In Memoriam: Writers Who Left Us In 2025

As the year comes to close, let's take a moment to pay our respect to the many writers who passed away over the course of the year, and to reflect on the impact their work had on our lives as readers.

Below is a list of names of authors whose obituaries were in the news this year, linked to searches in our catalog so that you can explore their books further, but this list is not meant to be comprehensive.

Reading is a social act. These writers inspired us, entertained us and kept company with us on the page. We will miss them and honor them as their work lives on through us, their readers.

Allan Ahlberg

Melody Beattie

Susan Brownmiller

Ken Bruen

John Carey

Jilly Cooper

Leslie Epstein

Jules Feiffer

John Feinstein

Tony Fitzpatrick

Frederick Forsyth

Athol Fugard

Jane Gardam

Andrea Gibson

Jane Goodall

Kerry Greenwood

Fanny Howe

Greg Iles

Paulette Jiles

Sophie Kinsella

Ivan Klíma

William Langewiesche

Marina Lewycka

David Lodge

Peter Lovesey

Simon Mawer

Tim Mohr

Geoff Nicholson

Alice Notley

Thomas Perry

Tom Robbins

Martin Cruz Smith

Dag Solstad

Tom Stoppard

Ngũgĩ wa Thiong'o

Joanna Trollope

Mario Vargas Llosa

Edmund White

Jeanette Winter

Zoë Wicomb

Jeanette Winter

Alice Wong

Daniel Woodrell

Chelsea Quinn Yarbro