Brewster’s Millions
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This classic novel offers a witty and timeless satire of wealth, love, and human folly, making you question what you would do with a million dollars—and a year to lose it.
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Book Summary
Montgomery Brewster inherits $1 million from his grandfather, only to learn he must spend every penny within a year to inherit $7 million from a rival uncle. His wild spending spree tests friendships, love, and sanity, leading to a surprising twist that questions the true value of wealth.
On his 25th birthday, Monty Brewster inherits $1 million from his grandfather, Edwin Brewster. Soon after, he learns he is the sole heir to his uncle James Sedgwick's $7 million estate, but with a catch: he must be completely penniless by his 26th birthday, having spent or destroyed the initial million. Guided by strict rules from executor Swearengen Jones, Monty embarks on a year of extravagant spending—leasing a lavish apartment, throwing opulent dinners, betting on prizefights, and speculating in the stock market. His reckless behavior strains his engagement to Barbara Drew and tests his friendships with the 'Little Sons of the Rich.' As the year ends, Monty falls in love with childhood friend Peggy Gray, who stands by him through social ruin and a disastrous yacht cruise. After spending every dollar, Monty prepares to marry Peggy penniless, only to discover that Jones has disappeared with the fortune. In a final twist, Jones returns, revealing he followed the will's terms, and Monty becomes a multimillionaire, marrying Peggy with his integrity intact.
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Character guides, themes, chapter companions — plus Character Web, narrative arc, and theme heatmap teasers that unlock fully beside the text in BetterReads.
Narrative arc
Story tension across the book.
Montgomery Brewster
Monty Brewster is a restless young man about town whose grandfather's will turns his life into a frantic, public experiment in spending. He must burn through a million dollars without acquiring a single asset, while lawyers, friends, and a watchful Montana trustee scrutinize his every extravagance. His growing feeling for Peggy Gray complicates the game, forcing him to weigh love and self-respect against the terms of a fortune he cannot keep.
Peggy Gray
Peggy Gray has loved Montgomery Brewster since they were children, and she watches his wild spending spree with a mixture of hope and quiet dread. She believes him worth a lifetime of poverty, yet his strange urgency about marrying before the Sedgwick settlement leaves her puzzled and uneasy. Her steady presence is the emotional anchor against which Monty's reckless year is measured, and the reason his final choices matter.
Barbara Drew
Barbara Drew moves easily through New York's fashionable set, courted by Monty and by the brash Californian Rodney Grimes. She resents Monty's assumption that he can dictate her friendships, and her cool, cutting replies expose the hollowness of his possessiveness. Her refusal to be a prize in his campaign forces Brewster to confront what he actually wants, sharpening the contrast with Peggy's patient devotion.
Swearengen Jones
Swearengen Jones is the wealthy, sardonic relative whose death sets the entire wager in motion, and whose terse messages from Butte keep Monty guessing whether he is being watched or mocked. His frugality is legendary, and his dry comment that he could feed all of Montana for less than six thousand dollars lands like a warning shot. His disappearance and the mystery surrounding his secretary shadow the story, making his intentions the central puzzle of Monty's year.
Mrs. Dan DeMille
Mrs. Dan DeMille is the leader of the fast younger married set, a woman whose husband lives at the club and whose invitations are never declined. She lends Brewster's campaign her unerring sense of arrangement, making his lavish dinners succeed as social events rather than mere curiosities. Her amused patronage gives Monty entrée into circles his money alone could not buy, and her presence marks how quickly his fortune reshapes his standing.
Nopper Harrison
Nopper Harrison serves as Brewster's assistant and confidant, placing bets, running errands, and watching the spending spiral with a never-decreasing look of worry. He is the practical friend who sees the toll of each fresh extravagance, from ruined automobiles to injured workmen, before Monty allows himself to feel it. His presence grounds the wild year in ordinary loyalty and gives the reader a steady, anxious witness to Brewster's descent into glorious waste.
Wealth and Extravagance
The central plot revolves around Montgomery Brewster's struggle to spend a million dollars in one year to inherit a larger fortune, exploring the absurdities and challenges of extreme wealth, lavish spending, and the social pressures that accompany it.
Family Legacy and Feuds
The narrative is driven by the bitter feud between the Brewster and Sedgwick families, with old grudges dictating the terms of inheritance and forcing Monty to navigate the conflicting legacies of his grandfather and uncle.
Friendship and Loyalty
Monty's relationships with his friends, the 'Little Sons of the Rich,' and his love interest Peggy Gray are tested by his reckless spending, highlighting themes of trust, betrayal, and the true meaning of loyalty amidst financial turmoil.
Social Class and Status
The book examines the social dynamics of New York's elite, where wealth determines reputation, and Monty's fall from grace and subsequent rise illustrate the precarious nature of social standing based on money.
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