The Moonstone - The Original Classic Edition was written by Wilkie Collins a British novelist of the 19th-century. This story is considered one of the first detective novels in the English language. Rachel Verinder is the main character in the book; she is a young English woman who inherits a large Indian diamond on her eighteenth birthday. It is a legacy from her uncle, who was a corrupt English army officer who served in India. The diamond is of great religious significance as well as being extremely valuable. The story incorporates elements of the legendary origins of the Hope Diamond. Rachel's eighteenth birthday is celebrated with a large party, whose guests include her cousin Franklin Blake. She wears the Moonstone on her dress that evening for all to see, including some Indian jugglers who have called in at the house. Later that night, the diamond is stolen from Rachel's bedroom, for a period of time turmoil, unhappiness, misunderstandings and ill-luck follows. Told by a series of narratives from some of the main characters, explain the story of the theft, identify the thief, trace the stone and recover it. William Wilkie Collins lived from 8 January 1824 to 23 September 1889. William was an English novelist, playwright, and author of short stories. His best-known works are The Woman in White, The Moonstone and Armadale. It was with the release of his first published novel, Antonina, in 1850 that his career as a writer began and was hugely popular during the Victorian era. This novel was written during time Wilkie was addicted to the opium he took for his arthritis, it is to be said that the novel prominently features the effects of opium and his opium addiction.