When Encinitas-based bestselling author Christopher Reich heard about the passing of John le Carré, he felt compelled to write an appreciation of the spy thriller master, who died Dec. 12. He shared his thoughts with the Union-Tribune. John le Carré passed away last weekend, age 89, and writing to the end. No author had so great an influence on my life, as a reader, an aspiring writer, and for a short while — when I knew him as “David” — as a friend and correspondent. It’s difficult to express how much his work meant to me. For a time, it was everything. No one starts their reading life picking up “Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy” or “The Spy Who Came in From the Cold.” Back then, if you loved spy stories and espionage, you began with Alistair MacLean, moved up to Robert Ludlum, then Frederick Forsyth and Len Deighton. Only then, were you ready for le Carré. I read them all, most twice, some more.