The Moonstone - Collins Wilkie

The Legendary Moonstone diamond is given to spirited Rachel Verinder on her eighteenth birthday, the gift of an uncle who came by it dishonestly. Originally plundered from a sacred statue in an Indian temple, the diamond is said to bring misfortune to those who prevent its return to its spiritual guardians.When the diamond vanishes overnight, Inspector Cuff of Scotland Yard is brought in to investigate. Suspicion falls on a band of Indian jugglers, but also on Franklin Blake, the man Rachel loves.A tale of betrayal, greed and the redemptive power of love, The Moonstone was described by T. S. Eliot as 'the first and greatest of English detective novels'.