Esther Verhoef was born in 1968 and gained recognition for her critically acclaimed action thrillers Restless and Under Pressure. She is also the author of Close-Up, which was shortlisted for the 2007 Golden Noose for best thriller of the year.
Alexander Smith (born 1984) graduated from Cambridge University in Modern and Medieval Languages in 2006. He has lived and worked in the Netherlands, Japan and South Korea.