It is an early and prominent example of the "inverted detective story", claimed to have been invented by R. Austin Freeman some years earlier.

The opening sentence has been described as "immortal": "It was not until several weeks after he had decided to murder his wife that Doctor Bickleigh took any active steps in the matter.

"[1] Edmund Bickleigh, a physician with a modest rural practice, is in a loveless marriage with the domineering childless Julia.

Into his village arrives Madeleine, a rich young woman, who succumbs to his attentions but warns she will not marry him if he divorces.

A second adaptation Malice Aforethought, starring Ben Miller as Dr. Bickleigh, Megan Dodds as Madeleine, and Barbara Flynn as Julia, was produced by Granada Television and broadcast on ITV in 2005.