Also by Rebecca Cantrell:

A Trace Of Smoke, May 2009
Hardcover
Missing, February 2009
Paperback

April 29, 2009

A Trace Of Smoke
Rebecca Cantrell

Hannah Vogel #1
Forge Books
May 2009
On Sale: May 12, 2009
Featuring: Hannah Vogel
304 pages
ISBN: 0765320444
EAN: 9780765320445
Hardcover
$24.95

Mystery Woman Sleuth

Even though hardened crime reporter Hannah Vogel knows all too well how tough it is to survive in 1931 Berlin, she is devastated when she sees a photograph of her brother’s body posted in the Hall of the Unnamed Dead. Ernst, a cross-dressing lounge singer at a seedy nightclub, had many secrets, a never-ending list of lovers, and plenty of opportunities to get into trouble.

Hannah delves into the city’s dark underbelly to flush out his murderer, but the late night arrival of a five-year-old orphan on her doorstep complicates matters. The endearing Anton claims that Hannah is his mother... and that her dead brother Ernst is his father.

As her investigations into Ernst’s murder and Anton's parentage uncover political intrigue and sex scandals in the top ranks of the rising Nazi party, Hannah fears not only for her own life, but for that of a small boy who has come to call her "mother."

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Comments

12 comments posted.

Re: A Trace Of Smoke

I hear that modern Berliners are in love with their city, too. I can't wait to meet Hannah Vogler! When should I expect to find A TRACE OF SMOKE in Borders or Barnes and Noble.
(Judith Heath 2:05am May 7)

A TRACE OF SMOKE should be at your local bookstores, including Borders and Barnes & Noble as of yesterday. It should be on the New Arrivals or New Mystery tables.

Berlin today is every bit as fascinating as it was in the 1930s. More actually, as it's much more stable politically. :)
(Rebecca Cantrell 3:51am May 13)

I hope A TRACE OF SMOKE will give me some understanding of what was happening in Germany in the 1930's. I can't fathom what made it ripe for a despot like Hitler.
(Judith Heath 5:53am May 13)

Talkeetna is about as different from Berlin as you can get. I have been to both and prefer Talkeetna - of course, I didn't have to live in either city so I am speaking as a visitor. And I would like to visit the Berlin of the 1930s.
(Karin Tillotson 11:20am May 13)

'A Trace of Smoke' makes the past come alive. We can learn so much from history that can be applied to today.
(Rosemary Krejsa 6:18pm May 13)

Judy: A Trace of Smoke is a slice of life for one woman living through terrible historic times. I hope it captures that one experience. I think it could have gone either way for Germany in 1931. Hitler's rise to power was not as inevitable as it seems now.

Karin: Talkeetna is lovely, isn't it? The view of Mt. McKinley is amazing. But as a teenager, Berlin had a lot more going on...

Rosemary: Thank you!
(Rebecca Cantrell 7:08pm May 13)

What a wonderful idea for a book! I'd love to read your story.
(LuAnn Morgan 8:50pm May 13)

Sounds like an interesting look at a
pivotal time in German history. We miss
so many threads that come together to
make the history we see.
(Patricia Barraclough 10:38pm May 13)

Berlin sounds so mysterious, probably because it's across the water in Europe. I remember listening to a chanteuse singing sultry tunes in a bank converted into a nightclub. Boy, could she hit the notes.
(Alyson Widen 11:27pm May 13)

I want to travel so bad. At least I get a
glimpse of traveling when I read.
(Bridget Hopper 5:29pm May 14)

Sounds like a good one! I just finished another book about postwar berlin - pre WWII and it was fascinating...
(Mari M. 4:43pm May 15)

Fascinating. I would love to read your books.
(Patsy Hagen 1:45pm May 19)