When Brian and Gregory receive an invitation to stay at a distant relative's strange mansion...well, they should know better than to go. Trips to distant relatives' strange mansions rarely go well. And this mansion is even stranger than most. Uncle Max doesn't really know what century he's in. The butler burns socks. And the attic is home to The Game of Sunken Places.

The Game of Sunken Places looks like a board game. And most of the time it acts like a board game. But from the moment Brian and Gregory start playing, they are caught up in an adventure that goes far beyond the board. Soon the boys are dealing with trolls with bad attitudes, warring kingdoms, and some very starchy britches. There's a surprise around every corner -- and, for Brian and Gregory, only one way to win.