The Murder of Roger Ackroyd begins with the death of Mrs. Ferrars, a wealthy widow rumored to have murdered her husband. Her death is believed to be an accident until successful industrialist Roger Ackroyd, who was expected to marry Mrs. Ferrars, is killed. There's no shortage of suspects, from Roger's neurotic sister-in-law who has accumulated personal debts, to a parlormaid with an uncertain history who resigned her post the afternoon of the murder. But the police focus on Ralph Paton, Ackroyd's stepson and heir, and the person with the most to gain from Roger's death. When venerable sleuth Hercule Poirot, who is living quietly in King's Abbot, agrees to investigate, the case takes a completely different turn. Poirot exonerates all of the original suspects, and lays out a completely reasoned case that the murderer is someone who had not come under suspicion at all - someone whose motive has nothing to do with money.