In post World War I England, Lady Phoebe Renshaw and her lady's maid, Eva Huntford, encounter an uncharitable killer at a charity luncheon sponsored by a posh school for girls. Good deeds build good character, and good character is what the Haverleigh School for Young Ladies is all about. Lady Phoebe, with the tireless assistance of Eva, has organized a luncheon at the school to benefit wounded veterans of the Great War, encouraging the students to participate in the cooking and the baking. But too many cooks do more than spoil the broth, they add up to a recipe for disaster when the school's headmistress, Miss Finch, is poisoned.