English novelist returning sick at heart (7)

I believe the answer is:

corelli

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'english novelist' is the definition.
The definition suggests a singular noun which matches the answer.

'returning sick at heart' is the wordplay.
'returning' is a reversal indicator.
'sick' becomes 'ill' (synonyms).
'at' is a charade indicator (letters next to each other) (I've seen this in other clues).
'heart' becomes 'core' (synonyms).
'ill' in reverse letter order is 'lli'.
'lli' put after 'core' is 'CORELLI'.

Can you help me to learn more?

(Other definitions for corelli that I've seen before include "Captain -'s Mandolin (de Bernires)" , "Arcangelo --, Italian baroque composer" , "Marie - - , romantic 17" , "Arcangelo, seventeenth to eighteenth century Italian composer, violinist" , "A mandolin-playing Captain" .)

I've seen this clue in the Sydney Morning Herald.

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