A dinner party at the Sydney estate of Sir Harry and Phillipa Huxwood, wealthy heads of a publishing empire, is a scene charged with tension between the Huxwoods, their children and grandchildren over whether or not the family empire should be put up for sale. When Sir Harry is found murdered the next morning, Inspector Scobie Malone enters a world of shiftless alliances among family members, as well as political powers as accusing fingers point in all directions.