Renowned novelist Jackie Collins is dead

Renowned novelist Jackie Collins has died of breast cancer at the age of 77, her family said in a statement.

The British-born writer passed away yesterday in Los Angeles after she was diagnosed with stage-four cancer six-and-a-half years ago, her spokeswoman said.

"It is with tremendous sadness that we announce the death of our beautiful, dynamic and one-of-a-kind mother," the family statement said.

Her actress sister Joan Collins told media that she was "completely devastated" following the news of sister Jackie Collins.

"She was my best friend," Joan, 82, said. "I admire how she handled this. She was a wonderful, brave and a beautiful person and I love her," Joan added.

In a career spanning four decades, Collins sold more than 500 million books in 40 countries across the world.

The family statement said the writer lived "a wonderfully full life and was adored by family, friends and readers. "She was a true inspiration, a trailblazer for women in fiction and a creative force. She will live on through her characters but we already miss her beyond words," it added.

She began writing as a teenager, making up racy stories for her school-friends. Her first novel, 'The World is Full of Married Men', was published in 1968 and became a bestseller. In 1985, her novel 'Hollywood Wives' was made into a mini-series by ABC, starring Anthony Hopkins and Candice Bergen.