Carol Higgins Clark, an actress and mystery author best known for her Regan Reilly private investigator series, has died at 66.
Clark died Monday at a Los Angeles hospital from appendix cancer, The New York Times and The Washington Post reported. The newspapers cited a statement from Clark's family.
Clark, the daughter of late suspense author Mary Higgins Clark, got her start in college re-typing her mother's manuscripts: "That's really what got me into [writing], because I'd talk to her about the characters and the plot," Clark told NPR in 2008. "It was great for me to learn about how to write."
Clark eventually went on to become a bestselling author herself, publishing more than a dozen novels starting with "Decked" in 1992. According to her obituary, she often wore a gold necklace with a charm representing each of her titles.
She also co-wrote several Christmas-themed novels with her mother, who died in 2020 at 92 years old. The duo told NPR that they often faxed pages to each other to get feedback and "fresh eyes" while writing their separate books.
Clark, who attended Mount Holyoke College in Massachusetts, was also an actress. She played a TV reporter in "Where Are the Children?", a 1986 adaptation of Mary Higgins Clark's suspense novel by the same name. She went on to act in several other adaptations of her mother's works, including a leading role in the 1992 TV movie "A Cry in the Night."
According to her obituary, she is survived by her siblings, Marilyn, Warren and David Clark, and by many nieces, nephews and cousins.