It took me full 3 pages to remember how much I loved these characters and Kerri’s stories.

Escaping from Houdini’s plot is set on a luxurious ship Etruria, on journey from England to America. While I thought the third book was going to be about the case in America that Audrey’s uncle has mentioned, trouble didn’t wait for forensic duo to reach American shores. Murders of young women start on a seven-day journey, and on a ship full of carnival workers with criminal backgrounds, anyone can be murderer. Aside from a killer on board Audrey Rose is faced with many other problems such as her cousin and best friend, Liza, missing. As the Moonlight Carnival goes on, more and more bodies are found and the clock is ticking. Will Audrey Rose and Thomas manage to find their killer before it’s too late?

Before I start fangirling there is one big fat important thing I have too say. If you don’t want to read this book, or dislike the genre or don’t like the book itself, it doesn’t matter but YOU HAVE to look at this cover. It is just so beautiful I died. I want to marry this cover and buy it a house it is gorgeous. B e a u t I f u l! Like I do not know who designed it (yet), but I need them to be appreciated. I always liked SJtR covers, but this outdid everything.

I loved Kerri Maniscalco and her writing since I started Stalking Jack the Ripper series and this book was no exception. Victorian Era, mystery, crime. Is there anything else I need to say? Kerri has this amazing writing style where nothing is ever boring or overwhelming. There is this perfect amount of everything, from romance to action. I love reading about Victorian/Edwardian era in London (as I probably said more than million times but ok) and it is just so easy to read and enjoy the narrative and dialogues (oh dialogues they are so amazing I had to read some twice just to be sure how amazing they were). I love that every novel has a unique theme and Moonlight Carnival is my favourite so far.

Story is amazing, filled with action and drama. There is whole lot of forensics, investigating and even some direct conflicts. It is not like classic Sherlock Holmes or Aghata Christie with simply deducing and following the clues, but there is a lot of forensics and sometimes luck included. I had a problem with that at first because of how much I loved mc to solve everything in their minds, but sometimes it is more fun if Audrey Rose simply stumbles onto some new clue.

This case was and wasn’t much like the first two Audrey Rose and Thomas worked on, but I definitely must say it was unique. Unique in a way it was described and solved and I can say Kerri involved a lot in writing such things. There was a lot of details I loved, such as tarot cards. As the whole novel was themed, this was one of the most striking detail and I often wished I knew more about cartomancy in order to try to connect it with murders. The story around killer and his motives were so well developed and Audrey Rose solving the case was so interesting to read. Audrey Rose and Thomas evolved a great deal in solving cases and the pacing of their investigation was well paced, they didn’t finish it too quickly or too slowly. They managed to figure out story and motives behind the crimes and connect victims to each other just in time.

Characters, characters, characters… Characters in this book are something I could write on forever. Starting from Audrey Rose who is one of my all-time favorite characters. Beautiful, ambitious girl trying to live her life freely in a society that is constantly caging her. I love how she follows her dreams and passions for forensics and engineering, although many find it inappropriate. She is super smart and steady, being calm in difficult situations and dealing with her past trauma like a heroine she is. I almost forgot how much I loved her character and I love Kerri for reminding me of it.

Thomas Cresswell is the ultimate book boyfriend. I adore his witty remarks and charm in every single dialogue. Beside his perfect charm he is an absolute cinnamon roll. He is so supportive of Audrey Rose and never hesitates to give her freedom she deserves, even though it hurts him. He is always there for her and, although he was a little bit sided in this book, there was a whole new side of his character shown and, honestly, it is beautiful.

Beside this amazing duo there was a lot of amazing characters that don’t get much spotlight, but each is developed and special. Liza is best friend only Audrey Rose deserves completely. Although I was annoyed with her *minor spoiler* for disappearing with Houdini and acting selfish I couldn’t deny her right to feel some freedom herself. She was always the one defending Audrey Rose and being supportive of her hobbies where everyone else judged her.

Mephistopheles is one new character we encounter as a leader of the Moonlight Carnival. He appeared to be just some background character, but he turned out to be quite important. He is complex and interesting, that bad-boy with problematic past I (well, don’t we all) like so much. His character is well written and I liked reading about him so much even when his presence annoyed me from time to time. He has a role of freedom and a love interest with no responsibilities, which makes him interesting and kind of lovable.


*spoiler for suspects* There was always lots of mysterious atmosphere around him and that made me consider him for a suspect until the end, but I guess that’s what author was trying to accomplish by writing him like that.
And let’s just not forget Mrs. Harvey and her ‘travelling tonic’. I mean can you wish for a better chaperone 😉

Romance in this book? I thought the rest of the series was going to be about this happy, endlessly in love couple solving crimes together, but… love triangle? I did not see that coming. I DID NOT have a problem with this love triangle, because it was really well written and instead of developing drama it only showed better sides of each character.

*Next paragraph is quite spoilerish so don’t read it if you want to remain completely spoiler free although I will put spoiler warning for major spoilers*

I have a lot of mixed feelings about Audrey Rose’s mixed feelings. I adored Audrey Rose x Thomas and never even considered something could come between them and their love, which is just what made this so interesting. It is realistic. Let’s be honest, there is rarely something like pure soulmates/true love. We all have our flaws and doubts, but it only shows who we truly are.

Audrey Rose’s falling for Mephistopheles was annoying when I thought of Thomas, but when I tried to look at their sharing interests in engineering and chemistry between them I couldn’t say I was team Thomas at all times.


I wanted my otp to remain whole and I hated to see Thomas jealous or heartbroken, but there was obvious tension between Audrey and Mephistopheles and I found myself rooting for them to kiss or something. They do make a good pair, if it wasn’t for Thomas.

As I said before this love triangle brought the best in each character without creating unnecessary drama. I was amazed with Thomas and his will to let Audrey go, because he loved her too much to try to cage her.


Audrey Rose had doubts and the way she dealt with them was amazing (*major spoiler* Let’s just not forget how she threw herself at knife for Thomas, like she KNEW it was him or no one.)

. She saw there was no one but Thomas and that ending was so emotional and sometimes I am surprised at how the two of them can be dense considering each other’s feelings. *spoiler for ending of love triangle* I am so glad they got back together and that has to stay that way!

For all crime and mystery lovers these series are amazing and you won’t regret reading them and for all SJtR fans who still haven’t read this book, it is a 5 star read and I think it might get into my favorites.

Lina | ★★★★★

Ever since this book came out, I’ve been doing my best to avoid any kind of spoilers at all costs. Therefore, I definitely did NOT EXPECT TO BE LEFT SUCH AN EMOTIONAL MESS AFTERWARDS. Thanks Kerri. *sobs*
(Seriously, thank you for creating such beautiful characters and writing such an amazing story❤️)

Escaping from Houdini picks up where Hunting Prince Dracula left off, with Audrey Rose, Thomas and Doctor Wadsworth already on a luxurious cruiser en route to America. Shortly after the ship sets sail, bodies start turning up, twisted and displayed in the middle of the Moonlight Carnival shows. With dozens of masked performers lurking around, each and every one could be a killer. On top of that, back in England, Audrey Rose’s cousin Liza goes missing. Could everything be connected? And more importantly, can Audrey Rose and Thomas solve the mystery before the ship reaches America and the murderer disappears for good?

Kerri Maniscalco really outdid herself with this one. While I loved bothStalking Jack the Ripper and Escaping from Houdini, I can’t deny that luck played a huge part in their discoveries in these two book. In Escaping from Houdini, however, we get to see how much they’ve grown and learned since then. The element of luck is still present, but there is a whole lot more of piecing together both the actual and forensic clues, working out the murder motives and sleuthing.

It is truly noticeable how much attention the author paid to the tiny details. Everything seemed worked out to perfection, from the whole carnival aesthetic to the cards left with the victims, telling “a story of jealously, love, loss, betrayal, and revenge.” Only now, looking back, do I see all the little clues dropped throughout the book, just waiting for a witty-enough reader to piece them. I have to admit that I couldn’t figure it out until the very last moment. Kerri Maniscalco managed to pull the ultimate sleight of hand in this one, misleading me into so many directions that I strayed as far from the actual murderer as I possibly could. It was brilliant.


I almost forgot how much I’ve loved these characters until I dove back into this world and everything came rushing back at me. Audrey Rose was just as determined and passionate as I could remember, fighting for her independence and place in the world controlled by men, and keeping a cool exterior in the face of fire. She was not perfect and made some mistakes, but realized that and was intent on making everything right the best she could. Both her and Thomas’s character and their relationship were tested, which gave an interesting twist to the already compelling plot. I’m only sorry Thomas didn’t get as much “screen” time as he did in the previous installments. Still, he remained as amazing and brilliant as we all know him to be. He managed to stay true to his love and respect for Audrey Rose despite everything that played off, and not even once did he try to restrict her freedom.

All of the other characters were amazing as well (Mrs. Harvey with her iconic traveling tonic, Liza and even all of the performers), but unfortunately I couldn’t possibly fit all I have to say about them into a single review. Still, I would like to briefly address one character in particular, that, as far as I’ve seen, receives the most mixed reviews out there. Of course, I’m talking about none other than Mephistopheles. While many people seem to really hate him for even daring to interfere with Audrey Rose and accuse him of being a rip-off of Thomas or something, I found his character to be quite refreshing and intriguing. He kept me constantly on the edge of my seat as I was never sure where his true intentions lay, and how many of the things he was saying were actually the truth. Despite myself, I fell for his charm and even started slightly shipping him and Audrey Rose. I have a feeling this was not the last we saw of him (as was partly hinted at the end) and I hope he will appear in (one of) the following installment(s).

The love triangle kind of came to me as a shock, as I expected Audrey Rose and Thomas’s romance to progress unperturbedly from the ending of HPD on, but that doesn’t mean I’ve hated it. It added a whole nother level of dynamic to the story and, in my opinion, it was remarkably well executed. It didn’t take over the plot at any point, but rather fit seamlessly into it, and it only helped give us a deeper insight into characters’ personalities.

Even despite Audrey Rose’s internal struggle, I never had any doubts that her love for Thomas will prevail, although I certainly didn’t expect it to happen the way it did and leave me a sobbing emotional mess afterwards. It was amazing and powerful and so beautifully written that I even started doubting that everything would eventually end well.


This book has immediately become one of my favourites and I would wholeheartedly recommend it to both the old fans of this series and anyone who is still doubting whether it’s worth reading or not. I can promise it is and you definitely won’t regret reading it.