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Good solid historical fiction which teaches as well as entertains. The story takes place in early 20th century Connecticut, when electricity was beginning to be harnessed and the old rural towns were either abandoned or sucked into the new era and changed forever. Inventive minds were at work here and the new breed of entrepreneurs were ruthless and creative. Wonderful characters make you care deeply, even if you can't quite follow the technical descriptions of how electricity works. Fascinating, and beautifully written.

This is the story of an unlikely love at the dawn of the electric age in America. In 1914, Toma Pekocevic is a penniless immigrant in New York recently escaped from the bloody politics of the Balkans that has claimed most of his family. He is also a gifted inventor who designs a revolutionary water turbine while working with Harriet Bigelow, scion of a proud Connecticut iron-making dynasty now fallen on hard times. Their attraction is immediate and overwhelming, but every circumstance is against them. Toma's invention is all he has after losing Harriet to a wealthy politician, but he is determined to win her back, setting the stage for a confrontation that could change not only his life but the course of scientific progress.

Starling Lawrence is the editor in chief and vice chairman of W.W. Norton & Company. He is the author of the novel Montenegro and the story collection Legacies. He lives in New York City and northwestern Connecticut.

448 pages