British author James Herbert is one of the most highly-respected and best-selling contemporary horror authors of this century. His debut novel ‘The Rats’ (1974) is often cited as being the novel that got horror fans into the genre. Indeed, ‘The Rats’ (1974) was the novel that essentially created the entire splatterpunk subgenre; whilst setting in motion a tidal wave of pulp horror novels involving creatures vs mankind.
Furthermore, Herbert followed up the unprecedented success of ‘The Rats’ (1974) with the novels ‘The Fog’ (1975) and ‘The Survivor’ (1976); forming the veritable holy trinity of horror excellence.
Herbert’s books have been reprinted countless times across the globe; having been translated in thirty-four different languages. Herbert has tackled horror, supernatural thrillers, post-apocalyptic scenarios and children’s fiction.
Herbert is one of those incredibly charismatic authors who is able to instantly captivate his audience. He is indisputably a true master of storytelling. As such, he was awarded an OBE on the 2010 honours list for his contributions to the literary world.
Sadly, in March of 2013, James Herbert passed away, shortly after the release of the final instalment in his ‘Ash’ trilogy. The horror community was left stunned and missing one of the greatest writers to have ever lived.
