The Diamond of Madame Pompadour

A new series of historical detective novels «Secrets of Moscow Alleys. The Notes of Lieutenant Polyansky».
The novel combines a vivid historical fabric of the era, exquisite investigation, and a story of dangerous attraction.

Under the arches of Versailles, amidst gold, wigs, and whispers of court secrets, a legend about the diamond «Rose of Versailles» is born — a stone whose history is intertwined with power, passion, and betrayal. Decades later, its distant echo reaches Moscow in the early 19th century, where, under the flickering of streetlights and the brilliance of balls, the past comes to life unexpectedly.

Moscow, 1829. Young lieutenant Alexey Polyansky has just begun his service in the Second Division of the Gendarmerie and immediately finds himself at the center of a scandal that the entire city is gossiping about. The tabloid «Secrets of Moscow» publishes a sensation: the merchant Vasily Glyzin is said to possess a legendary pink diamond, allegedly once gifted to his ancestor by the Marquise de Pompadour herself. One article is enough to turn the quiet house into a besieged fortress — journalists, adventurers, and fortune hunters rush to it. And then the merchant disappears without a trace.

The deeper Polyansky dives into the investigation, the more clearly he understands: behind the beautiful legend of the precious stone lie infidelities, familial betrayals, and a dangerous connection with a woman who plays with fates as skillfully as cards. The threads of the investigation stretch further — through Moscow salons and dark alleys to a mystery that originated in France during the time of Louis XIV.
And soon the lieutenant must decide: where does duty end and what is worth losing honor, career — and one’s own heart begin.