Mantel was regarded as one of the greatest English-language novelists of this century, winning the Booker Prize twice, for Wolf Hall and its sequel, Bring Up the Bodies, which also won the 2012 Costa Book of the Year. The conclusion to her groundbreaking Wolf Hall trilogy, The Mirror & the Light, was published in 2020 to critical acclaim, became a Sunday Times bestseller and was longlisted for the 2020 Booker Prize. Her publicist confirmed that she died on Thursday “suddenly but peacefully”, surrounded by close family and friends. When asked by the Financial Times earlier this month if she believed in an afterlife, Mantel said she did but that she couldn’t imagine how it might work. “However, the universe is not limited by what I can imagine,” he said. Ben Hamilton, who has been Mantel’s agent throughout her career, said it was “the greatest privilege” to work with the author. “Her wit, stylistic daring, creative ambition, and astonishing historical insight make her one of the greatest novelists of our time.” “Emails from Hillary were peppered with quips and quips as she observed the world with delight and fell on the lazy or unreasonable and nailed cruelty and prejudice,” he added. “There was always a slight aura of otherness about her as she saw and felt things us mere mortals missed, but when she sensed the need for a confrontation, she fearlessly went into battle.” To date the Wolf Hall trilogy has sold more than five million copies worldwide and has been translated into 41 languages. Earlier this month HarperCollins published The Wolf Hall Picture Book, a photo book by Mantel and authors Ben Miles and George Miles. The author experienced chronic illness throughout her adult life, having a severe form of endometriosis that left her unable to have children. “Sometimes people try to convince me that it somehow made me a better writer, or that it means I could keep people away. But I’d rather face the world than face the pain and uncertainty that comes with it,” she told The Times in 2012. More to come
