Jump to content

Authors whose death you most regret?


Calibandar

Recommended Posts

So, this is not so much "who is your favorite author who has passed away?". 

I was wondering about what some of the authors are whose death I found especially touching due to being premature, or because they were pulled from us before they could finish their work.

So while for instance Jack Vance and AC Clarke are deserved legends, they lived very long and illustrious lives and they gave us what they had, when it came to their literature.

And naturally I would have loved for Tolkien to have lived longer to finish the Silmarillion, or that he would have had good and guiding help in finishing it those final years. 

But ones that came to mind to me where:

Robert Holdstock- Seemed like he had several more beautiful books in store when he died unexpectedly. His last book was Avilion.

David Gemmell- Seemed to get even better towards the end of his career with for instance the Troy Trilogy. He was also very prolific.

Graham Joyce- Continued to make fairly short, beautiful reads. Died last year.

Íain Banks ( even though I was not that big a fan of his work, still a shocking death).

 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I can't say regret, but it is a shame Frank Herbert was unable to finish the Dune Chronicles*, Mervyn Peake unable to finish the Gormenghast novels and Robert Jordan passing before finishing his WOT.

 

* I've only just begun the Dune Chronicles and am basing my opinion on the strength of the first novel and reviews and commentary of what Brian Herbert did to the series.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Yukio Mishima, who committed ritual suicide at age 45

JG Farrell, who drowned at age 44

John Kennedy Toole, who committed suicide at age 31

Mikhail Bulgakov, who died of a kidney disorder at age 48

 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I felt genuine regret and sadness when Terry Prattchet died, as though he was someone I knew personally, so must mention him.

Good call on Tolkein btw. Though I'm not sure he would ever have "finished" the Silmarillion if I'm honest. Seems like the sort of thing that would just keep growing 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Michael Shea was another one who was taken too soon, and given the high quality of the work he produced in his short career that began late in his life, we missed out on some great books in the manner of:

Nifft the Lean (1982)

Polphemus (1987)

The Extra (2010)

Link to comment
Share on other sites

While Robert E. Howard and H.P. Lovecraft died young (and in Howard's case tragically), I'm not necessarily sure that living longer would have enhanced their literary reputation. The other member of the Weird Tales Big Three, Clark Ashton Smith, lived until his late 60s (dying in 1961), and is easily the most obscure. Also, if Lovecraft had lived until 80, he'd have had to deal with his overt racism in the context of WWII and the US Civil Rights struggle - which might have put a lot of people off.

Also - William Hope Hodgson. Died in 1918, during WWI. Had he lived, he could have gone back and edited The Night Land.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Robert Jordan. Even more so lately as with the release of the Companion it is increasingly clear how disingenuous and self-serving the whole the claims of fulfilling his legacy and his charge the hiring of Sanderson and his works of 'completion' were.  Though I also wonder just how Jordan would have finished WoT.  I'm thinking it would have been a disappointment no matter what.  But at least it would not have been such a horrible travesty.

 

Graham Joyce.  I felt in some ways he was just getting a nudge in attention here in the US and its makes it doubly sad to think he might have had a stronger shift in his career. 

Iain Banks.  There was such a compelling strength to his work.  It was very different than what I usually liked and yet I liked it immensely.

Jay Lake.  Not all his stuff worked for me, but what did was stuff I have re-read more than once.

David Gemmell.  I think I am one of the few people who enjoyed the Troy series but did not consider it his best work.  In terms of story telling I thought it was a bit bland and somehow, a bit too commercial.  Not sure how to describe why I feel that, but it lacked a certain something I just loved in his earlier works.  Plus his death triggered the silly awards which I think was a shame no one had the sense to figure out the nomination process in regards to the overview of the awards.  I just find it odd that essentially publishers could throw as many names into the hat as they wanted.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Archived

This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies.

×
×
  • Create New...