Frederick Forsyth, author of ‘The Day of the Jackal', dies at 86; a look back at his 5 most iconic thrillers

Time of India

10-06-2025

Frederick Forsyth, the British author of 'The Day of the Jackal' and numerous best-selling thrillers, died at the age of 86 after suffering a brief illness. The piece of news was shared by his literary agent on Monday.
On early Monday, Jonathan Lloyd, the literary agent of Forsyth, said that the author died at his home, surrounded by his family. He said, "We mourn the passing of one of the world's greatest thriller writers."
'The Day of the Jackal' writer published over 25 books, including The Odessa File and The Dogs of War, and sold 75 million copies across the globe.
Credit: X | @joybhattacharj
Frederick Forsyth attributed 'luck' to most of his success
One of the most famous works of Forsyth was about a fictional assassination attempt on former French President Charles de Gaulle by right-wing extremists, 35 days after facing difficult times.
Following this, The Jackal went on to be made into a blockbuster film starring Edward Fox as the assassin. Not only this, but last year, a Netflix remake was also made with Eddie Redmayne playing the lead role.
Moreover, according to Forsyth, he attributed most of his success to 'luck', recalling how a bullet just missed him during his coverage of the brutal Nigerian civil war between 1967 and 1970.
Total sadness to hear my friend #FrederickForsyth, author, has passed. Wonderful memories of such a marvelous trip to India with his late wife Sandy. His academic knowledge of places, palaces & geography was bar none. He'll be much missed for so many reasons. RIP dear Freddie pic.twitter.com/HCEvon9R2v — Elaine Paige (@elaine_paige) June 9, 2025
5 best books by Frederick Forsyth
Frederick Forsyth called on his experiences as a fighter pilot, spy, and journalist to draw authenticity to his novels, the first of which was 1971's The Day of the Jackal, which he wrote when he was unemployed.
It was then adapted into a 1973 film directed by multiple Oscar winner Fred Zinneman and a 2024 TV series. Here's the top 5 best books of Frederick Forsyth:
The Day of the Jackal – 140,174 ratings: According to an Express UK report, The Day of the Jackal is Forsyth's most popular book, which was published in 1971.
The book was based on a professional assassin, known as 'The Jackal', who was hired by a French paramilitary group to assassinate President Charles de Gaulle.
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The Odessa File – 61,657 ratings: The second, as per the report, is the thriller of a young German journalist, Peter Miler, who becomes obsessed with finding a former SS concentration camp commander, Eduard Roshchmann, after finding out a diary detailing his atrocities and learning about the secret organisation ODESSA.
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The Fourth Protocol – 34,810 ratings: This novel was named after the 1968 Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons. The story revolves around a professional thief who stumbles upon top-secret documents, leading to a KGB plot to destabilise Britain via a nuclear attack.
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The Dogs of War – 24,278 ratings: The next is The Dogs of War, which is again a thriller about mercenaries hired by a British industrialist to overthrow the government of a fictional African country, Zangaro. This book was also proven to have a strong political impact on readers.
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The Devil's Alternative – 16,261 ratings: This book depicted the society in 1982 and was published in 1979. It was based on a devastating wheat crop failure that led the Soviet Union to famine and forced the USSR to seek food help from the US.
Credit: X |@AbhinavAgarwal
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