Wealthy businessman Sam Westing dies. At the reading of his will, it is revealed that his named heirs are all tenants at the adjacent Sunset Towers apartment building. The will states that one of his heirs took Westing's life. The will is structured like a puzzle, with the 16 heirs paired off and challenged to find the solution. The pair that solves the mystery of his death will inherit Westing's entire $200,000,000 fortune and control of his company.
The Heirs
Pair One
- Jake Wexler is a podiatrist, and a bookie on the side. He is married to Grace Wexler and is the father of Angela Wexler and Tabitha-Ruth Wexler.
- Madame Sun Lin Hoo is the second and much-younger Chinese immigrant wife of James Shin Hoo. She barely knows how to speak English. She can usually be found cooking in her husband's restaurant.
Pair Two
- Tabitha-Ruth "Turtle"(TR) Wexler, is an intelligent 13-year-old girl. She is very protective of her long, dark braid of hair and anyone who touches it gets a kick to the shin and a bruise.
- Flora Baumbach is a shy 60-year-old dressmaker who becomes a maternal figure to Turtle.
Pair Three
- Christos "Chris" Theodorakis is a 15-year-old boy who uses a wheelchair due to degenerative muscle disease. He is intelligent and enjoys birdwatching.
- Dr. Denton Deere is a medical intern, engaged to Angela. To show off, he diagnoses everyone he meets.
Pair Four
- Judge J.J. (Josie-Jo) Ford is an intelligent and serious African-American woman in her forties. She is suspicious of the game created by Sam Westing and believes that one of the heirs may be in danger.
- Alexander "Sandy" McSouthers is the doorman at the Sunset Towers Apartments.
Pair Five
- Grace Windsor Wexler, married to Jake Wexler and mother of Angela and Turtle.
- James Shin Hoo is a former entrepreneur, the owner of the Hoo's restaurant chain, as well as Madame Hoo's husband and Doug's father.
Pair Six
- Berthe Erica Crow, usually referred to as simply Crow, is the cleaning woman for Sunset Towers. She is extremely religious and also operates a downtown soup kitchen.
- Otis Amber is a 62 year-old "delivery boy." He assists Crow with her soup kitchen.
Pair Seven
- Theo Theodorakis is a smart high school student, and very loyal to his family. He is protective of his brother Chris and works hard in his parents' coffee shop. He is interested in becoming a writer, and also becomes friends with his partner, Doug Hoo.
- Doug Hoo, son of James Shin Hoo, is a high school track star, one of the best mile-runners in the state. Running is his passion, but his father often criticizes him for not studying enough. He is a prankster and develops a rivalry with Turtle Wexler.
Pair Eight
- Angela Wexler is a beautiful 20-year-old girl: fair, blonde, and very pretty. She is considered the 'perfect' daughter, often getting more attention than her sister Turtle.
- Sydelle Pulaski is a mysterious character who seems to have no connection to Mr. Westing or the other heirs. It is revealed that she was mistaken for Sybil Pulaski, a friend of Crow who was supposed to have been an heir instead.
In the end, Crow is incorrectly declared to be the murderer, and she herself announces her name as the solution to the puzzle. She is the former wife of Sam Westing and her pressuring led to the death of her and Westing's daughter, Violet, because she didn't want to marry the man she was betrothed to.
However, Turtle discovers that Sam Westing faked his own death and has been directing the game all along using several different identities. Turtle follows the final clue (the "fourth") and tracks Westing down to where he is now living "at the crossroads" under the alias "Julian Eastman". Eastman/Westing/McSouthers/Northrup declares Turtle to be the true winner of the Westing Game, but Turtle keeps this a secret. It is implied that Westing considered that his alter-ego Sandy McSouthers was the one who "took his life". Westing becomes Turtle Wexler's mentor and pays for her expensive education. Westing dies on the Fourth of July twenty years after the game is over.
