Judith Visser - Intriguing crime writer

Judith Visser

Judith Visser (1978) lives with her husband and two dogs near Rotterdam. Her first two novels Tinseltown and Antidote both won the Best Rotterdam Book of the Year award. Her thriller Broken was very well received and shortlisted for the prestigious De Gouden Strop prize. She continued this success with Crossing and Trip. Her latest thriller Time Out will be published in 2011.

Time Out (Time Out)

Kim is going through a difficult phase in life. After she confesses a shocking secret to her husband Manuel, he decides to call for a ‘time out’ in their relationship and leaves to stay with his family in Germany for an undetermined period. While he is away Kim runs into Martine, a friend from the past, and they swiftly become best friends. But soon it seems their meeting was not accidental at all and that Kim is the victim of Martine’s unhealthy obsessions.

Martine’s excessive compulsions lead to dangerous situations, with Kim ending up in hospital. The true surprise however, comes when Kim learns that Manuel has not been in Germany all this time. But she can’t start to guess what is really going on…

 

304 pages | ISBN 978-90-225-5969-7 | September 2011 

Kim is going through a difficult phase in life. After she confesses a shocking secret to her husband Manuel, he decides to call for a ‘time out’ in their relationship and leaves to stay with his family in Germany for an undetermined period. While he is away Kim runs into Martine, a friend from the past, and they swiftly become best friends. But soon it seems their meeting was not accidental at all and that Kim is the victim of Martine’s unhealthy obsessions.

Martine’s excessive compulsions lead to dangerous situations, with Kim ending up in hospital. The true surprise however, comes when Kim learns that Manuel has not been in Germany all this time. But she can’t start to guess what is really going on…

 

304 pages | ISBN 978-90-225-5969-7 | September 2011

Antidote (Tegengif)

Kim is nineteen years old and deeply in love with Edwin. When she finds out he has betrayed her she vows to never be disappointed like this again. To arm herself against future pain she is determined to create an immense dislike of men. Kim believes the best way to accomplish this is to become a prostitute.

In Antidote Judith Visser vividly describes the shady underworld of Rotterdam into which Kim descends.

Winner of the Best Book of Rotterdam Award of 2006. Revised and reissued in 2011.

256 pages | ISBN 978-90-225-5975-8 | September 2011

Press on Antidote:

‘The most remarkable debut of 2006.’ – Opzij

‘Antidote is a good read and gives a clear picture of the hidden world of prostitution.’ – Vriendin

Tinseltown (Tinseltown)

Kim is now a succesful author. Her fame has a downside to it: she receives scary, anonymous threats. Patricia, an old friend, invites her to come visit her in Los Angeles. But on arrival in LA Patricia is nowhere to be found. Kim searches for her in the clubs of Hollywood, the world where everything glitters and nothing is real. She soon realises Patricia has not been completely honest with her…

Winner of the Best Book of Rotterdam Award of 2007. Revised and reissued in 2011.

224 pages | ISBN 978-90-225-5976-5 | September 2011

Press on Tinseltown:

‘We are impressed. Judith Visser maintains a perfect balance between fiction and non-fcition. And her writing is fast paced so you will finish it in no-time.’ - Vrouw.nl

‘Well written pagturner on the dark sides of Hollywood.’ - Viva

Trip (Trip)

An absolute must read!

When seventeen year old Amber decides to visit her older cousin Stan in Rotterdam for a few weeks, she has no idea how dangerous this little trip will turn out to be. Amber soon discovers that Stan has a lot of secrets and she cannot avoid being drawn into his dangerous criminal activities.

One morning, her dog Yuriko has gone missing. Stan has sold him to a criminal involved with illegal dogfights. Amber will do everything in her power to get Yuriko back. Her search leads her into a shocking and very dangerous underworld, where not only her dog’s life is at stake, but her own too.

304 pages | ISBN 978-90-225-528-2 | September 2010

Crossing (Oversteken)

What if you wake up next to your loved one, you turn towards him – and he is dead? This is what happens to Tender, the protagonist in Crossing. In one single moment Tender’s fiancé is torn from her life. Only in her dreams can she be in touch with him, see him, hear him and feel him. Tender wanders further and further from reality, until her life takes a drastic turn…

Crossing is an intense and vividly written novel filled with psychological tension.

Crossing was awarded the Best Female Thriller prizeby the popular website www.vrouwenthrillers.nl

298 pages | ISBN 978-90-225-5224-7 | 2009

Broken (Stuk)

Elizabeth is sixteen years old and goes to the Mercator High School in Rotterdam. She is horribly bullied by a couple of classmates, but they manage to do so without anybody else noticing. Elizabeth’s parents have divorced a few years before and with her mother burying herself in her work to try and forget the pain, Elizabeth feels increasingly isolated. The only positive thing is her classmate Alec. He is a calm, handsome boy, and older and wiser than the other boys in her class. Alex is dating Riley, an exceptionally beautiful, blond and sweet girl and Elizabeth likes to imagine how her life would be if she was more like Riley…

Broken explores the dramatically changing thoughts and feelings of a traumatized teenager who is not only trying to deal with the daily, horrible humiliations she suffers, but also with her feelings of loneliness, insecurity, and anger. What happens when Elizabeth chooses to unleash her unbridled imagination and exacts her revenge to bring her powerlessness to an end?

Broken was on the shortlist of De Gouden Strop, the foremost Dutch award for the best thriller of the year.

Broken has sold over 25,000 copies since publication, and is being made into a play.

302 pages | ISBN 978-90-225-5087-8 | 2008