Author Ruth Rendell has died at age 85.

Mystery writer and creator of Inspector Wexford, Ruth Rendell, has died at age 85.

Ruth Rendell was admitted to hospital after a serious stroke in January, and passed away in London on Saturday morning.

Ms. Rendell delighted fans over the years with her intricate tales of crime.

She began her career as a journalist for the Chigwell Times, but her professional progression came to an abrupt halt when it became apparent that she had written a report on a local tennis club event without attending – meaning she failed to include the fact that the after-dinner speaker had dropped dead during his speech.

After a decade of being a stay at home mother, Ms. Rendell picked up her pen once again and landed a publishing deal with English company Hutchinson. She wrote over 60 crime and thriller books in her lifetime, with a focus on the cases of protagonist Chief Inspector Reginald Wexford.

Ms. Rendell won three Edgar Awards for mystery writing in her lifetime, as well as four Gold Daggers and a Diamond Dagger fro England’s Crime Writers’ Association.

She was also a member of the English House of Lords.

She maintained writing into her old age that she has no plans to retire. In 2013, she told The Guardian that she planned to write until she died.

In a fitting end to an illustrious career, her final novel, “Dark Corners”, will be published in October.

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