Nelson DeMille, a beloved and prolific author whose propulsive thrillers featuring terrorist hijackings, Russian spy schools, gruesome murders, Mafia kingpins, wartime crimes and military malfeasance made him a publishing juggernaut, died on Tuesday in Mineola, N.Y. He was 81.

His death, in a Long Island hospital near his home in Garden City, was from complications of esophageal cancer, his son Alex said.

Mr. DeMille’s writing “brought you into wonderful worlds,” said Sally Richardson, publisher at large for Macmillan, who knew him for decades.

“His books were fun and literate,” she added, in an interview. “He had a grasp of human nature and a sense of humor, and he got all kinds of people — the down-and-outs and the sophisticates. He defied category. Everyone wanted to publish Nelson.”

Mr. DeMille was the author of 23 books, 17 of which were best sellers and all of which remain in print. At his death, a total of 58 million “DeMilles” had been sold.