The Westing Game

The Westing Game Summary | Plot Summary

There's a bright, new, beautiful luxury apartment building on the Lake Michigan shore, but there's no advertising to lure tenants. Instead, an odd delivery boy rides around on his bicycle and slips invitations under the doors of the chosen tenants-to-be. Each potential tenant is shown only one apartment and is told that it is the last available apartment. In every situation, the offer is made in such a way that it would be foolish to turn it down. Soon, Sunset Towers is full with an interesting mix of families and single people. Their backgrounds are all very different—or so it seems. Sunset Towers not only has tenants, it also has businesses: there's a coffee shop, a gourmet restaurant, and a doctor's office.

The tenants are all aware of the imposing mansion next door: the Westing house. On Halloween, the doorman and the delivery boy spin an irresistibly frightening tale of gruesome gossip about the house to entertain Sunset Towers's teenagers. One of them, Turtle, is fearless and always ready to take a dare, especially if there's a bet involved. Her plan is to spend that night in the Westing house. The discovery of a body, and some strange whispers, sends her running from the mansion, and the next day the death of Samuel Westing is reported in the papers. On the same day, sixteen of the residents receive letters proclaiming that they are heirs to Samuel Westing and should report to the Westing mansion for the reading of the will.

There is nothing routine or predictable about this will. As the lawyer reads, it's as if the dead man was alive in the words. Written in the will are comments on the heirs' actions moments after they occur. The phrases in Westing's will are strange and eccentric; inviting them to play "the Westing game," he proclaims that one of the heirs has caused his death. In the will, he announces that the heirs shall be divided into eight pairs—most are paired with people they hardly know—and he has given each pair a separate set of clues. The team that finds the answer will inherit Westing's two-hundred-million-dollar fortune.

The game begins and so does a great adventure and mental challenge for readers: not everything is what it seems and not everyone is who he or she appears to be. Every chapter is rich with puzzles, puns, and clues, many of them red herrings. In the midst of the game, family loyalties are tested and renewed, new and lasting friendships are formed, and untapped talents and resources are revealed. The vividly-described characters must deal with a blizzard, bombs, and a murderer on the prowl.

In the final chapters, Turtle is the only one who solves the entire mystery. She conducts a mock trial to present her theories and uncover more answers. Several false identities are unmasked, including that of Samuel Westing, who was disguised as the now-deceased doorman. In the end, all the heirs have been greatly rewarded in ways they never expected, and they continue to thrive. However, only Turtle knows the one true answer, and she keeps it to herself.