Ngaio Marsh's most popular novel begins when young New Zealander Roberta Grey comes into contact with the Lamprey family, a peculiar bunch with plenty of charm but no money. The Lampreys revel in their eccentricity and entertain their guests with complicated charades. But when one game goes wrong and rich Uncle Gabriel is found murdered in a most grizzly manner, the only person capable of solving the crime is Chief Detective Inspector Roderick Alleyn.