Anthony Hope 
The Indiscretion of the Duchess (Barnes & Noble Digital Library) 

The plot of this 1894 novel is aptly conveyed by its subtitle, “Being a Story Concerning Two Ladies, a Nobleman, and a Necklace.”  When Gilbert Aycon travels to his estate in Normandy, he encounters a beautiful young singer, Marie Delhasse, and the adventure of a lifetime.

About the author

Sir Anthony Hope Hawkins (1863-1933), who published under the name Anthony Hope, was a prolific English novelist and playwright.  His best-known works are the swashbuckling adventures Prisoner of Zenda (1894) and its sequel, Rupert of Hentzau (1898).  Knighted in 1918 for his wartime service with the Ministry of Information, his autobiography Memories and Notes appeared in 1927.