Howard and Elsie Manning were born on the same day, met at kindergarten, and have been married for 59 years. They have lived sensible, productive lives, and raised two self-sufficient daughters. Now, at 78, they are bored with the predictability of life, fed up with contemporary society, have aching joints and dwindling finances, and - funeral by funeral - their circle of friends is shrinking. Worst of all, they are grieving for their beloved, recently deceased dog Maisie.

Together Howard and Elsie consider bringing their lives to a peaceful end, but it turns out leaving this world is not easy, especially if they want to avoid pain or mess. Even the apparently simple methods have much room for error, as they discover.

Then a knock at the door changes everything ...