On her way home after a lunch meeting of her local book-and-political club, the Uppity Women, Georgia librarian Aurora Teagarden stops by her sister-in-law's house to find that Poppy has been stabbed to death. Of course, the police detective who answers the call is Roe's former boyfriend, Arthur Smith. But she discovers he's had a relationship with Poppy, too, and he's not the only one. Pretty Poppy, young mother and suburban housewife, has secrets galore, and none of them are pleasant.

As Roe discovers more and more about Poppy's life, she begins to understand the dynamics that led to Poppy's death. The lives of everyone who knew Poppy, and Roe's own relationship with writer Robin Crusoe, will change forever as a result of the murder. Because she knows everyone involved in Poppy's demise, Aurora is able to discover the identity of Poppy's murderer, and she risks her own life in a direct confrontation.