In this melodrama, which borders on the outrageous, Tom plows through ghosts, double-crossing thieves, and even identical twins to discover the diamond stealers; the the process, however, he makes some shrewd judgments on shadows at the foot of sycamores and the pattern a finger makes on a cheek. Tom Sawyer, Detective was the last lighthearted story written by Twain. His daughter Suzy’s death before its publication in 1896 marked the beginning of a decade of tragedy for the aging literary giant.