Author James Herbert, 69, passed away at his home in Sussex March 20, 2013. The literary world paid him tribute with its kind words.

Author James Herbert was famous for his horror novels including "The Fog", "The Rats" and "The Survivor."  Writer of these bestseller novels passed away peacefully in his bed at his home in Sussex, March 20, 2013.

Herbert has 23 novels to his name, published in 34 different languages and his work sold more than 54m copies worldwide, reveals his publisher Pan Macmillan.

"Jim Herbert was one of the keystone authors in a genre that had its heyday in the 1970s and 1980s. It's a true testament to his writing and his enduring creativity that his books continued to be huge bestsellers right up until his death. He has the rare distinction that his novels were considered classics of the genre within his lifetime. His death marks the passing of one of the giants of popular fiction in the 20th century," writes his editor of 10 years, Jeremy Trevathan.

Novelist James Smythe reveals that Herbert was the first adult writer that he ever read. Smythe also says that when he made the transition from his teen books to his dad's horror novels, Herbert was one of the big three writers his dad always talked about along with Stephen King and Dean Koontz.

Herbert was born in London in 1943, the youngest son of East End market traders, and his first job was in advertising when he became the art director and head of the agency he joined.

At the age of 28 he began writing his first novel, a terrifying story of London being overrun by mutant, flesh-eating rats. When "The Rats" was finally published in 1974, the first print run of 100,000 copies sold out in three weeks.