He was the writer who penned one of the most beautiful stories of the of our time, and yet, Nicholas Sparks is splitting up with his wife of 25 years, Cathy.

Love is dead.

At least, that's what Twitterverse seemed to think so. Huffington Post even compiled some tweets from fans, some blaming the new year, some wondering how the king of romance could not sweep his wife off his feet, some questioning the everlasting love he wrote in his books, and some giving up entirely, losing hope of ever finding romance.

Of course, the devastation may be a bit of an overreaction (isn't everything is, these days?) it is a bit sad that there's no storybook ending for the writer of what Time Magazine counted to be 17 romantic novels, most of which were inspired by the woman he's divorcing. In an interview with E-Harmony in 2012, he admitted as much, saying "All of the female characters I create have many elements of my wife."

The 49-year-old author told People, "This is, of course, not a decision we've made lightly. We remain close friends with deep respect for each other and love for our children. For our children's sake, we regard this as a private matter."

Nick and Cathy had a love story similar to what he would be writing in his novels. He told eHarmony, "I met my wife on a Monday night on spring break in Florida. On Tuesday night, I told her that we would get married."

The couple married in 1989 and had five children together: sons Miles, Ryan, and Landon, and twin daughters Lexie and Savannah, whose names became characters in his books at some point.

Time also noted that Nick always spoke highly of his wife, telling People in an interview a few years ago, "The marriage relationship has to be primary - it's one of the best things you can teach your children. So we don't feel guilty if we go for a walk, just the two of us."

Cathy also added, "We try to go on vacations alone. You need to leave alone. You have to make the effort to leave, take the time. Just go and have fun alone. We do it a few times a year."

Unfortunately, things ended for the world-renowned scribe and his wife, but his stories, including "A Walk to Remember" and "The Last Song" are still there for his fans to read when they need a bit of romance.

What was your reaction to this divorce?