A Trace of Smoke

In this brilliant historical mystery, New York Times bestselling author Rebecca Cantrell illuminates an oft-neglected corner of history--the life of a singular woman at the dawn of the Third Reich.It's 1931. Crime reporter Hannah Vogel walks through Berlin's Hall of the Unnamed Dead searching for stories in photos of unidentified murder victims. When she sees her brother's picture among the corpses, she must hide her shock and grief. She's loaned his identity to Jewish friends fleeing...
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In this brilliant historical mystery, New York Times bestselling author Rebecca Cantrell illuminates an oft-neglected corner of history--the life of a singular woman at the dawn of the Third Reich.It's 1931. Crime reporter Hannah Vogel walks through Berlin's Hall of the Unnamed Dead searching for stories in photos of unidentified murder victims. When she sees her brother's picture among the corpses, she must hide her shock and grief. She's loaned his identity to Jewish friends fleeing the country, and the authorities can't discover that he's dead.She must investigate the murder herself.Diving into the glitzy cabaret where her brother sang leads her from Berlin's seedy underbelly to the top ranks of the storm troopers. After an orphan is dumped on her doorstep claiming her brother was his father, Hannah faces the most difficult decision imaginable: Can she trade the life of this innocent child for a chance to bring down the rising Nazi party? "Bold narrator and chilling historical setting...an unusually vivid context, [lets] Hannah report on the decadence of her world without losing her life -or her mind."-- New York Times"Nails both the 'life is a cabaret' atmosphere and the desperation floating inside the champagne bubbles." - Booklist"Evocative and hauntingly crafted...a treasure of suspense, romance, and murder. Her ability to spin history into a visceral reality is done with the artistry of a master storyteller."-- James Rollins, New York Times bestselling author of The Seventh Plague"A compelling and human story that captures brilliantly the atmosphere of Berlin during the rise of the Nazis."--Anne Perry, New York Times bestselling author of We Shall Not Sleep