American writer Anne Rice, author of fantasy and vampire novels, including Interview with a Vampire, who renewed the genre, died on Saturday at the age of 80, her family announced.
“In his final hours, I sat next to his hospital bed in awe of his accomplishments and courage,” his son Christopher Rice said on his Facebook page.
He said she died of complications from a stroke.
Interview with a Vampire, released in 1976 and a renewed vampire novel genre, was adapted for film by Neil Jordan, starring Tom Cruise and Brad Pitt in 1994.
Anna Rice has written dozens of books, sometimes erotic, sometimes religious-tinged, many in the series Vampire, sold over 150 million copies worldwide.
Another of his works, Queen of the Damned was adapted for the cinema in 2002 by Michael Rymer.
“The immensity of our family’s grief cannot be overstated. As a mother, her support for me was unconditional – she taught me to embrace my dreams, reject conformism and challenge the dark voices of fear and doubt, ”her son wrote.
“As a writer, she taught me to challenge gender boundaries and surrender to my obsessive passions,” he added.
She will be buried in a private ceremony in New Orleans.
A public celebration will be held next year in the city, with “friends, readers and fans” invited to join, again according to her son.