AUTHOR CJ Sansom has died at the age of 71, his publisher announced.
The writer is famous for creating the character of Matthew Shardlake.
He was the star of his historical mystery series set in the reign of Henry VIII in the 16th century.
The books have inspired a TV show which is set to air on Disney+ from next month.
It will star Arthur Huges as Matthew Shardlake and Sean Bean and Thomas Cromwell.
Tributes are now pouring in for the talented writer.
One fan wrote: “Such a tragic loss. CJ Sansom was one of the finest ever writers of historical fiction.
“He was an inspiration to me and to many others. We are poorer without him.”
Another added: “Very sad to hear of the passing of CJ Sansom, one of my favourite authors and a master of historical fiction.”
A third added: “Oh this is immensely sad. CJ Sansom was a titan. His Shardlake books – a long-anticipated adaptation of which starts this week on Disney+ – revolutionised the genre when they started in the mid-2000s.
“They remain the milestone by which all other historical fiction is judged. RIP.”
Publisher Pan Macmillan shared the heartbreaking news today.
It wrote online: “It is with immense sadness that Pan Macmillan announces the death of C.J. Sansom at the age of 71.”
His longtime editor and publisher, Maria Rejt, has said: “‘An intensely private person, Chris wished from the very start only to be published quietly and without fanfare.
“But he always took immense pleasure in the public’s enthusiastic responses to his novels and worked tirelessly on each book, never wanting to disappoint a single reader.
“He was working on his new Shardlake novel, Ratcliff, when he died but his worsening health made progress painfully slow: his meticulous historical research and his writing were always so important to him.
“I shall miss him hugely, not only as a wonderfully talented writer who gave joy to millions, but as a dear friend of enormous compassion and integrity.”
Lucy Hale, Managing Director, Pan added: “We are immensely saddened to hear of Chris’s death: it has been our profound privilege and pleasure to be Chris’s publisher from the very beginning, and Pan Macmillan will continue to celebrate him and introduce many more readers to his extraordinary body of work for many years to come. We are all thinking of his friends at this very difficult time.”