Josh is thrilled when he makes the baseball team; now he'll be able to practice all summer with the guys. But then his mom and Steven (her significant other) announce they have a job that will take them to India for the summer, and Josh will spend his summer with an eccentric aunt who lives thousands of miles away. Talk about a summer gone bad!
On Josh's very first night, his aunt hauls out a rifle and shoots a bat, which falls down behind a cupboard, to remain rotting there all summer. The next morning, he is awakened by a terrifying scream. His aunt informs him that the source of the noise is his dead Aunt Florence who has returned as a peacock, as she promised.
There is an old treehouse that Steven used to play in when he was a boy. Josh goes to find it, and takes his books and a pillow to read in peace. Two things happen that will make Josh's summer anything but boring. First, a stray and starving cat appears from out of the woods. And second, a stray ghost starving for conversation appears in the treehouse.
What? You don't believe in ghosts? Neither does Josh. Until the ghost proves that he in fact is a ghost. His name is Willie, and he needs Josh to help him rest in peace. It turns out that he lost his leg in an accident, and his leg bones are buried far apart from the rest of him. Josh finally agrees to dig up the bones and transfer them to the place where Willie is buried.
Meanwhile, Josh's aunt has told him about a terrible robbery that occurred many years ago. The dastardly thief stole money that the community had collected to build an animal shelter. The robbery was never solved and the $100,000 never recovered.
Now, what do you think happens next? Well, when Josh digs up Willie's leg bones, he also digs up the $100,000! Who buried the box of cash in the grave, and why? How far will this individual go to get the money back?
Josh feared his summer would be one big bore, but you'll be anything but bored as you turn the pages of this thrilling book.