Article and Interview by Elise Cooper
All the Way Gone, the fourth book in the Detective Annalisa Vega series, delves into the world of sociopaths, wondering if there is such a thing as a good one.
The plot has newly minted private investigator Annalisa Vega hired by Mara Delaney who insists that some sociopaths are beneficial to society. Mara has even written a book titled The Good Sociopath centered around Chicago neurosurgeon Craig Canning, surgeon. But Mara is now concerned that Canning might not be such a good sociopath after all. A young woman in Canning’s apartment building mysteriously plunged to her death from a balcony, and Mara fears Canning could be responsible. She needs to uncover the truth about Canning before the book comes out, so Annalisa has little time to search for answers. Vega is hired to find the killer and see if Canning is responsible.
The book is very interesting and riveting.
Elise Cooper: How did you get the idea for the story—was there really a book?
Joanna Schaffhausen: There are lots of books about sociopathy, but I don’t know that there is one that focuses on the benefits to someone having sociopathic traits. My background is in psychology/neuroscience, so I have been interested in the idea of human conscience for many years now.
EC: Were you influenced by the TV series Dexter?
JS: No, I don’t count Dexter among my influences.
EC: Most of the male figures in this book were chauvinists including Nick and Paul and Canning and Miles—please explain.
JS: I do not think of Nick as a chauvinist. Or Miles either, really. They have other human frailties and sometimes make poor choices. Miles, let’s remember, was right about a lot of things in the end. As for the others, in a book about sociopaths, you’re going to see a lot of characters with sociopathic traits. Sociopaths aren’t sexist per se; they think everyone is beneath them, male or female.
EC: Is Vega going to stay as a PI? Please explain.
JS: I have no plans for her to rejoin the police force. So, yes.
EC: What is the role of Ruth Gold Bernstein?
JS: Ruth is the octogenarian living in Dr. Craig Canning’s building. She witnesses Vicki Albright’s fall from the balcony. It’s partly her story that makes Annalisa think there may be more to Vicki’s death than a simple accident.
EC: What is the role of Duchess the cat?
JS: Duchess is Ruth’s cat, who goes missing during the chaos following Vicki’s death. What happened to Duchess and why is the key to solving the whole mystery.
EC: How would you describe Canning?
JS: Craig Canning is an extremely successful neurosurgeon who has saved hundreds of lives. He is charismatic and funny, always sure he is the smartest person in any room. He does not like to be laughed at, shown up, or to lose at anything. He’s always looking out for himself and doesn’t value human connection. People are tools to be used, much like his surgeon’s scalpel.
EC: How would you describe Mara?
JS: Mara Delaney is the college professor who has written a book on Canning called “The Good Sociopath.” She argues that certain traits of sociopaths, such as their lack of empathy, can make them useful for doing hard jobs that require superficial emotion or technical skill over human connection—like a surgeon, for example.
EC: How would you define a sociopath?
JS: As it turns out, psychologists don’t actually use the term “sociopath.” In the clinical setting, it’s called antisocial personality disorder, meaning it’s a lifelong condition that is not likely to change much with treatment. People with this disorder are callous, lack empathy, feel superior to others, think primarily of themselves first. They may also be impulsive, thrill-seeking, less prone to fear, and disregard social norms. They can often mimic human emotions that they don’t really feel, such as sympathy or romantic attachment. Males are more likely than females to be diagnosed with antisocial personality disorder, but there certainly can be female “sociopaths.”
EC: Are most of the supporting characters in the book sociopaths?
JS: I’m not going to discuss who is and who isn’t a sociopath since that’s rather giving the game away. But suffice to say, no, most are not sociopaths. Sociopathy is a specific condition and not everyone who does a bad thing is a sociopath.
EC: How are you going to avoid jumping the shark if Vega turns out pregnant?
JS: This is a loaded question! I guess we’ll find out in book five…
EC: What is the role of the wind chimes?
JS: Vicki Albright was supposed to be hanging wind chimes on her balcony when she fell to her death. Wind chimes are one of Canning’s go-to gifts, which makes Mara suspect he might have had something to do with Vicki’s accident.
EC: Next book?
JS: The next book is Annalisa #5, and it’s due out on August 12, 2025. The title is Gone in the Night.
Annalisa Vega takes on the case of Joe Green, a prison inmate who may be innocent of murder. Joe is doing hard time for killing his ex-wife’s lawyer, but an anonymous letter warns that the eyewitness in Joe’s trial made up her story. When Annalisa starts poking around into Joe’s case, she immediately finds two problems: One, the eyewitness definitely lied about what she saw the night of the murder; and two, Annalisa’s husband Nick was the cop who arrested Joe in the first place.
Annalisa discovers Joe has two ex-wives with nothing good to say about him. The women may have orchestrated an elaborate frame to put Joe in prison, but one wife has completely disappeared since then. Did Joe somehow kill her? Or is he the real victim? Annalisa’s search for the truth tests the bounds of her marriage, her family, and her own sense of justice. Meanwhile, a devious killer keeps sending men to a watery death in the vastness of Lake Michigan. If Annalisa doesn’t figure out the truth about Joe soon, Nick may be next.
E: THANK YOU!!
