Jo Beverley, a prolific author of historical and contemporary romance novels, died May 23. She was 68. In a tribute on the Word Wenches romance authors blog, Mary Jo Putney announced her friend's death "with the deepest of sadness" and wrote: "She won five RITAs--a full basketball team--and many other awards, including the RWA Hall of Fame. Her books deserved all of that and more, and I'm happy to report that she had finished her book for next year, so we have that to look forward to." Beverley's work included the Company of Rogues, the Malloren and the Georges series.
The Romance Writers of America noted that Beverley "was generous with her time and her knowledge, giving workshops at RWA conferences and writing articles for the Romance Writers Report magazine. She was a much-loved and admired member of the romance writing community.
"On her biography on the RWA website, Beverley said she 'firmly believes that reading should be fun, and that every book should leave the reader with a smile.' Her books have left a smile on thousands of readers faces, and she will be sorely missed."