An utterly unconventional doctor, Leonardo Fioravanti (1517-88) was remarkably forward-thinking even by the lofty standards of Renaissance Italy. Neither a miracle worker nor a charlatan, Fioravanti's misfortune was to be mistaken for both. As the Pulitzer-Prize nominated author of Science and the Secrets of Nature reveals here, Fioravanti's marvelous cures and talent for self-aggrandizement earned him the adoration of the people, the scorn of the medical establishment, and a reputation as one of the age's most colorful, combative figures.