This thesis focuses on The Moonstone, a novel by Wilkie Collins, as an early example of the modern detective novel and one of the most important works within the genre. T. S. Eliot, named The Moonstone the first, the longest and the best of modern English detective novels, and considered Collins as the inventor of the detective fiction genre. One of Collins’ contributions also lies in his depiction of the role of the detective. Seargent Cuff is seemingly based on a real-life detective, Jonathan Whicher, who solved the “Constance Kent case” of 1860, a real-life murder case where a sister killed her young half-brother, which is thought to be the case that inspired Collins to write The Moonstone. The employment of multiple narrators, in order to showcase how a single agent is not enough to successfully carry the narrative and solve the mystery is another of Collins’ accomplishments. The Moonstone is in the centre of the motives of the novel, and it keeps the narrative in motion and the reader interested, while simultaneously posing as the critique of British imperialism. The aim of this thesis is to depict the intricacies that make up The Moonstone and make it one of the greatest pieces of detective fiction of all time.