Richard Condon’s last satirical romp with the Prizzi crime family begins with the fake kidnapping of presidential advisor Henry George Asbury, who has made a deal to keep the ransom payment in return for the control of his companies. However, his wife Julia Asbury uses the plot for her own purposes – to bleed the Asbury empire of more than one billion dollars while becoming a widow in the process. In exchange, Don Corrado Prizzi has chosen her as the ideal wife for one of his sons. Matters become hilariously complicated, though, when she instead gets involved with enforcer Charley Partanna, a man who can fall in love or kill at the drop of the hat. As usual, Condon uses these comical events to take pointed shots at the rich and powerful, particularly Reagan Republicans, and American life in the ‘90s in general.