Rob Lassche is a fourth year Ph.D. student in Latin American Cultural and Literary Studies. He completed both his undergraduate and master's degree at Leiden University, The Netherlands. While his first years of study mainly revolved around Brazilian culture, literature, sociopolitical context, and the Portuguese language, he turned to Spanish-speaking America during his graduate studies—with special attention to Mexico and Cuba. His current dissertation project focuses on the study of space, affect, and violence in the literary production from Ciudad Juárez, Mexico.