Annabel Halston is a dreamer yearning to escape the monotony of her small-town life. When a traveling circus arrives in her town, dazzling audiences with its otherworldly performances, Annie seizes the opportunity to leave everything behind and the join the show.

The circus is a strange place full of misfits, mystifying human wonders, and fellow runaways, but Annie finds herself connecting with the lost souls that were shepherded into the circus and given a home. Their savior, Benjamin Thompson, the whimsical owner of the thrilling Thompson Family Circus, is a man who will do anything to keep his unusual employees safe and protected from both insolent circus-goers and greedy members of the press.

A night of wonder is transformed into terror when Annie’s classmate is found murdered in the Big Top, coincidentally, the day after Annie spontaneously joins the circus. Tensions rise as restless performers, bound by unbreakable contracts, see the tragedy as a chance to escape. Meanwhile, the circus thrives, offering a world of fantasy to those desperate to escape reality. However, Annie finds it difficult to fully absorb herself in the wondrous magic of the circus, and soon finds herself searching for justice in ways she never even imagined.

Fully invested in a plot to solve the murder, Annie finds herself racing against the clock as the killer continues their bloody massacre across the circus. In a world full of people who are desperate to escape their pasts, it proves nearly impossible to investigate. The people at the circus are mysterious, cunning, manipulative, and unwilling to let go of the illusion they’ve created. But as paranoia sets in and masks begin to slip, Annie realizes that the greatest threat isn’t the killer lurking in the shadows—it’s the madness lurking within.

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