Lady Edgware, the well-known stage actress Jane Wilkinson, has a dilemma in that her husband has consistently refused to give her a divorce. She asks Hercule Poirot to visit the man to see if there is any possibility of convincing him. Lord Edgware is nothing short of nasty, treating all those around him very badly. When he is found dead, there is no great surprise, but there certainly are a good number of suspects. The police believe Lady Edgware to be the culprit, but she has a cast-iron alibi, having attended a private dinner over the time her husband was killed. There is also the man's nephew, who would inherit his fortune, and his personal assistant, whom he treated very badly; and then there is the family butler, who clearly has his own interests at heart.