LONDON (AP) — British author Jilly Cooper, known for her many bestselling novels including “Rivals” and “Riders,” has died at age 88, her agent said Monday.

A statement from her family said that the author’s “unexpected death has come as a complete shock.”

“The privilege of my career has been working with a woman who has defined culture, writing and conversation since she was first published over fifty years ago,” her agent, Felicity Blunt, said in a statement.

“Jilly will undoubtedly be best remembered for her chart-topping series The Rutshire Chronicles and its havoc-making and handsome show-jumping hero Rupert Campbell-Black.”

Cooper’s many fans included former British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak, who said the books offered “escapism.”

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