In the seemingly peaceful village of St. Mary Mead, everyone knows everyone-and everyone is watching. When Colonel Protheroe is found murdered in the vicar's study, the village's orderly routines fracture, revealing long-simmering resentments and carefully hidden truths.

Told through the wry, fallible voice of the vicar and sharpened by the unobtrusive brilliance of Miss Jane Marple, the investigation unfolds as a study in human nature as much as a puzzle of clues. Appearances deceive, motives multiply, and justice arrives from the least expected direction.