far from any exploitative and sensationalist style I am easily led to believe him.The great talent in writing this book lies in the way this story is laid out without claim to having all answers that remain outstanding on Tesla's life, stimulating the readers own mind  just as Flacco invites his readers all to read the factual literature themselves.Whatever you come to believe about Tesla's life, the book is worth reading for its literary quality, language, narrative and dialogue. I am a huge fan of the era and enjoyed the book on that level as well.I must agree with other reviewers that this book is one of the highlights of my current reading list and I would like to give it an extra star above the 5 I am able to award.Brilliant.