The Moonstone

Part of Alma Classics Evergreen series, The Moonstone is here presented with an extensive section on Collins's life and works. When Rachel Verinder's legacy of a priceless Indian diamond is stolen, all the evidence indicates that it is her beloved, Franklin Blake, who is guilty. Around this central axis of crime and thwarted love, Collins constructs an ingenious plot of teasing twists and surprises, and an elaborate multi-voiced narrative that sustains the tension all the way to its stunning ending. Described by T.S. Eliot as 'the first, the longest and the best of modern English detective novels' Wilkie Collins's The Moonstone is an important precursor of the modern mystery and suspense genres.

ABOUT THE SERIES: Alma Evergreens is a series of popular classics. All the titles in the series are provided with an extensive critical apparatus, extra reading material including a section of photographs and notes. The texts are based on the most authoritative edition (or collated from the most authoritative editions or manuscripts) and edited using a fresh, intelligent editorial approach. With an emphasis on the production, editorial and typographical values of a book, Alma Classics aspires to revitalize the whole experience of reading the classics.

About the Author

Wilkie Collins (1824 - 89) is most famous for his novels The Moonstone and The Woman in White, in which he pioneered 'sensation' writing, the influence of which can still be seen today in the genres of crime and mystery.