The following version of this book was used to create this study guide: Coben, Harlan. Win. Grand Central Publishing, 2021. Kindle Edition.

The title, Win, is the first installment of the Myron Bolitar series. The narrative features Myron’s sidekick, Win.

As the narrative opens, Win is in Indianapolis attending the finals of the NCAA tournament. However, he is not there just to root for his alma mater, Duke University. He is also there to deliver his form of justice to a man named Teddy Lyons. Teddy is the opposing team’s star recruiter. He is also a sexual predator. Win is a silent partner in the law firm of Fischer and Friedman which represents Teddy's most recent victim. The police cannot arrest Teddy because of the lack of physical evidence to prove his guilt. Thus, Win has decided to make it impossible for Teddy to harm women in the future. He confronts Teddy and assaults him.

Afterward, Win returns to New York. He stops by Fischer and Friedman and talks to Sadie Fischer about her client. He is there when two law enforcement officers arrive. They want to talk to him about a murder.

The victim is a man later identified as Ry Strauss. In the early seventies, Ry was a member of a group later called the Jane Street Six. The group became notorious after their attempt to cause property damage turned into murder when one of the Molotov cocktails they threw hit a light pole resulting in multiple deaths and injuries. The victims included the niece of an organized crime leader and the son of a woman name Vanessa Hogan. The group’s members went on the run.

However, this is not why the police want to talk to Win. While searching Ry’s bedroom, they find one of two paintings that belong to Win’s family. They were stolen while on loan to Haverford College. They also find a suitcase carrying Win’s initials.

Even though the suitcase carries Win’s initials, it belongs to his cousin, Patricia, but Win does not tell this to the police because he knows the significance of finding the suitcase in Ry’s apartment. Patricia’s father was Aldrich, Win’s uncle. Win ranks Patricia as one of his favorite family members. However, his father cut off Aldrich when Patricia was a teenager. Win never knew why. Then the story has it that intruders murdered Aldrich and kidnapped Patricia. They made her pack the suitcase before they left and she took it with her. She escaped from a place called the Hut of Horrors five months later. During that time, she was raped. Other girls were killed. Afterwards, Patricia created a renowned charity to help victimized girls.

The discovery of the painting and the suitcase makes Win want to get justice for Patricia and Aldrich, despite his family members telling him to let it be. In addition, he agrees to help his mentor PT find Arlo Sugarman, another member of the Jane Street Six, because when PT was a rookie policeman, he and his partner found Arlo and Arlo killed PT’s partner. PT blames himself for his partner’s death. An organized crime leader named Leo Staunch is the brother of one victim. Staunch and Vanessa Hogan also want to find Arlo.Now Win is trying to find Ry’s killer, who he initially thinks could be the second kidnapper, Arlo, and the connection between Ry and the stolen paintings.

While these events are happening, Win is also dealing with the aftermath of his attack on Teddy. Teddy’s brothers think he is innocent and want revenge. They attack Win, and Win neutralizes their threat. One brother dies when they try to kill Win. The other dies when he attempts to harm Win’s daughter, Ema.

By the end of the narrative, Win has discovered the answers to the mysteries. Vanessa Hogan killed Ry and two other members of the Jane Street Six.

Arlo had faked his own death. He was not present the night the Jane Street Six members threw the Molotov cocktails. He killed the policeman in self-defense. Win lets those looking for Arlo believe he is dead and warns Arlo and his partner that they should run again.

Ry and Aldrich were friends. When Arlo did not want to participate in the attack on the building, Ry recruited Aldrich. Both men threw the Molotov cocktails. Aldrich’s parents, who are Win’s grandparents, sent Aldrich to Brazil. Aldrich had a troubled history. He was a Peeping Tom and aggressive towards women. His parents moved him around and paid people off to protect him. He returned from Brazil with Patricia’s mother, who was underage at the time. However, when Win’s father’s good friend approached him about Aldrich’s behavior toward his daughter, Win's father cut him off.

Aldrich was the man who abused and killed girls in the Hut of Horrors. He took photos and hid them in the backs of the stolen paintings. Thus, he was upset when they left the family home. He claimed it was his heritage. Patricia believed this and participated in Ry’s plan to steal them. He took one painting; she took the other. When she accidentally discovered the photos, she confronted her father. He admitted his deeds and said that he had done worse. She killed him and ran to Ry. When he proved to be crazy, she ran away from him and left the suitcase. Her grandmother helped her devise her story and the idea to create the charity. Patricia has tried to do good for the sake of the girls Aldrich abused ever since. Win keeps her secret.