Erik Larson
Thunderstruck, by the author of The Devil in the White City, is another action- and fact-filled non-fiction book. Weaving together the stories of Guglielmo Marconi, inventor of the wireless, and the infamous murderer Dr. Crippen, Larson makes two disparate stories overlap and interweave into one. Based on solid research, Larson tells of Marconi’s struggles to make the Marconi machine (wireless technology) into a viable business. Danger came from the electricity he worked with, wretched weather around the places he built his towers and threats from other inventors. His selfish and often callous nature also caused him harm. Despite all, his crowning success came with the capture of the meek and mild-mannered murderer, Dr. Crippen (a very nice man, regardless). Exciting and detailed. Be sure to skim through the footnotes, there are some extra good bits he included that could not fit into the book.