A Trace of Smoke (Hannah Vogel Novels) [Kindle Edition]

Rebecca Cantrell (Author)

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Starred Review. Set in 1931 Berlin, Cantrell's scrupulously researched debut tolls a somber dirge for Weimar Germany in its last days. In the Hall of the Unnamed Dead, Hannah Vogel, a 32-year-old crime reporter for the Berliner Tageblatt, recognizes a photograph of a naked corpse on a riverbank as that of her beloved brother, Ernst, an unabashedly gay transvestite cabaret singer. In her search for Ernst's killer, Hannah uncovers his sexual connections reach from newly recruited young Nazis to the highest levels of the Nazi party. Hannah and Anton, a five-year-old waif who claims Ernst was his father, along with her tender lover, Boris, tread an ominous tightrope as Cantrell unveils the best and the worst of the German character, setting the humanity of decent Germans, Jews and gentiles alike, against the Nazis' raw savagery and mindless militarism. This unforgettable novel, which can be as painful to read as the history it foreshadows, builds to an appropriately bittersweet ending. (May)
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From Booklist

It’s 1931 in Berlin, and though the Weimar Republic has begun to crumble, the celebrated decadence of the era remains in full flower. Hannah Vogel is a crime reporter, on intimate terms with Berlin’s underbelly, but that doesn’t protect her from the shock of seeing her brother’s picture posted in the police department’s Hall of the Unnamed Dead. She’s reluctant to make a formal identification until she knows what happened to him; scandal may lurk behind his death, as Ernst was a cross-dressing cabaret star whose list of male lovers included at least one Nazi leader. There’s also the matter of the orphan girl who turns up on Hannah’s doorstep, claiming that Ernst is her father and Hannah her mother! Hannah follows Ernst’s trail where most commonsensical Germans know not to go—deep into the Nazi power structure, where alternative sexual behavior is pursued with gusto, despite the soon-to-be führer’s disapproval. Cantrell nails both the “life is a cabaret” atmosphere and the desperation floating inside the champagne bubbles, though her attempts to show us Hannah’s inner thoughts suggest first-novelist clumsiness. Still, a promising debut. --Bill Ott

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Product Details

• Format: Kindle Edition
• File Size: 433 KB
• Print Length: 320 pages
• Publisher: Forge Books; 1 edition (April 1, 2010)
• Sold by: Macmillan
• Language: English
• ASIN: B002HRY172
• Text-to-Speech: Enabled
• Average Customer Review: 4.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (57 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #83,310 Paid in Kindle Store (See Top 100 Paid in Kindle Store)

More About the Author

A few years ago Rebecca Cantrell quit her job, sold her house, and moved to Hawaii to write a novel because, at seven, she decided that she would be a writer. Now she writes the award-winning Hannah Vogel mystery series set in Berlin in the 1930s. 'A Trace of Smoke' and 'A Night of Long Knives' are currently available. 'A Game of Lies' will be released in the summer of 2011, 'A City of Broken Glass' in 2012.

A faded pink triangle pasted on the wall of Dachau Concentration Camp and time in Berlin, Germany in the 1980s inspired 'A Trace of Smoke.' Fluent in German, she received her high school diploma from the John F. Kennedy Schule in Berlin and studied at the Freie Universit't in Berlin and the Georg August Universit't in G'ttingen.

When she visited Berlin in the summer of 2006, she was astounded to discover that many locations in her novel have been rebuilt and reopened in the last few years, including the gay bar El Dorado and the Mosse House publishing house.

Her short story 'Coffee' is in the 'Missing' anthology. Her short story 'On the Train' is in the 'First Thrills anthology.

Her screenplay 'The Humanitarian' was a finalist at Shriekfest 2008: The Los Angeles Horror/Sci-fi Film Festival. Her screenplay 'A Taste For Blood' was a finalist at the Shriekfest 2007: The Los Angeles Horror/Sci-fi Film Festival.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

35 of 36 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Full disclosure . . ., August 18, 2009

By 

Bruce L. Ginier (Fresno, California) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: A Trace of Smoke (Hannah Vogel Novels) (Hardcover)

. . . this is my first book review on Amazon. Reading A Trace of Smoke is like settling into a comfortable chair, right smack in front of a massive open window with all the sights, sounds, and smells of a strange new world unfolding in front of you. Cantrell writes about a time and place that I knew little about, early 30's Berlin at the start of the Nazi rise to power. She weaves a tight plot of murder and suspense through the hard and unforgiving shadows of Berlin, and propels it forward with a cadre of historical and unique fictional characters that makes you flinch, gasp, and keep turning the page. It's a world I didn't know and story I wasn't expecting, but I want more of both. Impressive.

24 of 27 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Great Read from a Hot New Talent, June 12, 2009

By 

Andrew Peterson, author of "First to Kill... (Central California) - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: A Trace of Smoke (Hannah Vogel Novels) (Hardcover)

Rebecca Cantrell hits a homerun with her stunning debut. The plot is intricate and her characters engaging, especially young Anton. Hannah Vogel, Cantrell's main character is believable and charming, yet tough as nails. I won't spoil the plot, but the ending took me by surprise. I read it in three sittings. My only complaint is that the book ended!

I'll be buying Cantrell's next books. She's got a new fan for life.

23 of 26 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars powerful historical tale, May 12, 2009

By 

Harriet Klausner - See all my reviews
(#1 Hall OF FAME REVIEWER)    (TOP 1000 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: A Trace of Smoke (Hannah Vogel Novels) (Hardcover)

In 1931 thirty two years old crime reporter for the Berliner Tageblatt Hannah Vogel visits Berlin's Hall of the Unnamed Dead. There on the wall is the picture of an unknown naked corpse whom she recognizes. The victim is her beloved gay brother Ernst, who could not harm a fly; he had no papers because he gave them to their Jewish friends to escape dangerous Germany for New York.

Outraged that someone would torture and kill her effeminate kind sibling, she knows she must remain silent re his identity or her "lost papers until their friends reach America. Still Hannah investigates using Ernst's sexual proclivity and his performing at the underground El Dorado cabaret as the starting points With the help of her dedicated lover and a young urchin claiming to be her nephew, Hannah makes her inquiries including the claim of the street kid that her obviously gay brother sired a child.

This is a powerful historical tale that looks deep inside the souls of the groups that make up the Weimer Republic at a time when Hitler is just starting to rise in power. The story line contrasts caring people from various religions vs. the brutal angry assaults of the Nazis. Not an easy read with no sugar coating, A TRACE OF SMOKE will have readers pondering whether this could happen in modern day America.

Harriet Klausner