This early work by Richard Marsh was originally published in 1898 and we are now republishing it with a brand new introductory biography. A cautionary tale of Cyril Paxton - a gambler who has lost his last bet. Accidentally finding himself with of a quarter million pounds worth of stolen diamonds, the story quickly leads to his involvement with Scotland Yard's finest. Richard Bernard Heldmann - better-known by his pseudonym, Richard Marsh - was born in England in 1857. A best-selling and prolific author of the late 19th century and the Edwardian period, Marsh is best known now for his supernatural thriller novel The Beetle, which was published the same year as Bram Stoker's Dracula (1897). Richard Marsh was a versatile writer of ghost stories, horror novels, and romances, as well as thrilling mysteries like The Datchet Diamonds - which is considered to be one of the earliest modern detective novels.