The Escape Game (Escape Room Murders)
#1 NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER • An unforgettable young adult murder mystery set in an escape-room themed game show filled with sabotage, betrayal, and puzzles to die for.
“An absolute winner—sharp, suspenseful, and so much fun.” —Karen M. McManus, #1 New York Times bestselling author of One of Us Is Lying
This gorgeous first edition hardcover features stunning stenciled edges and specially crafted endpapers!
It’s all fun and games until someone ends up dead.
Six months ago, season four of The Escape Game ended in horror when contestant Alicia Angelos was found murdered on set.
Now season five is underway, and new contestants are ready to put their skills to the test solving the show's trickiest escape rooms. There's Adi, the cryptographer; Carter, the math whiz; Beck, the wannabe game master; and . . . Sierra Angelos, the girl who got away with her sister’s murder. Or so everyone believes.
But Sierra’s not just here to win. She’s here for justice.
When the contestants begin uncovering clues that hint at the identity of Alicia’s true killer, it becomes clear that the stakes aren’t high just in this competition—they’re deadly. If these teens want to win—and survive—the game, they must solve the biggest mystery of all: who killed Alicia Angelos?
From #1 New York Times bestselling authors Marissa Meyer and Tamara Moss comes a twisty thrill-ride that will take readers on an exhilarating hunt to uncover secrets, conspiracy, and cold-blooded murder.
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Readers say, reviewers agree that "The Escape Game" offers a fun, suspenseful escape-room experience with inventive puzzles and engaging characters. M...
I know this is YA, and I do try to be a little more lenient when rating YA than I am with adult fiction. I expect different things... That said... this one was just kind of... ehhh.
The premise sounded like so much fun. A reality TV escape room competition with a murder mystery woven into it? Sign me up! I read somthing similar as a short story Last One to Leave by
Stevenson, Benjamin. Unfortunately this one never really came together for me.
The mystery was fine, but I never felt particularly invested in it or the characters. The puzzles didn't feel as clever as I'd hoped, and the tension never quite reached the level the premise promised. I like a LitRPG but LitEscapeRoom was not for me..... I kept waiting for the story to kick into another gear, but it stayed pretty even the whole way through.
It wasn't bad enough for me to put it down, I finished it, enjoyed parts of it, and then immediately started forgetting the details. I think younger readers or people looking for a quick, light mystery will probably have a good time with it. For me, though, it never rose above having a really interesting concept.
The premise sounded like so much fun. A reality TV escape room competition with a murder mystery woven into it? Sign me up! I read somthing similar as a short story Last One to Leave by
Stevenson, Benjamin. Unfortunately this one never really came together for me.
The mystery was fine, but I never felt particularly invested in it or the characters. The puzzles didn't feel as clever as I'd hoped, and the tension never quite reached the level the premise promised. I like a LitRPG but LitEscapeRoom was not for me..... I kept waiting for the story to kick into another gear, but it stayed pretty even the whole way through.
It wasn't bad enough for me to put it down, I finished it, enjoyed parts of it, and then immediately started forgetting the details. I think younger readers or people looking for a quick, light mystery will probably have a good time with it. For me, though, it never rose above having a really interesting concept.
Frankly, I was underwhelmed. No disrespect to these authors; the writing was just adequate. I’ve never personally done an escape room, so it was difficult to really connect with the action. This was my book club’s read for October. I arrived late and they were done talking about it after only thirty minutes.
This was exactly the kind of propulsive, puzzle-box thriller I needed. Clever, fast, and genuinely tense. Meyer and Moss build an escape-room competition that feels cinematic on the page, with clues that are satisfying to follow and stakes that keep climbing.
What I loved most was the group dynamic. Each player brings a different skill set and secret, and watching them work together, and against each other, kept me guessing the whole time. It has that classic YA thriller energy, high concept, clean pacing, short chapters that beg you to read just one more.
No spoilers, but the final rooms deliver. The twists feel earned, not gimmicky, and the ending sticks the landing in a way that made me immediately want to reread with the answers in mind. If you love locked-room mysteries, competition thrillers, or anything with a Knives Out meets escape-room vibe, add this one.
If you’ve ever watched an escape room show and thought, “You know what this needs? Murder, paranoia, and a truly concerning lack of adult supervision,” then The Escape Game by Marissa Meyer and Tamara Moss is here to absolutely deliver.
Let’s start with the good: the puzzles? Genuinely fun. Like, “I would absolutely fail this in real life but feel very smart reading about it” fun. Cryptography, logic twists, sneaky clues—yes, yes, and yes! The whole escape room setup is addictive, and the tension ramps up nicely as things go from quirky competition to… well, “maybe don’t trust anyone and also maybe don’t touch anything ever again.”
Now, about that suspension of disbelief.
You will need it. A lot of it. Possibly in bulk. Costco-level suspension of disbelief.
Because at some point you will find yourself thinking things like:
“Surely a TV production wouldn’t allow—oh, okay, we’re doing this.”
“There are adults here… theoretically… right?”
“This feels like several lawsuits waiting to happen.”
And the book will just look you dead in the eye and say, “Shhh. Puzzle time.”
Honestly? If you lean into the chaos, it’s a blast. The characters are dramatic (as they should be, this is basically a reality show with a body count), the stakes are ridiculously high, and the mystery keeps you flipping pages even when your brain is quietly filing complaints in the background.
Sierra’s storyline adds an extra layer of intrigue. A wrongly accused sister, back for justice, surrounded by people who absolutely do not trust her. It’s messy, it’s tense, it’s exactly the kind of setup that thrives in this kind of over-the-top premise.
But let’s talk about that ending.
No spoilers, but just know this: it is a cliffhanger. Not a gentle “oooh, what happens next?” cliffhanger. More like “excuse me, you cannot just end it there and walk away like nothing happened” cliffhanger. So maybe emotionally prepare. Or have the sequel ready. Or both.
Super fun, wildly implausible, and just self-aware enough that you’ll forgive it for making you accept things that absolutely would not pass a basic safety inspection. Come for the puzzles, stay for the chaos, and don’t say you weren’t warned when the book drops you off a narrative cliff and speeds away.
Many thanks to NetGalley and G.P. Putnam's Sons Books for Young Readers for this review copy.
Let’s start with the good: the puzzles? Genuinely fun. Like, “I would absolutely fail this in real life but feel very smart reading about it” fun. Cryptography, logic twists, sneaky clues—yes, yes, and yes! The whole escape room setup is addictive, and the tension ramps up nicely as things go from quirky competition to… well, “maybe don’t trust anyone and also maybe don’t touch anything ever again.”
Now, about that suspension of disbelief.
You will need it. A lot of it. Possibly in bulk. Costco-level suspension of disbelief.
Because at some point you will find yourself thinking things like:
“Surely a TV production wouldn’t allow—oh, okay, we’re doing this.”
“There are adults here… theoretically… right?”
“This feels like several lawsuits waiting to happen.”
And the book will just look you dead in the eye and say, “Shhh. Puzzle time.”
Honestly? If you lean into the chaos, it’s a blast. The characters are dramatic (as they should be, this is basically a reality show with a body count), the stakes are ridiculously high, and the mystery keeps you flipping pages even when your brain is quietly filing complaints in the background.
Sierra’s storyline adds an extra layer of intrigue. A wrongly accused sister, back for justice, surrounded by people who absolutely do not trust her. It’s messy, it’s tense, it’s exactly the kind of setup that thrives in this kind of over-the-top premise.
But let’s talk about that ending.
No spoilers, but just know this: it is a cliffhanger. Not a gentle “oooh, what happens next?” cliffhanger. More like “excuse me, you cannot just end it there and walk away like nothing happened” cliffhanger. So maybe emotionally prepare. Or have the sequel ready. Or both.
Super fun, wildly implausible, and just self-aware enough that you’ll forgive it for making you accept things that absolutely would not pass a basic safety inspection. Come for the puzzles, stay for the chaos, and don’t say you weren’t warned when the book drops you off a narrative cliff and speeds away.
Many thanks to NetGalley and G.P. Putnam's Sons Books for Young Readers for this review copy.
Marissa Meyer and Tamara Moss deliver a twisty YA thriller that feels like stepping into an escape room where every clue could save your life or get you killed. Part murder mystery, part reality competition, and part friendship story, The Escape Game kept me guessing until the final reveal.
Six months after contestant Alicia Angelos was murdered on the set of a hit escape room television show, production returns for another season with an unexpected contestant. Alicia's sister Sierra joins the competition. Sierra is determined to uncover the truth behind her sister's death while surviving increasingly dangerous puzzles alongside three strangers who slowly become trusted allies. Every challenge uncovers another piece of the mystery as the line between game and reality disappears.
The escape room sequences were easily my favorite part of the book. Each challenge felt inventive and suspenseful. I loved watching the four main characters combine their unique skills to solve puzzles that none of them could have conquered alone. Their friendships developed naturally through teamwork. It was easy to root for every member of the group.
The mystery breadcrumbs kept me hooked from beginning to end. I guessed the killer before the reveal, but the journey getting there was entertaining enough that it never lessened my enjoyment. My only real complaint was the motivation behind the murder. The motive for the murder felt wildly overdramatic, even for a young adult thriller.
I am rarely the target audience for YA novels, so it feels unfair to complain about the familiar genre tropes because they are exactly what younger readers will connect with. Rather than the YA tropes feeling cliche, the authors embraced the YA angle while delivering sharp writing, constant suspense, and enough twists to keep the pages turning.
The audiobook deserves special recognition. Keylor Leigh and Ryan Vincent Anderson brought the characters to life with engaging performances that heightened the suspense without distracting from the story. Dual narration is not usually my favorite format, but both narrators complemented each other so well that I barely noticed the transitions.
Pick this up if you love escape rooms, closed-circle mysteries, reality competition shows, clever puzzles, and fast-paced YA thrillers that balance danger with friendship. There are just enough twists to keep you second-guessing everyone.