Foreign Rights fiction Frankfurt 2012

FOREIGN RIGHTS BROCHURE Frankfurt 2012

FICTION

atlas contact * ambo|anthos * artemis & co For more information please contact: Ut a Matten

e-mail: umatten@atlascontact.nl or umatten@amboanthos.nl

Foreign Rights

phone: 0031-20 524 98 41 Rights office:

Atlas Contact Publishers Ambo|Anthos Publishers / Artemis & co

Herengracht 481

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1017 b t Amsterdam

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the Netherlands

Table of c ontents

Nelleke Noordervliet * Free Man 3 Esther Verhoef * Backlight 4 Oek de Jong * Pier and Ocean 5 Philip Snijder * The Gift 6 Lieneke Dijkzeul * What Remains 7 Peter Delpeut * The Third Degree 8 Josha Zwaan * Parnassia 9 A.H.J. Dautzenberg * Extra Time 10 Sofia van der Sluis * Middlewoman 11 Henk Rijks * Incognito 12 Dimitri Verhulst * Monologue of Someone Accustomed to Talking to Herself 13 Rob van Essen * Everything Will Be Fine 14 P.F. ThomĂŠse * The Noodle Conspiracy 15 Anton Valens * Man&Post 16 Stefan Brijs * Post for Mrs. Bromley 16 Mensje van Keulen * Love Has No Brain 17 Herman Koch * Odessa Star 17

HigHLigHT – HiSTORicAL FicTiON

‘...scenes painted with the verve of a Dutch old master painting.’

N E L L E K E N O O R D E RV L i E T

Free Man HIGHLIGHTED BY THE DUTCH FOUNDATION FOR LITERATURE

At the height of the Dutch Golden Age, the story of Menno Molenaar unfolds. A lawyer, a physician, and a double agent, he has thrown off the chains of religion. But without a new compass to guide him, he is lost.

Menno Molenaar, a passionate young freethinker, moves between worlds: the household of the successful English merchant Henry Dixon and his love-starved wife, the circle of radical students and intellectuals around Spinoza, and the political web surrounding Johan de Witt in The Hague, where Menno earns his living. Dixon uses his connections to launch Menno’s career but demands a steep price: Menno must risk his life to act as Dixon’s spy. When the pressure from Dixon becomes too great, he commits a decisive act of extreme violence and flees to the New World. There, he tries to make peace with his turbulent past and put his concept of freedom into practice. But ideals are elusive things, and the past cannot be buried.

The author Nelleke Noordervliet is also part of the novel, walking beside Menno Molenaar through the scenery of his life. She writes his story, but can she ever be certain about the past, or understand its true meaning? Isn’t she just seeing what she expects to see: the problems of her century, projected onto his?

New, atlas Contact, historical novel, 464 pages, May 2012

* sample translation available *

Press on FREE MAN

‘Noordervliet’s goal is to overturn the musty image of the Golden Age and the historical clichés that go with it... She is thoroughly successful, vividly evoking daily life in the Golden Age in scenes painted with the verve of a Dutch old master painting.’ – NrC haNdelsblad ‘Enlightenment, social unrest, personal life – all equally fascinating, written with empathy and a keen sense of detail. But the message of this novel is the relative impossibility of knowing anything about history.’ – trouw ‘When people claim the novel is dead, don’t defend it with essays. Instead, give them a book like Free Man. After they read it, if they still believe in the death of the novel, then you’ll know they’re beyond help.’

– **** hP/de tijd

Nelleke Noordervliet (1945) debuted in 1987 and since then she has written numerous novels, novellas and essays. Noordervliet was recognised early in her career as a leading contemporary dutch writer. her novel the name of the Father, 1993 was awarded the Multatuli Prize and nominated for the european literature Prize. the eye of the angel was nominated for the ako literature Prize, and out of Paradise was shortlisted for the libris literature Prize.

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BESTSELLER – FicTiON

What if losing the love of your life is the only way you’ll ever find real love?

ESTHER VERHOEF

Backlight THE NEW NOVEL BY BESTSELLING AUTHOR ESTHER VERHOEF MORE THAN 100,000 COPIES SOLD IN THE NETHERLANDS

Vera Zagt does not have an easy childhood. Her father, a former soldier, maintains a strict regime at home, her mother is in a psychiatric clinic and young Vera is brutally bullied at school.

As an adult Vera’s self-image is still damaged, but when her marriage begins to crumble she panics and embarks on an affair.

In a series of events Vera loses grip on her carefully constructed life. Will her fear become reality, has she inherited her mother’s illness, will she too fall into insanity? With all the walls around her breaking down, she gets help from an unexpected corner.

Can she learn to trust, and accept the hand that is offered?

In short, haunting chapters, best-selling Dutch author Esther Verhoef takes us on a journey into Vera’s difficult childhood, interspersed with chapters in which we follow the adult Vera as she moves inexorably towards her fate.

New, anthos, novel, 563 pages, april 2012

* Brochure available in english * * rights sold: btb verlag (Germany) *

Press

‘Best-selling author Esther Verhoef keeps expanding her horizons.’ – trouw ‘Esther Verhoef is clearly part of our country’s literary elite.’

– alGeMeeN daGblad

‘A new Verhoef is always good news and it looks like she is getting better and better. Here is another excellent piece of cleverly structured suspense, astute psychology and crystal-clear narrative style.’ – liNda. ‘Verhoef always hits the right note as she conveys evil, temptation and confrontation, as well as vulnerability, introversion and love in its many guises.’ – de VolkskraNt ‘Backlight is the gripping story of a woman trying to escape her troubledchildhood. Utterly compelling and with a narrative arc that’s reminiscent of a thriller.’ – jaN ‘With Backlight Esther Verhoef proves that she does not just write good thrillers. Her descriptions of helplessness, temptation and resilience are painfully accurate. A touching novel.’ – ViVa ‘After her successful thrillers Esther Verhoef has now written a very incisive psychological novel.’ – red

Esther Verhoef has won many awards and is one of holland’s bestselling authors. her literary thrillers include rendez vous, close-up, everything to lose and déjà-vu, for which she was awarded the most prestigious dutch readers’ prize, the Ns Publieksprijs. in the Netherlands more than 1.3 million copies of her books have been sold and her work has been translated into six languages. Backlight is her first novel.

anthos

H i g hl i g ht – f i c t i on

From famine to prosperity, a novel of great longing.

The magnum opus of Oek de Jong O ek de J on g

Pier and Ocean Pier and Ocean is Oek de Jong’s magnum opus. In eight hundred pages he recounts the history of Abel Roorda, his parents and grandparents, and the great changes the Netherlands underwent in the period between the famine of 1944 and the economic boom of the Sixties.

Abel Roorda must learn to deal with his parents’ tragic marriage and his strong but tormented Frisian grandfather, trapped a fen ­village, a loner like himself. He must detach himself from a family to which he belongs in the depths his being.

Pier and Ocean is not only a family history, but a novel about love and Dutch waters.

From motionless peat lakes to the sea that rushes through the breakwaters on the beaches of Zeeland. Abel Roorda is drawn to the water, just like his father and grandfather.

FORTHCOMING, Atlas Contact, novel, two parts, 832 pages, October 2012

* English brochure in preparation *

Press on previous work

‘One of the finest novels I’ve read.’

– het Parool about Billowing Summer Frocks

‘The book has the potential to be a classic, a solid benchmark for future literature.’ – Trouw about Circle in the Grass ‘Scene after scene in Hokwerda’s Child burns itself onto your retina.’

– Vrij Nederland about Hokwerda’s Child

‘Well written and evocative.’

– de Volkskrant about Letter to a Young Atlas

Oek de Jong (1952) was editor of De Revisor and taught at the universities of Leiden and Berlin.

De Jong is considered one of the most important authors in the Dutch language. He wrote the acclaimed novels Billowing Summer Frocks, Circle in the Grass and Hokwerda’s Child, as well as essay collections including A Man Who Jumps Into the Future and Letter to a Young Atlas. Oek de Jong worked on Pier and Ocean for more than eight years.

atlas contact

FicTiON

A young man imagines a life for his dying father PHiLiP SNiJDER

The Gift A young man visits his father, who has only a short time left to live, in hospital. The father has one last request – that his son meet the grandfather in Groningen he has never known. The father fell out with him after an argument thirty years ago and has not seen him since. The son promises to fulfil his father’s dying wish, but keeps postponing the meeting until eventually he has only a few days left.

In an eventful weekend that takes him from a retirement home in Amsterdam to a canal village in East Groningen, he reconstructs his father’s life. Using his imagination and without even meeting the grandfather, he creates a fantastical gift to give to his father in his final moments: revealing the grandfather’s life secret. Scene by scene, the story unfolds in his head. It must be ready by Sunday evening.

New, atlas Contact, novel, 224 pages, september 2012

* sample translation available *

Press

‘Literary gold.’ – de VolkskraNt ‘[...] an absolutely wonderful chapter – “The Canoe” – which is among the best in Dutch literature that I have read in recent years.’

– NrC haNdelsblad

‘Once again it is exceptionally good. Once again it possesses that exceptionally high literary quality. The power of Snijder’s prose is evident in both his simple but highly effective style and in the meticulous description of authentic experiences and details.’ **** – de VolkskraNt

‘Charming and cleverly written. Promise fulfilled.’ – het Parool ‘A gift.’ – **** de VolkskraNt ‘A very well written story about a son who wants to meet his ailing father shortly before his death.’ – het Parool

Philip Snijder (1956) debuted in 2007 with Sunday money, which was nominated for the academica debut Prize and is now in its tenth printing. 2011 saw the publication of his second novel return to Palermo, chosen as best novel of the year by hP/ de tijd.

atlas contact

cRiME

Inspector Vegter delves into a new case where power and distrust threaten to prevail LiENEKE DiJKZEUL

What Remains Businessman Richard Verkallen is found dead, covered with snow, in an idyllic winter landscape. It soon emerges that Verkallen was not exactly well-liked: not among his relatives, not at work and not even within his own family, who were upset when he married a black woman. Somali Asli is desperate. After many years, she is tired of fighting against ignorance and discrimination and wants to go home. But how would she survive there with her disabled son?

New, anthos, literary thriller (series), 280 pages, august 2012

Inspector Paul Vegter is put on the case and soon discovers that Verkallen kept a mistress for many years, but got rid of her shortly before his death.

While fate may sometimes be unjust, it is always unavoidable.

Nobody knows this better than the contemplative Vegter, who is desperately trying to get his life back on track.

Press on Previous work

‘You’d think Inspector Paul Vegter had walked straight out of a Scandinavian thriller, such a deeply human policeman is he, the sort you can only hope to exist in real life.’ – NrC haNdelsblad ‘One of the Netherlands’ best thriller writers.’ – leeuwarder CouraNt ‘The Silent Sin is a model of intelligent craftsmanship.’ – het Parool ‘Dijkzeul’s fourth thriller is the best so far. Her masterful storytelling adds value to the excellent plot.’ – de teleGraaF ‘If thriller-writing is a craft, The Scent of Rain is a masterpiece.’

– NrC haNdelsblad

Lieneke Dijkzeul (1950) writes children’s books, thrillers and screenplays. the Silent Sin, the first book to feature the character of inspector Vegter, was nominated for the diamond bullet. the second, cold Spring, was nominated in 2008 for the Golden Noose. this was followed by the Scent of rain, nominated for both awards. in 2011 the lost Son was published, also to high acclaim. in Germany, the series featuring inspector Vegter is published by dtV.

anthos literary thriller

FicTiON

An agonizing quest for truth in a Dutch winter landscape PETER DELPEUT

The Third Degree The body of a baby is found in the countryside of the North of Holland. A girl of seventeen is arrested. She bears the marks of a horrendous childbirth, but she won’t speak.

Detective Martin Jansen has the gift of getting any suspect to talk.

On Christmas Day when a colleague asks him to help, he cannot refuse, even though he is supposed to visit his demented mother on her deathbed in a nursing home. He steps into the interrogation room and sees a girl who looks exactly like his ex-lover Kirstin, the woman he was passionately trying to forget.

In The Third Degree, Delpeut evokes the tension and icy cold demeanour of a man who has cut himself off from his past, where a dominant mother, a sport-obsessed girlfriend and a disastrous holiday on Sicily hold him captive.

The Third Degree plays with the genre of the policier, but is above all a psychological novel about loss and mourning, with images and scenes that cannot be erased.

ForthCoMiNG, atlas Contact, novel, 208 pages, october 2012

* sample translation available *

Press on Previous work

‘Apart from Delpeut’s other talents, he once again has a very good eye and succeeds in turning what he sees before him into compelling, evocative prose. Excellent work.’ – het Parool ‘The characters are consistently and confidently developed, the dialogue sharp and humorous and the descriptions of nature evocative. And – not least – the book as a whole is also historically and scientifically responsible. In short, Delpeut’s first-fruit is one to frame.’ – de VolkskraNt

Peter Delpeut (1956) is a filmmaker and writer. he writes for various dutch newspapers and magazines and has published the essays a Short Philosophy of cycling, in defence of dawdling and the novel the Forgotten Season, which was long listed for the libris literature Prize 2007, nominated for the Gerard walschap Prize 2007 and awarded the halewijn Prize 2007.

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HigHLigHT BAcKLiST

Heartbreaking J O S H A Z WA A N

Parnassia In 1942 the persecution of Jews is becoming increasingly severe also in the Netherlands. Little Rivka is lodged by her parents with a childless minister and his wife in Zeeland, who take care of her lovingly. Rivka becomes Anneke and the story goes her parents were killed in the bombing of Rotterdam. Gradually she starts to feel increasingly at home with her new ‘mum and dad’. When her father and little brother turn up on the doorstep to collect Rivka after the liberation, she no longer recognises them and chooses a new life as Anneke. As an adult she falls head over heels in love with Joost, who later turns out to have a Jewish background just like her. The birth of their own children unleashes a seemingly unending torrent of repressed feelings and memories in both Joost and Anneke. While Joost increasingly begins to turn to the Jewish faith, Anneke distances herself from him and her family.

She proves unable to love her children and build a life with others.

artemis & co, novel, 304 pages, october 2010

* German Translation available rights sold: Bloomsbury Berlin (Germany) *

Press

‘Cleverly written and heartbreaking portrait.’ – esta ‘This disconcerting and intriguing novel goes beyond the theme of war.

Praise for the debutant.’– reForMatorisCh daGblad ‘Disconcerts and captivates until the end.’ – boekblad

Josha Zwaan (1963) lives and works in Zutphen. she writes articles and essays for trade journals and newspapers.

Parnassia is her debut novel. she based her novel on historical facts: in the postwar Netherlands it was often considered better for jewish children who had been in hiding to stay with their Christian adoptive parents than to return to their own families.

artemis & co

FicTiON

Football, cowboys and farewell to life in an irresistible novel A.H.J. DAUTZENBERg

Extra Time Seventy-year-old Gustavus Meulenberg has just weeks to live.

He has reconciled himself to this fate. What he cannot stomach, however, is the fact that his favourite football team is in danger of relegation. In order to support Roda JC in its relegation battle, he tries to delay his death as long as possible.

His son Marcel has his own reasons for prolonging his father’s life. To this end he not only battles reality, but also encounters a mysterious, black-clad cowboy. Moreover, Marcel discovers a bizarre family secret, which casts his father’s childhood – and therefore his own childhood and that of his twin brother – in a new light.

New, atlas Contact, novel, 224 pages, august 2012

Extra Time is not only a moving novel about football but also a psychological portrait of a working-class family in distress.

With his clear and authoritative style, A.H.J. Dautzenberg takes the reader by the scruff of the neck and sweeps him along to a nail-biting finale.

Press

‘Extra Time is an almost painfully direct book, unadorned, unvarnished.’ (*****) NrC haNdelsblad ‘Extra Time is totally original.’ – de VolkskraNt ‘A.H.J. Dautzenberg is the discovery of the past publishing season.’ – het FiNaNCieele daGblad

‘Or are we dealing here with a writer who dares do what so few Dutch authors dare: delve into the most difficult moral issues of our time through the subversive power of literature (...) Dautzenberg isn’t ashamed to show his vulnerable side, (...) what he then does with that is so skilful and moving, that after finishing the last page of Extra Time there need be no doubt about Dautzenberg’s authenticity: this is a writer par excellence.’ ***** – NrC.NeXt

A.H.J. Dautzenberg (1967) is one of the most controversial writers of the moment. he made his debut eighteen months ago with the acclaimed short story collection Birds with Black Feet can’t Be devoured. this was soon followed by the novel Samaritan (2011), about dautzenberg’s own kidney donation – he donated a kidney anonymously.

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cRiME

A sizzling psychological pageturner S O F i A VA N D E R S L U i S

Middlewoman Freelance editor Margot Houtman, 43 and single, is sick and tired of her urban life and moves to a suburb of Amsterdam. In this neighbourhood there is still a sense of solidarity and you can hear the birds sing. She befriends some of her neighbours, including the mysterious Scarlett and her ruggedly handsome boyfriend Bram.

When Scarlett is brutally murdered, the suspect is quickly found: a mentally retarded man who leers at women in the park and was crazy about Scarlett. But Margot, a lover of Japanese horror, believes he is innocent, convinced all the more because she has been visited every night since the murder by a ‘yurei’ who she suspects to be Scarlett’s ghost.

Meanwhile, Margot comforts the distraught Bram and slowly something beautiful starts to blossom between them. However, she cannot forget Scarlett’s death: she begins to investigate and inches dangerously closer to the terrible truth.

ForthCoMiNG, artemis & co, thriller, 256 pages, october 2012

Middlewoman is a thrilling novel about an impossible love in a seemingly quiet suburb. In clear, pacey prose, Van der Sluis draws the reader into the story and skilfully cranks up the tension.

Press

‘With Middlewoman Sofia van der Sluis proves that tension and humour do indeed go together. An extremely sharp portrait of an Amsterdam suburb.’ – herMaN koCh

Sofia van der Sluis worked in publishing for many years. today she lives in italy with her family.

artemis & co

FicTiON

Doesn’t everyone dream of a different life?

HENK RiJKS

Incognito Former boy band idol Jimmy Hauser is thirty-three, world famous, and deeply unhappy. Even his position atop the Forbes list of highest paid entertainers cannot change this. Devoid of inspiration, but besieged by fans, managers and paparazzi, his only glimpse of the real world is from the stage. He has not had a normal life since the age of sixteen. Then one summer he is given the chance to live as a regular Joe for a month. Anonymous and guaranteed paparazzi-free.

ForthCoMiNG, atlas Contact, novel, 288 pages, september 2012

As if through the eyes of a feral child, he hesitantly explores the world around him. And then, when the time comes for him to return to his existence as an international star, something happens that will change his life forever.

Press over Previous work:

‘The author bowls you over, and overwhelms you with hip dialogue, flowing phrases and witty, yet cynical scenes.’ – de VolkskraNt ‘Tonk Lexmond could have been a character in a Nick Hornby novel.’

– de Pers

Henk Rijks (1962) worked as a journalist for outlets such as het FiNaNCieele daGblad and bNr Nieuwsradio . he made his debut in 2010 with the exciting and uncompromising novel the Breadwinner, for which the film rights were sold within two months of publication.

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FicTiON

The golden boy of Flemish literature DiMiTRi VERHULST

Monologue of Someone Accustomed to Talking to Herself It is not easy to be Senegalese, or a prostitute. Seynabou is both.

She satisfies boorish tourists, regularly fends off slurred marriage proposals and is destined for an inglorious life. That is, until a customer dies in rather suspicious circumstances during a night of paid love – and this customer turns out to be a world-famous cyclist.

atlas Contact, novel, 96 pages, 2011

* rights sold: Covadonga verlag (Germany) *

Press

‘In Monologue of Someone Accustomed to Talking to Herself Verhulst harks back to an older style. [...] The combination of a real-life tragedy is intriguing. Far removed from his own biography, Verhulst dares to go further by embellishing reality yet, more importantly, without losing his mastery of language [...] a proof of his skill and a proof of his love for racing, a fondness he has shown in the past. There goes Dimitri, racing through Wallonia, his hands beneath the handlebars. The golden boy of Flemish literature.’ – 8weeklY

Dimitri Verhulst (1972) has published a book every year since his debut in 1999 – each one roundly praised – and in 2006 he made his breakthrough with his novel de helaasheid der dingen (the Misfortunates). the book has won several awards and so far more than 200,000 copies have been sold. it has also been filmed and screened in europe in 2009/2010. in 2009 his book goddamn days on a goddamn globe was awarded the libris literature Prize. in 2010 my mother’s last love was published and 2011 saw the release of christ’s entry into Brussels. dimitri Verhulst’s work has already found its way abroad in twenty-three languages.

atlas contact

FicTiON

Parents and children, fidelity and infidelity, love and sex and other disturbed illusions R O B VA N E S S E N

Everything Will Be Fine Laura ends up at the police station after leaving her elderly father out in the rain. It is the start of a bizarre week. Her husband Rudolf promises to pick her up from the police station, but loses control of the car on the way. In shock and disorientated, he knocks on the door of the nearest house. A strange group of people give him shelter in an old country house that reminds him strongly of the boarding school he attended. Laura is equally disorientated. She has no clue where her husband is and why she left her helpless father in the rain. Searching for answers, the first thing she finds is Rudolf’s pregnant mistress in their holiday home.

Strange encounters and surprising developments prove to be a test of Laura and Rudolf’s mettle, forcing them to re-examine their past, their behaviour and their marriage, without any indication of what lies in store at the end of this rollercoaster.

New, atlas Contact, novel, 384 pages, september 2012

Everything Will Be Fine is a novel about disturbed illusions, parents and children, fidelity and infidelity, love and sex, and life that must be lived without the guarantee that everything will turn out all right.

Press on Previous work

‘The word “masterpiece” is overused nowadays. For Visser it is the only correct term.’ – de staNdaard

‘A sublime novel about an overheated society.’

– jurY rePort libris literature PriZe

Rob van Essen (1963) has written six novels, a chronicle about his father and a collection of short stories. he covers anglo-saxon literature for NrC haNdelsblad . his novel Visser was nominated in 2009 for the libris literature Prize.

atlas contact

FicTiON

The Noodle Conspiracy: the long-awaited follow-up to J. Kessels: The Novel: not better, but definitely hotter!

P. F. T H O M É S E

The Noodle Conspiracy It all started because of the Chinese takeaway around the corner of Mult Street in Tilburg-North, where J. Kessels developed ‘romantic feelings’ for the new, sexually precocious niece of the owner when collecting his regular takeaway noodles.

An old friend of J. Kessels persuades the reluctant author to follow J. Kessels’ dick to China’s horny hotspot. It is, as expected, like looking for a fucking needle in the proverbial haystack. And the noodles are gross. Quite unlike in Tilburg.

Fortunately, Bernadette “call me Det” van Rooij from the town of Aarle-Rixtel is on hand with ‘that fucking gorgeous arse of hers’ to keep the bashful P.F. Thomése temporarily out of trouble.

ForthCoMiNG, atlas Contact, novel, 256 pages, November 2012

Press on Previous work

‘It is precisely that amalgam of satire and seriousness that makes A Girl of His Own an exceptionally exciting and challenging work of literature.’ – trouw ‘A Girl of His Own is above all the book in which Thomése surpasses his best work to date.’ – NrC haNdelsblad ‘Shadow Child is a disconcerting and magnificent literary document.’

– die Zeit P.F. Thomése (1958) was awarded the ako literature Prize in 1991 for his debut Southland.

Shadow child (2003) spent several weeks in the top ten, was nominated for the Ns readers’ book of the Year award, and was longlisted for the libris literature Prize. the book was his international breakthrough and was published in more than twenty languages. since then he has written novels, short stories, essays and novellas to wide acclaim, several of which were nominated for major literary prizes. these include Vladivostok and J. kessels: the novel.

2010 saw the publication of his masterful novel a girl of his own.

atlas contact

SELEcTED BAcKLiST

Valens makes you chuckle every few pages A N T O N VA L E N S

Man&Post ‘I’ll open your post and you open mine. We’ll file it away together.

Shared post is half post.’

For Isebrand Schut, the transition from the guilder to the euro marks the beginning of the financial ice age. After being dismissed from his job in a call centre, he tries to get his life back on track by setting up a support group. The ambitions of the members of Man & Post, however, go beyond reorganising their paperwork: the Limburger Jean-Luc wants to get ridn social scene, and the leader Ebel Formsma steps into the breach in the toilets under the market square.

When the flamboyant and wealthy management consultant Meckering joins the group, Isebrand is lifted out of his inertia. Meckering, with his phenomenal, inimitable rhetoric, takes him on a long journey to the origins of the prefix ‘de-’.

New, atlas Contact, novel, 349 pages, February 2012, * sample translation available *

A story about courage and cowardice, hope and friendship, loss and longing.

S T E FA N B R i J S

Post for Mrs. Bromley “I don’t know if you’ve already heard, but our country is in desperate need of heroes. True heroes.”

August 1914. In London thousands of young men are registering to fight the Germans. Martin Bromley, at seventeen too young for the army, tries to persuade John Patterson, two years his senior, to join up with him, but John doesn’t want to give up his dream of going to university. He eventually manages to trick his way to the front, and John stays behind in the city where the pressure on those who refuse to fight is rising.

Post for Mrs Bromley is a moving novel about parents and children in times of war. A story about courage and cowardice, hope and friendship, loss and longing.

atlas Contact, novel, 508 pages, october 2011

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* english sample translation available rights sold: BTB-verlag (Germany), editions Héloïse d’ormesson (France) * atlas contact

SELEcTED BAcKLiST

Love Has No Brain is a powerful novel about the many facets of love M E N S J E VA N K E U L E N

Love Has No Brain The young widow Romy suspects her neighbour Irma, an elderly ballet dancer, to be the victim of a robbery. To her horror, the first person that comes to mind is her own son. She calls in Harro, the warden. He doesn’t let on that he has different ideas about the incident, and his chivalrous attitude is not entirely altruistic.

New, atlas Contact, novel, 190 pages, February 2012, * sample translation available *

atlas contact

Thrilling novel by the master builder of plots HERMAN KOcH

Odessa Star Fred Moorman dreams of a black Jeep Cherokee and a new circle of friends. His life is stuck in a rut. It has been years since his son looked up to him and his wife daydreams about her life after his death.

Then he bumps into Max G., an old friend who was rumoured to deal drugs when they were at school together. Max impresses Fred with his mate Richard H., his stunning women and his convertible. Fred sees his chance.

anthos, 304 pages, january 2009 * rights sold: kiepenheuer & witsch (Germany) *

anthos