“The Moonstone” was originally published in 1868 by William Wilkie Collins. A 19th-century British epistolary novel, it is generally considered to be the first detective novel, and also established many of the ground rules of the modern detective novel. The story follows the theft of a sacred Indian diamond. Given to Rachel Verinder on her eighteenth birthday by her corrupt British army officer father, the gift sets the scene for a complex plot of turmoil, misunderstanding, cultural heritage and mystery. Serialised in Charles Dickens’ magazine, ‘All the Year Round’, this early works is a fascinating novel of the period and still an interesting read today. Read & Co. Classics is republishing this classic work now complete with a specially-commissioned new biography of the author.