The Last Days of Night

A Novel

By: Graham Moore

Narrated by: Johnathan McClain

Length: 13 hrs

Publisher's summary

From Graham Moore, the Oscar-winning screenwriter of The Imitation Game and New York Times best-selling author of The Sherlockian, comes a thrilling novel - based on actual events - about the nature of genius, the cost of ambition, and the battle to electrify America.

New York, 1888. Gas lamps still flicker in the city streets, but the miracle of electric light is in its infancy. The person who controls the means to turn night into day will make history - and a vast fortune.

A young untested lawyer named Paul Cravath, fresh out of Columbia Law School, takes a case that seems impossible to win. Paul's client, George Westinghouse, has been sued by Thomas Edison over a billion-dollar question: Who invented the lightbulb and holds the right to power the country?

The case affords Paul entry to the heady world of high society - the glittering parties in Gramercy Park mansions and the more insidious dealings done behind closed doors. The task facing him is beyond daunting. Edison is a wily, dangerous opponent with vast resources at his disposal - private spies, newspapers in his pocket, and the backing of J. P. Morgan himself. Yet this unknown lawyer shares with his famous adversary a compulsion to win at all costs. How will he do it?

In obsessive pursuit of victory, Paul crosses paths with Nikola Tesla, an eccentric, brilliant inventor who may hold the key to defeating Edison, and with Agnes Huntington, a beautiful opera singer who proves to be a flawless performer onstage and off. As Paul takes greater and greater risks, he'll find that all in his path are playing their own games, and none are quite who they seem.

©2016 Graham Moore (P)2016 Random House Audio

Critic reviews

"Mesmerizing, clever, and absolutely crackling, The Last Days of Night is a triumph of imagination. Graham Moore has chosen Gilded Age New York as his playground, with outsized characters - Edison, Tesla, Westinghouse - as his players. The result is a beautifully researched, endlessly entertaining novel that will leave you buzzing." (Gillian Flynn, author of Gone Girl)

"In The Last Days of Night, Graham Moore takes us back to the dawn of light - electric light - into a world of invention and skulduggery, populated by the likes of Edison, Westinghouse, Tesla, and the novel's hero, a young lawyer named Paul Cravath. It's part legal thriller, part tour of a magical time - the age of wonder - and once you've finished it, you'll find it hard to return to the world of now." (Erik Larson, author of The Devil in the White City)

" The Last Days of Night is a wonder, a riveting historical novel that is part legal thriller, part techno-suspense. This fast-paced story about the personal and legal clash over the invention of the light bulb is a tale of larger-than-life characters and devious doings, and a significant meditation on the price we as a society pay for new technology.... Thoughtful and hugely entertaining." (Scott Turow)

"[Narrator Johnathan] McClain, whose Cravath has an enthusiastic mid-American persona, creates equally imaginative vocal portraits of Edison, Westinghouse, and Tesla, and believably colors several different women. Nicely marrying his pace and tone to each scene, and offering an easy narrative voice, McClain creates a superb audio experience." ( AudioFile)

Tesla, Edison, and Westinghouse. Ya

Great novel about the fight for who invented the light bulb and a/c. I enjoy fictional histories that give me a feel for the times, the issues, the fights, and that help me learn about history. This one is written like a legal thriller and even brung a tear to my eyes a few times. Great reader also

Loved it!

I had to keep listening. The depiction of Edison and Westinghouse is Unforgettable. I love that it contains truth as well as a great storyline. the narrator did a great job of portraying the characters!

Slice of industrial history comes alive

Yes, this is historical fiction but Mr Moore did a superlative job blending titans of industry and science of the late 1800s into a tale of mystery and intrigue. It would be like Gates, Jobs, Buffett and Musk all fighting over patents and intellectual property today. Very good performance quality including very entertaining voicing of Tesla.

enjoyed the history

it was great well performed and the history was so interesting. i learned a lot about Westinghouse and Edison. great for my long car ride.

fascinating!

If you could sum up The Last Days of Night in three words, what would they be?

The history that you wish that you got to learn in school!

Any additional comments?

I really appreciated the author's notes at the end also so that I had a good understanding of the fiction and the facts.

Riveting historical fiction piece of Current Wars

A fascinating fictional retelling of the Current Wars involving the Giants of the e age of invention in the late 19th century America. I could not stop listening to it.

didn't want to stop listening

I had never heard of this historic feud. what a great artistic way to a history lesson. narrator was spot on. his voice was easy to listen to and age appropriate for the main chsracter. a definite must listen!

Graham Moore rises to the level of Ken Follett

I am a huge Ken Follett fan. I enjoy historical fiction with strong characters. Even David McCullough, who writes excellent books, does not deliver the deep constructed characters that Follett does (mostly because McCullough sticks to non-fiction).

Anyway, in this book Moore rises to the level of Follett. As a bonus, the main characters in this book are actually real people. While he re-arranges things to make the story work, you find out at the end (in the author notes) that 90% of the core is supported by actual history.

I loved this book

Truly loved this book. I just got done with, "a waste of time book," so I really appreciate this one. The history was interesting and a little shocking. Sure made you glad your weren't rich or powerful. I liked that about it too. 😊

Well done

If only my history lesson could have come in this form. I would loved history, providing the made embellish caveat was very enlightening, alll in all I loved this book.