GOTHIC novelist Anne Rice, who wrote Interview with the Vampire, has died at the age of 80.
Rice died due to complications from a stroke, her son Christopher Rice announced on her Facebook page and his Twitter page.
“In her final hours, I sat beside her hospital bed in awe of her accomplishments and her courage,” he wrote in the statement.
Anne Rice penned Interview with the Vampire in 1976 and it was later adapted into a movie starring Tom Cruise and Brad Pitt in 1994.
It was also expected to be portrayed in a TV series on AMC and AMC+ in 2022.
The work introduced the character of the vampire Lestat, who would be the central character in the 13-book Chronicles series.
The most recent in the series was published in 2018.
She was one of the world's most widely read authors and 150 million of her books have been sold world wide.
"I had an idea of Lestat as the man of action, the man who could do things that I couldn't do," Rice once said.
Most read in The Sun
couple goals 
Becks' dad Ted marries solicitor at intimate ceremony with David as best man
Javid 'told to trigger Plan C in a WEEK by gloomy health officials'
Primark fans are scrambling to get their hands on the £30 glam winter coat
What to know about Plan C Covid restrictions in the UK
Rice also wrote erotic fiction under the pseudonyms Anne Rampling and AN Roquelaure, including Exit to Eden.
She was expected to be interred during a private ceremony at a family mausoleum in New Orleans on an undisclosed date, according to the statement.
A public celebration of life was to take place next year.
Rice was a native of New Orleans and she set many of her stories there, though she lived most of her life in California.
"The immensity of our family's grief cannot be overstated,” said her son.
“As my mother, her support for me was unconditional – she taught me to embrace my dreams, reject conformity and challenge the dark voices of fear and self-doubt.
"As a writer, she taught me to defy genre boundaries and surrender to my obsessive passions."
More to follow…
For the latest news on this story keep checking back at Sun Online.
The-sun.com is your go-to destination for the best celebrity news, sport news, real-life stories, jaw-dropping pictures and must-see video.
Like us on Facebook at www.facebook.com/TheSunUS and follow us from our main Twitter account at @TheUSSun.
Source: Read Full Article
