Busting Out :: Rebecca Cantrell on Her Latest 'Joe Tesla' Adventure

Prolific novelist Rebecca Cantrell won legions of fans for her "Hannah Vogel" thrillers, historical dramas set in the days of World War II that explore the social and political complexities of Nazi Germany. The very first Hannah Vogel novel, "A Trace of Smoke," was built around the puzzle of who killed Hannah's gay brother Ernst, and why; recently, Vogel found a way to explore the character of Ernst in a short story, "Cigarette Boy," which takes the reader into the darkening heart, and gay backstage milieu, of Berlin's cabaret scene as the Nazis are tightening their grip and the last embers of Weimar fade away.

Though Cantrell has co-authored several books with James Rollins in the vampire-centric series "The Order of the Sanguines," and also dipped into comedy with co-authro Sean Black on the "Malibu Mystery" series, she's kept a whole new series humming along with her Joe Tesla thrillers. Like Hannah Vogel, Tesla is a smart, courageous soul who finds himself in unusual circumstances: Following an episode in which a villain drugs him, Tesla becomes so intensely agoraphobic that he retreats to the New York City subway system, where (and this is a deliciously stylish touch) he takes up residence in a Victorian house. That's right, a whole house, underneath the streets of New York.

Tesla shares his exploits with a bodyguard named Vivian and a clever service dog named Edison. In her fourth Joe Tesla novel, "The Steel Shark," Cantrell finds an ingenious way to broaden Tesla's horizons: She takes him on a full-throttle undersea adventure. When Tesla enters an underwater scavenger hunt, he's playing against other wealthy contestants for a cash prize to be donated to charity. It's all a bit of fun, and for a good cause -- until a massive, sophisticated submarine enters the picture, dusters Tesla's tiny submersible, and kills a competitor's bodyguard.

Who was the intended target -- Tesla, or the other guy? Who's running the submarine, which seems not to belong to any official naval power? What's the bigger picture here? And what can Tesla do to prove to the stubbornly skeptical police that he didn't destroy both subs and kill the unfortunate victim himself, either out of negligence or some sort of undersea road rage?

Cantrell answers one of these questions on the very first page, when we learn that Laila, a woman from the Middle East -- a woman of royal lineage, no less -- has acquired the submarine through clandestine means, and staffed it with an all-female crew. What the women are up to, and the reasons for it, touch not only on their personal freedoms and dignity, but also a scheme with horrific international consequences. With Tesla in pursuit and the sub charting a course for more killing, the sea's the limit for white knuckle adventure!

EDGE had a chance recently to enjoy a chat with Rebecca Cantrell, dive deep into her newest novel, and hear what else she's got up her sleeve for her fans to look forward to.

EDGE: It looks like New Zealand pop singer Lorde is also a fan of the NYC subway tunnel system -- she recently explained how she wrote the bulk of her new album while riding the train. As I recall, you got the germ of the idea for the Joe Tesla books in the Berlin subway system, and developed that idea while riding the trains... what is it about subways that make them such creative spaces?

Rebecca Cantrell: The quality of in-between-ness. On a subway, I'm in a space between my origin and my destination, outside of my regularly planned world and it frees me up to think differently.

I love the hypnotic sound of the wheels against the rails, the light car and the darkness outside, the sense of movement. Some distractions exist, like other passengers and ads and maps and the stops for stations; but other distractions don't, like Internet and phone calls and the items on my to do list.

I wrote big portions of the Joe Tesla novels on the subway with my laptop literally in my lap. I'll miss that writing environment when I start the next one in Hawaii. Maybe that's why I decided to take Joe underwater. Maybe I can find a writing submarine.

EDGE: Has the need to keep Joe Tesla away from open spaces proved a difficulty or a creatively enriching constraint for you?

Rebecca Cantrell: A little bit of both. On the one hand, his life and mine would be so much easier if he could just go outside and solve those crimes like a normal detective. On the other, him being stuck inside forces me to stretch to figure out ways for him to learn what he needs to learn and do what he needs to do within the confines of his world.

It's made both of us more creative, and I think it's helped to keep the series unique. He can't do car chases, so he has to do foot chases in the tunnels, train chases, and submarine chases. He can't tail a suspect so he has to hack surveillance cameras or rely on Vivian. He often can't even interview people like a traditional detective and has to rely on unearthing their online personas instead. He has to work harder, and that takes the reader on a different journey.

EDGE: In your new book, 'The Steel Shark,' you've hit on an unexpected approach to getting Tesla outside New York's subway tunnels and into the wider world: Namely, you've got him in an adventure that largely takes place undersea. From your researches it is truly the case that agoraphobic people can tolerate underwater environments, and not panic the way they would if out on the open on dry land?

Rebecca Cantrell: I didn't find any evidence that underwater is better for those with agoraphobia than being on land. I suspect it depends on their triggers. Joe is afraid of light and openness because of his history, so being underwater in the darkness works for him -- no unexpected light (he does fine with flashlights) and he knows exactly where the outside is (up).

I would worry about anyone prone to panic attacks who wanted to be a diver. The ocean is unforgiving, and it only takes one mistake. Without Vivian with him underwater, Joe wouldn't have survived the book (and vice versa).

EDGE: 'The Steel Shark' is chock-full of strong female characters, not the least of which is Tesla's female bodyguard Vivian, who gets quite a lot of play this time around. Did the spirit of Hannah Vogel come to you one dark night and demand equal time once again for the world's tough, smart women?

Rebecca Cantrell: Maybe it was Hannah Vogel's influence that got me started. I wanted to get to know Vivian better -- she's tough, smart, and funny. She balances out the world of the books -- taking us to all those places where Joe can't go. She struggles with her own problems, problems very different from Joe's, and she deserved more time on the page. Her solutions are always more physical and direct than his, and it's a treat to see where she will lead us in the big bright world aboveground.

EDGE: Speaking of Hannah Vogel, I loved your recent short story 'Cigarette Boy,' a prequel to the first Hannah Vogel mystery novel in which we meet Hannah's gay brother Ernst and learn about the beginning of his relationship with Nazi bigwig Ernst Rohm. (And, of course, he gets to solve a murder mystery -- he's definitely his sister's brother!) Was this a one-off? Or will Ernst Vogel be back?

Rebecca Cantrell: I think he'll be back, even if I have to put him in a time machine and take him back a few more years to the end of the twenties when he debuts at Club El Dorado.

To this day, I'm sorry he died in 'A Trace of Smoke.' If I'd known I was writing a series, I might have made a different decision. He's a fun, lively, fascinating character, a force of nature who knows what he wants and figures out how to get it. He has his flaws, including his attraction to power and maybe more than his fair share of vanity, but he is so vibrant and brilliant and beautiful and funny that I want to spend more time with him. We haven't seen the last of Ernst Vogel!

EDGE: I have to ask whether there might be a new installment in Hannah's adventures coming our way?

Rebecca Cantrell: Yes. Hannah and Lars will be up to new adventures soon. It's been a long journey to get to a point where I can write another one, but I'm almost there!

I recently re-acquired the rights to the first four books, and I'm very excited to enter that world again. I'd never planned to take so much time off after 'A City of Broken Glass,' and I apologize to all my readers who have been patiently (some not so patiently) waiting for Hannah's return. 'Cigarette Boy' was my first foray back into 1930s Berlin, because I've wanted to see more about Ernst's world, but Hannah is up next.

EDGE: Another series you've written, together with James Rollins, is 'The Order of the Sanguines' books, about ancient vampire societies -- there are five of them, I think, though I'm a little hazy on numbering... There's Book One, Book 1.5, Books Two and Three... and also, I believe, a Book .5! Will there be a Book Five? or other '.5' books that fill in the crannies?

Rebecca Cantrell: The 0.5 books are actually the short stories. So, there are three novels and two shorts. Right now, James and I are busy on other projects, but you never know!

EDGE: Not long ago you authored a comic novel called 'A Is for Asshat.' Any chance you'll be back with another romp there? 'B is for Badass,' maybe?

Rebecca Cantrell: There are several books in that series! We ended up renaming the first book to 'A is for Actress' because vendors wouldn't feature it with the word 'asshat' in the title.

To date there are four: 'A is for Actress,' 'B is for Bad Girls,' 'C is for Coochy Coo,' and 'D is for Drunk.' 'E is for Exposed' should be out in a few months, followed by 'F is for Fred.'

This series is different from anything I've written before. Sean Black and I are working to create something light, quirky, and just generally silly when we write about Sofia Salgado -- a former child star who played a detective on TV and now works as a detective in real life. It's great to explore the funny side of Hollywood and Malibu.

EDGE: Jeez! I can't keep up!

Rebecca Cantrell: I know, I write too many books in too many series, and it used to drive my agent crazy, but I can't help it. I love to read many different types of books, and I love to write them, too.

Just be aware, as a reader, that each series is very different from the others-Hannah is not Sofia, and neither one of them is Joe Tesla or Rhun Korza.

EDGE: I love that 'The Steel Shark' is a story in the mold of a classic 'boys own' adventure story, only largely crewed (if you will) with women. When working out the plot, did you kind of say to yourself, 'Okay, what are the really cool toys for an adventure story? Submarines... drones... high-tech weapons... exotic poisons...?'

Rebecca Cantrell: I wanted to give these women a chance to fight back. To do that, I decided to give them all the tools/toys men would have under similar circumstances -- a submarine, underwater rifles, a strong hacker, and a leader who didn't want to become a princess.

Laila's journey is a complicated one, and I wanted to give her a large backdrop on which to work. Plus, of course, Joe Tesla books always have interesting gadgets and cutting edge science.

EDGE: The fact that the lead antagonist is a woman is laudable in itself, but the fact that her motives are so complex and sympathetic makes her a fully dimensional and fascinating character. Is she a hero? Is she a villain who happens to have a noble cause? Is she justified in doing the things she's doing?

Rebecca Cantrell: They say 'every villain is a hero in their own story,' and Laila very much fits into this mold. Some of her goals are noble, some less so. Her past has left its marks on her, and she has her own demons to confront. But, like Joe or Vivian, she does the best she can with what she has to move forward in the world and seek her own freedom.

I'm not sure if every action she takes is justified, but by the end of the book I wanted the reader to wonder what the world would have been like if she hadn't acted so boldly and decisively.

What do you think about her? I can't judge her too harshly for what she did. What other options did she have? Where would she be if she'd followed the traditional path? As you can see, she raises a lot of questions for me, and hopefully for the reader, too.

EDGE: I don't remember the earlier books focusing as much on Vivian's perspective. The shift works really well, I think. Will Vivian and Joe be more equal partners when it comes to the points of view you choose when writing future Joe Tesla novels?

Rebecca Cantrell: It will depend on the story. Some stories will have more Vivian, some less. Some will have more Joe, some less. Edison, of course, will remain fairly constant.

I expect we'll see more of Vivian now that she and Joe have formed a partnership. She's a strong character, and she's not going to hide away. I like writing her -- she's funnier than Joe and spends more time out doing things than in her head.

EDGE: It's great how you give Vivian such a rich and realistic inner life; her assessment of various men she finds attractive worked especially well, because it gives us a partner for Tesla who's not just another woman colleague caught up in a budding workplace romance a la Mulder and Scully or the characters on 'Moonlighting.' Vivian has got options!

Rebecca Cantrell: She does indeed! Vivian is strong, fascinating, and funny. In the earlier books, she was recovering from her husband's death, but she's starting to come out of her shell to look around. And she sees a lot of possibilities!

I don't want the series to be about 'will she or won't she' with Joe. She respects him and cares for him, but there are a lot of men in New York, and most of them can go outside. She has her own goals and ideas -- not just his -- and I want to keep exploring what those are in future books.

EDGE: Another fascinating character who has chance to shine more brightly here is Alan who, like Tesla, is smart and wealthy -- but he's so rude and antagonistic! Yet, behind his insulting persona he's kind of a guardian angel for Joe Tesla. Do you have a sense for why he's so paradoxical, and why he's so willing to put himself out for Tesla's sake? Do you have bigger plans for him in upcoming stories?

Rebecca Cantrell: Alan was a pivotal figure in 'The Tesla Legacy,' and he and Joe will have a reckoning one day. I love how rude he can be! He's such a jerk. But he does help Joe a little in this story. I'm not sure if he did it to be kind or more because he had a morbid curiosity and wanted to [pursue ends of his own]. Alan has very odd motives for what he does. He's a dark mirror to Joe -- brilliant and troubled, but without Joe's compassion. I foresee a train wreck for those two. Or a submarine wreck. Or some other disaster.

EDGE: We can't ignore Tesla's amazingly smart, brave, resourceful service dog, Edison. As clever as Edison is, you let him be a dog. How do you find the balance there? I'm guessing you have a big dog or two that give you insights into canine behavior and intelligence.

Rebecca Cantrell: I had a dog as a child, Boris, who taught me who wonderful dogs can be, and I've done a lot of research on service dogs and their capabilities.

I work hard to let Edison be a dog and not a person in a fur suit. He's a good boy, and he does the best he can with his complicated and difficult human. But he does get lots of belly rubs and steaks, so it evens out.

Joe, of course, loves Edison just as much as Edison loves him. And, for all the worried readers, I won't ever kill the dog. In fact, I think he might have some kind of anti-aging potion, because I don't ever see him getting old and dying of natural causes either.

EDGE: By the way, I got a real kick out of Edison having his own diving suit. It never occurred to me a dog could be taught to scuba dive, but as it turns out, dogs -- and cats, too -- can and do dive with their human companions.

Rebecca Cantrell: Isn't that amazing? I'd initially thought that Edison would have to remain in the submarine during their adventures, but after I did some research, I discovered that he could be right out there in the ocean with Joe. That's where he'd want to be, after all.

The Internet abounds with films and written accounts of dogs (and cats) doing scuba. You can even get your dog NAUI-certified! NAUI is the diver certification agency that certified me -- although I'm much less trainable than Edison.

EDGE: Now that Tesla can venture out into the oceans, do you plan on taking him on more undersea adventures? Or will you maybe take him to other enclosed environments... a large mine, say, or an artificial habitat of some sort? 'Murder in the Mars Simulation!' What do you think?

Rebecca Cantrell: Hmmm... I think you'll have to wait and see!

I like the idea of Joe in a habitat. He'd do so much better than the other astronauts. Readers constantly send me pictures of other subway systems for him -- Berlin, London, Moscow, and even Los Angeles. He still has a lot of exploring to do.

"The Steel Shark" is available now. For more information on Rebecca Cantrell and her books, please go to http://www.rebeccacantrell.com