Jilly Cooper, British author of bestselling risqué novels, including ‘Rivals,’ dies at 88

LONDON (AP) — Jilly Cooper, the bestselling British author known for her chronicles of class and sex in risqué novels, including “Rivals” and “Riders,” has died unexpectedly, her agent and family said Monday. She was 88.

The author died on Sunday after a fall, according to a statement from literary agency Curtis Brown, who represented her.

“Mum was the shining light in all of our lives,” her children, Felix and Emily, wrote. “Her unexpected death has come as a complete shock.”

Cooper garnered scores of fans with her “Rutshire Chronicles,” beginning with “Riders” in 1985, a humorous and racy series that portrayed the sex lives, scandals and excesses of the well-off, horse-riding upper and middle classes in 1980s England. The 11 books in the series sold millions of copies in the United Kingdom alone.

One of the books, “Rivals,” was turned into a hit Disney+ TV series last year, starring David Tennant and Alex Hassell.

Britain’s prime minister and royals were among those paying tribute to the author on Monday.

Queen Camilla, the wife of King Charles III, called Cooper “a legend” and recalled seeing the author recently at a book festival.

“I join my husband the King in sending our thoughts and sympathies to all her family. And may her hereafter be filled with impossibly handsome men and devoted dogs,” Camilla wrote.

Cooper has said that the fictional Rupert Campbell-Black, the dashing hero and rake at the heart of many of her stories, was partly inspired by Camilla’s ex-husband Andrew Parker Bowles.

Prime Minister Keir Starmer called Cooper “a literary force whose wit, warmth and wisdom shaped British culture for over half a century and brought joy to millions,” according to his office.

Cooper was awarded an OBE, or Officer of the Order of the British Empire, for services to literature in 2004. She was given a damehood more recently and received the honor from King Charles at Windsor Castle. Her many fans included former British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak, who said the books offered “escapism.”

Bill Scott-Kerr, her publisher, praised Cooper for her “wicked social commentary and deft, lacerating characterization.”

“She dissected the behavior, bad mostly, of the English upper middle classes with the sharpest of scalpels,” he said.

Her agent, Felicity Blunt, said Cooper “defined culture, writing and conversation since she was first published over 50 years ago.” In person, the author was “emotionally intelligent, fantastically generous, sharply observant and utter fun,” she added.

The executive producers of the Disney+ adaptation said they were “broken-hearted” at the news of her death.

Born in 1937 in Essex, near London, Cooper cut her teeth in journalism at a local newspaper in Brentford, covering everything from parties to soccer.

She said she then moved to public relations, and was fired from more than 20 jobs before ending up in book publishing. The author married publisher Leo Cooper in 1961.

Her big break came in 1969 when The Sunday Times published an entertaining piece she wrote on the difficulties of being a young working wife. She went on to become a columnist for the newspaper for over 13 years.

Her first book, “How to Stay Married,’’ was published in 1969, followed by some 18 novels and other works, from romance to children’s books and nonfiction. Her most recent — “Tackle!” — was published in 2023.

Cooper’s funeral will be private in line with her wishes, with a public service held in coming months in London to celebrate her life, according to her agent.

The author is survived by her two adopted children, Felix and Emily. Her husband of more than 40 years, Leo, died in 2013.