Thomas Wörtche, born in 1954, is a literary scholar, critic, and was director of several crime fiction publishing imprints. He is currently responsible for a crime line with Suhrkamp Verlag. He lives in Berlin.Rob Alef, born in 1965 in Nuremberg, is a freelance legal historian. He writes satirical texts for taz and other newspapers. He is the author of several highly acclaimed crime novels inspired by Berlin's mad everyday life, featuring elements of horror and fantasy and a hint of the grotesque. His most recent publication was Immer schön gierig bleiben (2013). Alef lives in Pankow, Berlin.Max Annas was born in 1963 in Cologne. He is a journalist, film critic, nonfiction author, and novelist. With his three award-winning novels--Die Farm, Die Mauer, and Illegal--he has developed a distinctive voice and is widely regarded as one of the finest German-language crime fiction writers. His latest thriller is called Finsterwalde (2018). After many years in South Africa, he now lives and works in Berlin.Zoë Beck, born in 1975, writes, translates, and manages the CulturBooks publishing house together with Jan Karsten. She studied English and German literature in Giessen, Bonn, and Durham. Subsequently, she was a creative producer for international TV films. Since 2004 she has been an editor, dialogue writer, and director for dubbed productions. Many of her novels have won awards and have been translated into several languages. She is one of most celebrated German-language crime fiction writers. Her most recent novel is Die Lieferantin (Suhrkamp, 2017).Katja Bohnet, born in 1971, studied film theory and philosophy. She has traveled widely and has had many jobs, living for a long time in Berlin, Paris, and the United States before moving to the countryside. She is a former TV presenter and author. Since 2012, she has been a full-time writer. Messertanz was her first, highly acclaimed crime novel. Her most recent is Kerkerkind (2018).