TRIBUTES have been paid to an award-winning author who has died aged 88.

Maureen Lee died while surrounded by loved ones at her home in Colchester on New Year’s Eve.

Her family say she had been battling illness for a short time.

Maureen was well known for her books, the majority of which were set in her home town of Liverpool.

In total, she published 24 romance and thriller novels between 1983 and 2013, including the Pearl Street series, and wrote more than 150 short stories.

Maureen was born in Bootle in Liverpool where she met and married husband, Richard.

The couple were married for more than 50 years before Richard’s death four years ago.

They spent a brief spell living on the Isle of Wight where Maureen worked as a writer and Richard a painter.

But they later moved to Essex in the 1960s following the birth of their first child, Dave.

The couple went on to have two further sons. Paul and Patrick.

The birth of her children led to Maureen putting her writing career on hold for almost 20 years.

Eldest son Dave, who is a DJ and electronic music producer, said: “We were a handful.

“Any time any of us had problems at school she would be down there fighting our corner. She even fostered other kids as well as having us to look after.

“During this time she would still write short stories which would sometimes get published in the likes of Woman’s Realm or Woman’s Own.

“We were quite hard up back then, mum would do typing or duplicating for local businesses to make some extra income.

“Once we’d all grown up a bit she sank herself back into writing and was finally able to achieve her dream of becoming a novelist.”

Maureen and Richard relocated to Colchester in 1987 after spending several years in Thorpe-le-Soken.

In 2000, Mrs Lee’s book - Dancing In The Dark - was named novel of the year by the Romantic Novelists Association.

Her works also regularly appeared in Sunday Times Bestsellers lists and a number were published in Spain, Poland and Russia.

Paying tribute to his mum, Dave said: “Mum was a kind person.

“She shared all the money with my brothers and me and always gave to homeless people and charities.

“She’d always reply directly to fans or up-and-coming authors who mailed her, even meeting up with them.

“She was modest, you’d not know she was a successful novelist if you met her, she didn’t really talk about her achievements.

“Our lives will now be emptier and missing the unconditional love she gave us.”