Novelist Jackie Collins dies of breast cancer aged 77
Novelist Jackie Collins has died after a battle with breast cancer, her family said.
The 77-year-old sister of actress Joan Collins was described as a trailblazer for women in fiction, having sold more than 500 million novels in more than 40 countries in her four decades-long career.
Paying tribute to the grandmother-of-six, her family said: "It is with tremendous sadness that we announce the death of our beautiful, dynamic and one of a kind mother, Jackie Collins, who died of breast cancer today.
"She lived a wonderfully full life and was adored by her family, friends and the millions of readers who she has been entertaining for over four decades.
"She was a true inspiration, a trail blazer for women in fiction and a creative force. She will live on through her characters but we already miss her beyond words."
In an interview with the Press Association earlier this month Collins, who was made an OBE two years ago, spoke of the tragedies in her life when people close to her died from illness.
"I lost my mother to cancer, my husband of 25 years to cancer and then my fiance. I know a lot about looking after people when they are sick. Oscar (Lerman, her second husband) was a very strong man who was 20 years older than me. I knew he'd had a fantastic life. My kids looked after him so wonderfully and I just kept writing."
