Acclaimed British writer Martin Amis has died aged 73 at his home in Lake Worth, Florida.
The renowned novelist and screenwriter published a series of novels and non-fiction works during his lifetime, with his best-known arguably being 1984’s Money and 1989’s London Fields.
“We are devastated at the death of our author and friend, Martin Amis: novelist, essayist, memoirist, critic, stylist supreme,” publisher Vintage Books said.
“It has been a profound privilege and pleasure to be his publisher; first as Jonathan Cape in 1973, with his explosive debut, The Rachel Papers; then as part of Penguin Random House and Vintage, up to and including his most recent book, 2020’s Inside Story.”
His novel Time’s Arrow was shortlisted for the Booker Prize while his 2003 novel Yellow Dog was also longlisted.
The official Twitter account of The Booker Prize described him as “one of the most acclaimed and discussed novelists of the past 50 years” following the news.
“We are saddened to hear that Martin Amis, one of the most acclaimed and discussed novelists of the past 50 years, has died,” it said on Twitter.
“Our thoughts are with his family and friends.”
In 1973, he published his first novel aged 24, The Rachel Papers, while working as an editorial assistant at the Times Literary Supplement.
He joined the New Statesman as their literary editor at age 27 and was appointed as a professor of creative writing at the University of Manchester in 2007, before stepping down in 2011.
In his work he explored current events and the contemporary world as well as key periods in history, notably the Holocaust, which he wrote about in novels such as Time’s Arrow and The Zone Of Interest.
Time’s Arrow was shortlisted for the Booker Prize, while his 2003 novel Yellow Dog was also longlisted.
He was also awarded the James Tait Black Memorial Prize for his memoir Experience.
Fellow authors and famous faces also paid tribute to Amis following the news.
“I don’t think there’s a better 80s novel than Money but I absolutely adored his essays,” broadcaster the Rev Richard Coles said.
Novelist Jonathan Coe said he met Amis on a few occasions. “I was the younger writer, much less well-known,” he said.
“He was very kind, very generous, and brilliant company. Now gone much too soon. RIP.”
Professor Brian Cox also paid tribute by sharing a paragraph of Amis’ writing, while crime writer Ian Rankin revealed that his favourite book by the late author was Money.
Former prime minister Boris Johnson tweeted that he was “shocked and sad” to hear of Amis’s death, describing him as “the greatest, darkest, funniest satirist since Evelyn Waugh”.
“If you want cheering up, re-read the tennis match in Money. RIP”, he added.
Amis is survived by his wife, writer Isabel Fonseca, and his children Louis, Jacob, Fernanda, Clio and Delilah.
