taya777 Nelson DeMille, Blockbuster Author Who Thrilled Millions, Dies at 81

Nelson DeMille, a beloved and prolific author whose propulsive thrillers featuring terrorist hijackings, Russian spy schools, gruesome murders, Mafia kingpins, wartime crimes and military malfeasance made him a publishing juggernaut, died on Tuesday in Mineola, N.Y., on Long Island. He was 81.

His death, in a hospital near his home in Garden City, was from complications of esophageal cancer, his son Alex said.

Mr. DeMille’s writing “brought you into wonderful worlds,” Sally Richardson, publisher at large for Macmillan, who knew him for decades, said in an interview.

“His books were fun and literate,” she added. “He had a grasp of human nature and a sense of humor, and he got all kinds of people — the down-and-outs and the sophisticates. He defied category. Everyone wanted to publish Nelson.”

Mr. DeMille was the author of 23 books, 17 of which were New York Times best sellers and all of which remain in print. At his death, a total of 58 million “DeMilles” had been sold.

ImageMr. DeMille served as an Army platoon leader in Vietnam during the Tet offensive in 1968 and was awarded the Bronze Star.Credit...via DeMille family

We are having trouble retrieving the article content.

Please enable JavaScript in your browser settings.

Thank you for your patience while we verify access. If you are in Reader mode please exit and log into your Times account, or subscribe for all of The Times.

Thank you for your patience while we verify access.

Already a subscriber? Log in.

Want all of The Times? Subscribe.taya777

• taya777
• Author
• Blockbuster
• Nelson
• DeMille