Novelist Sophie Kinsella remembered her as "a friend, inspiration and icon," while writer Harriet Evans saluted her "astonishing powers of storytelling".

"You made the world a better place," continued Evans, who once served as Vincenzi's editor.

Vincenzi, a former fashion journalist, wrote 17 novels, starting with 1989's Old Sins, and two story collections.

Her most recent work, A Question of Trust, was published last year.

Readers lapped up the author's lavish and romantic sagas

Vincenzi's books - which typically involved strong women, romance and family secrets - sold more than seven million copies worldwide.

Her many best-sellers include The Best of Times, An Absolute Scandal, An Outrageous Affair and A Perfect Heritage.

"I haven't the faintest idea what is going to happen, ever," she told the Telegraph in 2014. "I just get the kernel of the idea... and then the characters wander in."

Vincenzi, who had four daughters with her late husband Paul, "died peacefully" on Sunday according to her publisher, Headline Books.

Her agent, Clare Alexander, said: "She had such a generous gift of friendship, quite blind to whether someone was the boss or just making her a cup of tea. And that is why so many people in publishing will be devastated by her loss.

"For myself, I will miss her every day. She was a story-teller of such natural talent. But our relationship went so much deeper than the merely professional... Penny was an irreplaceable friend."