Vince Flynn, who wrote the Mitch Rapp counterterrorism thriller series that were poorly reviewed by critics but became mainstays of the bestseller lists for mass-market fiction, died June 19 at a hospital in St. Paul, Minn. He was 47. The cause was prostate cancer, according to his publisher, Simon & Schuster.

Gillian Flynn is the author of the #1 New York Times bestseller Gone Girl, for which she wrote the Golden Globe–nominated screenplay; the New York Times bestsellers Dark Places and Sharp Objects; and a novella, The Grownup. A former critic for Entertainment Weekly, she lives in Chicago with her husband and children.

“The main reason,” said Kyle Mills when I asked him why now is the right time for him to leave this franchise, “is because I've been wanting to write a sequel to a book I wrote called Fade for probably fifteen years now.

Flynn spoke often about his political views, describing himself a registered Republican but not someone who necessarily agreed with all the party line (particularly on social issues). He also pointed out that his characters spanned the political spectrum and that his hero was "neutral."