British novelist Jackie Collins, the best-selling author of romance novels, has died of breast cancer in California, her family said Saturday. She was 77.

"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 4 decades," her family said in a statement, adding that she had fought breast cancer for over six years.

"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," added the statement from her three daughters, Tracy, Tiffany, and Rory.

Her works included "The World is Full of Married Men," "Confessions of a Wild Child" and "Hollywood Wives."

Collins and her sister Joan Collins, 82, famously found great success at trading on the Hollywood early-bad girl mystique they had, both on screen and off.

Jackie Collins had lived in California for years, and was a naturalized US citizen.