[MrUssek]

While they are out of date and not too technical (and arguably, quite biased), the two books that I've enjoyed the most on this topic are:

1. Dark Pools, by Scott Patterson, and 2. Flash Boys, by Michael Lewis.

[kasey_junk]

Flash Boys is nonsense. Largely a placed ad for a specific exchange. You should skip it.

Dark Pools is better but doesn’t particularly touch on technical approaches.

[rcarmo]

Both are highly recommended. The field has moved on, but they still explain the history of it in a very entertaining fashion.