It’s hard to imagine the world of thrillers without Frederick Forsyth. The man who brought us the chilling tale of “The Day of the Jackal” and captivated readers with his pulse-pounding stories, passed away at the age of 86.
His death, announced by his literary agent, Jonathan Lloyd, leaves a void in the world of literature. Forsyth, a British author born in 1938, lived a life as thrilling as the stories he wrote. After serving as a Royal Air Force pilot, he became a foreign correspondent, covering the attempted assassination of French President Charles de Gaulle in 1962. That event, a real-life plot twist, became the inspiration for his most famous work, “The Day of the Jackal,” a story that shot him to global fame when it was published in 1971.
Forsyth’s stories weren’t just about intrigue, though. He lived a life full of it himself. He admitted to working for MI6, the British intelligence agency, for many years, starting in the 1960s during his coverage of the Nigerian Civil War. He described it as a duty, something he felt compelled to do during the Cold War. He wrote more than 25 books, including “The Afghan,” “The Kill List,” and “The Dogs of War,” selling over 75 million copies worldwide.
And while Forsyth’s legacy will live on in his books, his final story, “Revenge of Odessa,” a sequel to his 1974 book, “The Odessa File,” will be published this August, written with fellow thriller author Tony Kent. It’s a fitting tribute to a man who defined the genre, leaving behind a legacy of suspense and intrigue that continues to captivate readers decades later.
Content adapted by the team from the original source: https://www.cnn.com/2025/06/10/uk/frederick-forsyth-has-died-after-illness-intl-hnk
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