(CNN) -- Helen Fielding's latest novel on Bridget Jones isn't even out yet and it's already reportedly a shocker. This weekend, The Sunday Times published excerpts from Fielding's upcoming book, "Bridget Jones: Mad About the Boy," that reveal a crucial character, Mr. Darcy, has been killed off. Cue the collective gasps of horror from around the world. Fielding first introduced heroine Bridget Jones in 1996 with her best-selling "Bridget Jones's Diary," a cheeky look at a 30-something single woman's adventures with life and love in London. During that initial installment, Bridget gets to know the prickly but sweet Mark Darcy, and in the follow-up, 1999's "Bridget Jones: The Edge of Reason," he proposes.
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Author Helen Fielding has killed off a major character in her third novel
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Bridget Jones' love, Mark Darcy, is dead in "Mad About the Boy"
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Fans have reacted with shock to the news
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It's unclear how this will impact the third film
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"My life has moved on and @placeholder's will move on, too," the author said in February.