Wrightsville is a typical American town, buried in the great American heartland, up to its neck in good old American corn. Naturally enough, no family in town is more respected than the one named the Wrights. Daddy Wright is the town banker; Momma Wright is the town's social lioness; daughter Patricia the town beauty, Nora the town recluse, Lola the town scandal.
Ellery Queen likes sophistication, savoir faire, and all the swinging assets of Manhattan and its environs. So what is he doing in this unearthly place? It's this famous detective's job to find out which of the Wrights is the town poisoner. Matching wits with a diabolically cunning and ruthless killer, he is eventually forced to defend himself against the murder charge.