LONDON (AP) — John le Carre, a spy turned novelist who became the preeminent writer of espionage fiction in English, has died aged 89. Le Carre’s literary agency, Curtis Brown, said Sunday that he died in Cornwall, southwest England on Saturday after a short illness. His family said he died of pneumonia and the death was not related to COVID-19. Born David Cornwell, le Carre worked for Britain’s intelligence service before turning his experience into fiction in works including “Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy” and “The Spy Who Came in from the Cold.” In the quiet, watchful spymaster George Smiley, he created one of 20th-century fiction’s iconic characters — a decent man at the heart of a web of deceit.
Alastair Grant/AP
British author John le Carre holds a copy of his new book entitled 'Our Kind of Traitor' at a central London bookstore during a book signing event to mark the launch of the novel in London Thursday, Sept. 16, 2010. John le Carre, the spy-turned-novelist whose elegant and intricate narratives defined the Cold War espionage thriller and brought acclaim to a genre critics had once ignored, has died. He was 89, Le Carre’s literary agency, Curtis Brown, said Sunday, Dec. 13, 2020 that he died in Cornwall, southwest England on Saturday. (AP Photo/Alastair Grant, file)
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