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Book Review
Jan. 8th, 2005 10:22 pmThe Moonstone
by Wilkie Collins
Part of my motivation to read this was the references to it in Connie Willis' To Say Nothing of the Dog. Luckily, I discovered that Willis had not entirely given the ending away.
The Moonstone is the earliest detective-mystery novel I know of. Or at least the earliest I know of that made it into the canon. It concerns the mysterious theft of a large diamond known as the Moonstone. The jewel disappears from a country estate in 1848, and the pursuit of the mystery takes more than a year.
I found this novel to be continually interesting and engrossing. There are plenty of surprises and plot twists as well as a cast of fascinating, well-drawn characters. Each section of the book is narrated by a different character, and the shifts in perspective are very effective. I've read other authors who make use of this technique - I wonder if this is one of the first uses of it.
by Wilkie Collins
Part of my motivation to read this was the references to it in Connie Willis' To Say Nothing of the Dog. Luckily, I discovered that Willis had not entirely given the ending away.
The Moonstone is the earliest detective-mystery novel I know of. Or at least the earliest I know of that made it into the canon. It concerns the mysterious theft of a large diamond known as the Moonstone. The jewel disappears from a country estate in 1848, and the pursuit of the mystery takes more than a year.
I found this novel to be continually interesting and engrossing. There are plenty of surprises and plot twists as well as a cast of fascinating, well-drawn characters. Each section of the book is narrated by a different character, and the shifts in perspective are very effective. I've read other authors who make use of this technique - I wonder if this is one of the first uses of it.
