The Murder of Roger Ackroyd broke all the rules of detective fiction and made Agatha Christie a household name. There are two things you must do if you know nothing of this book: discuss it with no one, and read it with all speed -- because it contains one of the biggest surprises in crime fiction.

In the quiet village of King's Abbot a widow's suicide has stirred suspicion -- and dreadful gossip. There are rumours that she murdered her first husband, that she was being blackmailed, and that her secret lover was Roger Ackroyd. Then, on the verge of discovering the blackmailer's identity, Ackroyd himself is murdered.