Customer Reviews
Most enjoyable but............ - By: Wimble Fops, 10 Mar 2010 
I really did enjoy this book despite the fact that it was somewhat slow as other reviewers commented.
To me there are lots of priceless quotesin it which I'd love to be able to usein real life. I enjoyed all the characters even though they were a bit stereo-typed & possibly overdone.
However, I found the 'experiment' an absolutely outlandish disappointing twistin the story (called an unconvincing story line by another reviewer). Ugh! It was just like viewing a good film & being sorely disappointed by how the story is wrapped upin the end. The author should have found a cleverer turn there. The 'experiment' really dampened my enthusiasm for the book.
Also, the excitementin a story could come from actions of characters & mysterious goings on that are being observed by various individuals.
However, we gain much of the information about what actually happenedin the background through longwinded reports of the various contributing writersin the story, information that does not help you piece together the plot & that the reader could not have possibly known. It is like the inspector telling the villain upon his arrest all that he has found out instead of readers/viewers having accompanied the inspector on his stealthy detective trips finding it out bit by bit together with him.
The Moonstone - By: Mr. J. P. Davis, 27 Sep 2009 
I am only part way through this book & so far it is very rewarding.
Good detective story - By: Blackbeard, 12 Sep 2009 This is a pretty good detective story, written from the points of view of several different people either remotely or directly involvedin the case which the book deals with. The action is relatively slow-paced for the most part, but the story plods alongin a comfortable way, & there is always just enough uncertainty about how everything is eventually going to tie together that it holds one's interest till the end. There are several noteworthy characters, well-drawn, & a fair deal of imagination with the plot. Collins was apparently a friend of Dickens, but their styles were nothing alike (in my opinion). I found this book easier to read & less enjoyable than Dickens, & although I can't think of any real deficienciesin it, I feel that it will soon be forgotten.
too long and tedious... - By: c_tricot, 05 Sep 2009 i read this book under strong recommendation from my english teacher. i found the first volume exceedingly interesting & i was encaptured by the mystery of the novel, trying to guess who stole the moonstone. HOWEVER the moment the section of the initial mystery finished & the story was moved to london the story became uninteresting & i completely lost interestin the novel. although i finished the novel, i was saddened to found out that the person who stole the diamond was the person i had assumed stolen the diamond from the beginning. i had expected some twists & turns, but apart from the beginning, not worth continuing the novel.
Nothing short of brilliant! - By: LittleMoon, 11 Aug 2009 Not being a reader of detective fiction, I have passed up Wilkie Collins' The Moonstone on numerous occasions. What a mistake! It is a long time since I have so thoroughly enjoyed -in the sense of having been pampered - the novel reading experience. Interestingly, David Blair,in his introduction, feels that Collins overdoes the reader's comfort, so that we are "almost oppressed with the degree of provision & attendance", but I for one, was glad of it. It was delightful to be taken into the confidence of the characters, to be addressed directly, & to not have to do too much work.
The brilliance of The Moonstone comes from the fact that it can be read purely for pleasure. Some classics require readerly patience & perseverance (almost always worth it)in order to appreciate them, but this novel is instantly accessible: Collins grips the reader from the outsetin a mystery, & gives us front row seatsin its investigation.
Although the idea of multiple first-person narrators might sound complicated, this structuring of the novel works perfectly. It not only allows Collins to prolong the "solving" of the riddle until the very, very end, but also puts the readerin the hands of a fine cast of characters. Whilst Miss Clack, with her name as sharp as the key-punch of a typewriter, is a favourite of many - & I admit to her being a great source of amusement - it is Gabriel Betteredge who utterly charmed me. The elderly servant is incorrigibly talkative, but a man with a genuine sense of duty & fierce loyalty. That he allows his life to be directed by Robinson Crusoe, is my favourite of his peculiarities, & another of the many sources of humourin this story. As Mr Jennings laments of Betteredge's silent glancesin his direction: "he remembers that I have not read Robinson Crusoe since I was a child, & he respectfully pities me."
Nothing can be found wantingin the pages of this novel: theories abound as detectives both professional & amateur make their discoveries & revelations, & there are red herrings aplenty. The story is humorous, moving, ingeniously plotted, & richly atmospheric, particularlyin its depictions of the Yorkshire coast.
Wordsworth Classics (and I can't praise them enough) again is the edition to buy for the average reader. It's cheap, & the introduction tells you to enjoy the novel first before referring to it - a useful signpost - although Blair gives little, if any, of the plot away. Having read many of these introductions, I think Blair's is one of the most interesting. He outlines some of the main areas of critical debate surrounding the novel, as well as placing itin its wider historical context, revealing that as well as being a superb "story", The Moonstone is also a fascinating social commentary.
This book is nothing short of brilliant!
