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The Ring : A Victorian Gothic Crime Thriller
One missing detective. One dead showgirl. Witness accounts that can't be explained by logic. Daniel Muldoon is back to solve the mystery of The Ring.
'That is the problem with this life. The show must go on.'
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ 'Daniel Muldoon is a fascinating central character.'
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ 'A beautiful book from an exceptionally talented writer.'
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ 'Daniel Muldoon is a worthy successor to Sherlock Holmes and Abraham Van Helsing.'
July 1893
Eager to prove himself detective material, Constable Lacey investigates the disappearance of a local thief. Enquiries soon lead him to the new circus in town, where he meets the mysterious ringmaster Ezra Fontini and his devoted performers. Dazzled by the magical world of the circus, Lacey becomes infatuated with one of Fontini’s charming young aerialists, Ellen French.
The show is welcomed by the locals until Fontini’s headline performer is found dead. Overwhelmed with witness accounts that can’t be explained by logic, the police call on Inspector Daniel Muldoon to find out what’s keeping people from leaving their homes after dark.
This is the second novel in the Muldoon Mysteries series of Gothic Horrors set in 19th century Liverpool. Fans of Gothic romance, Historical crime thrillers and occult detective fiction will enjoy the second book in this gripping horror mystery series.
'That is the problem with this life. The show must go on.'
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ 'Daniel Muldoon is a fascinating central character.'
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ 'A beautiful book from an exceptionally talented writer.'
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ 'Daniel Muldoon is a worthy successor to Sherlock Holmes and Abraham Van Helsing.'
July 1893
Eager to prove himself detective material, Constable Lacey investigates the disappearance of a local thief. Enquiries soon lead him to the new circus in town, where he meets the mysterious ringmaster Ezra Fontini and his devoted performers. Dazzled by the magical world of the circus, Lacey becomes infatuated with one of Fontini’s charming young aerialists, Ellen French.
The show is welcomed by the locals until Fontini’s headline performer is found dead. Overwhelmed with witness accounts that can’t be explained by logic, the police call on Inspector Daniel Muldoon to find out what’s keeping people from leaving their homes after dark.
This is the second novel in the Muldoon Mysteries series of Gothic Horrors set in 19th century Liverpool. Fans of Gothic romance, Historical crime thrillers and occult detective fiction will enjoy the second book in this gripping horror mystery series.
334 pages, Kindle Edition
Published June 6, 2025
2 people are currently reading
14 people want to read
About the author
Hanna Delaney
5 books40 followersHanna is an author of horror, fantasy and science fiction. She is from Liverpool, UK.
She has three kids, an awesome husband who encouraged her to do this and a dog who didn’t but she’s happy to see Hanna trying to put food on the floor.
Hanna has a BA and MA in English Literature and was an English teacher for nearly a decade before embarking on her writing career.
She currently lives in Liverpool with her family. Oceanus is her debut novel.
If you’d like to keep up to date with the latest from Hanna, you can subscribe to her newsletter!
She has three kids, an awesome husband who encouraged her to do this and a dog who didn’t but she’s happy to see Hanna trying to put food on the floor.
Hanna has a BA and MA in English Literature and was an English teacher for nearly a decade before embarking on her writing career.
She currently lives in Liverpool with her family. Oceanus is her debut novel.
If you’d like to keep up to date with the latest from Hanna, you can subscribe to her newsletter!
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Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews
July 24, 2025
The Ring
continues Hanna Delaney’s Muldoon mystery series with a haunting blend of gothic horror and supernatural suspense. In this second installment, young Constable Lacey takes center stage as a missing-persons case leads him into a circus veiled in secrets. Delaney’s vivid historical detail conjures 1893 Liverpool with grit and atmosphere, while eerie twists—disturbing folklore, uncanny magic, and characters who are not what they seem—blur the line between logic and the surreal. The plot is richly layered and unpredictable, occasionally dense but always engaging. While I’d hoped for more development between Sarah and Detective Muldoon, the shadowy magic entwined with real-world trauma more than delivers. Fans of gothic horror, folklore-laced mysteries, and complex historical fiction will find
The Ring
both unsettling and mesmerizing.
July 27, 2025
Wow. That’s all I have to say after finishing this one. Just… wow. Mystery novels, even ones flavoured with supernatural elements or horror, can be a little one-dimensional, but that is far from the case here. The Ring is so multi-faceted and has so many layers to it that it forces you to take your time lest you miss something. I knew Delaney was a great storyteller (as I read Oceanus earlier this year), but this is another level entirely.
Billed as a crime thriller, The Ring is just so much more than that. It’s got elements of supernatural horror on par with The Haunting of Hill House or The X-Files; it’s got twists of tragedy and romanticism reminiscent of Shakespeare that pulls at your heartstrings; and it’s a true piece of historical fiction that lets you taste the grungy air of Liverpool at the time of the industrial revolution, so fleshed out that you could believe that this actually happened if you didn’t know better. Not to mention the comedic relief spiced in at appropriate times throughout the novel.
All that said, The Ring is still very much the crime thriller that it is presented at. Without spoiling any details of the plot, I have to say that the setting seems mundane until the circus’s arrival and subsequent misdoings begin to unravel the normality rapidly, with Delaney tossing out ribbons in wild arcs that threaten to overwhelm until they begin to come back together and everything is wrapped back up in a neat little package, bow and all. And walking you through the plot is a dynamic cast of characters, both the heroes and the villains, that are so tangibly real that you can’t help but fall in love with.
A true 5 star read. Check out my full review on my Substack: The Word Dump!
Billed as a crime thriller, The Ring is just so much more than that. It’s got elements of supernatural horror on par with The Haunting of Hill House or The X-Files; it’s got twists of tragedy and romanticism reminiscent of Shakespeare that pulls at your heartstrings; and it’s a true piece of historical fiction that lets you taste the grungy air of Liverpool at the time of the industrial revolution, so fleshed out that you could believe that this actually happened if you didn’t know better. Not to mention the comedic relief spiced in at appropriate times throughout the novel.
All that said, The Ring is still very much the crime thriller that it is presented at. Without spoiling any details of the plot, I have to say that the setting seems mundane until the circus’s arrival and subsequent misdoings begin to unravel the normality rapidly, with Delaney tossing out ribbons in wild arcs that threaten to overwhelm until they begin to come back together and everything is wrapped back up in a neat little package, bow and all. And walking you through the plot is a dynamic cast of characters, both the heroes and the villains, that are so tangibly real that you can’t help but fall in love with.
A true 5 star read. Check out my full review on my Substack: The Word Dump!
October 23, 2025
I devoured The Ring. I find the story, which revolved around a travelling circus, had the right mix of historical detail and gothic horror elements to make it an enjoyable and exciting read. The characters are multi-faceted and interesting and I look forward to seeing more of Muldoon and his cohorts. Can't wait for the next thriller!
July 18, 2025
Great follow up to The Spider! This one had a lot of edge and great dedication to the characters ✊🤓 This READ a must!
June 9, 2025
I read The Spider. I know Hanna can craft an amazing story. I went into The Ring like a kid excited to walk into an ice cream store. And I was still blown away, even with my high expectations.
The Ring is a gothic paranormal historical mystery, upping the stakes as a slow burn crime thriller that peels away secrets like layers of an onion over and over again.
I was excited to be with Muldoon again, but Hanna does this thing that I love where she paints such depth for so many surrounding characters that I feel immersed in them. Moving around in time at precise intentional moments, showing me key moments in a character’s past to fit more puzzle pieces together. They all feel so real and raw.
I especially enjoyed the use of a few actual historical figures, and the blurb at the end of the book explaining who they were in the real world versus how she wanted to incorporate them into her story. Not only were they integral to the history of some of these characters, but I also learned something!
Look, I don’t want to spoil anything. The fun of the first read of a whodunit is not to know whodunit, and there’s no way you’re going to guess how this one ends, I challenge you. There is so much going on here and it’s woven so beautifully that I just let it sweep me away to the satisfying finish.
I will say that the romantic parts are romantic AF, yanking on my heartstrings like crazy. Muldoon, of course, is kickass and smart. Ellen is a standout to me, so much nuance even in a sea of nuanced characters and relationships.
There are deep moral questions in this story too, decisions that the characters face that some may brush off as wrong, but are also so real and understandable. So many times I sat there staring at my ereader, blinking, thinking 'Well, what would *I* have done?'
And it’s funny, too. Overall just killer, stellar work!
You don’t need to read The Spider before The Ring, but you should read both just because they’re both excellent. 10/10 recommend!
The Ring is a gothic paranormal historical mystery, upping the stakes as a slow burn crime thriller that peels away secrets like layers of an onion over and over again.
I was excited to be with Muldoon again, but Hanna does this thing that I love where she paints such depth for so many surrounding characters that I feel immersed in them. Moving around in time at precise intentional moments, showing me key moments in a character’s past to fit more puzzle pieces together. They all feel so real and raw.
I especially enjoyed the use of a few actual historical figures, and the blurb at the end of the book explaining who they were in the real world versus how she wanted to incorporate them into her story. Not only were they integral to the history of some of these characters, but I also learned something!
Look, I don’t want to spoil anything. The fun of the first read of a whodunit is not to know whodunit, and there’s no way you’re going to guess how this one ends, I challenge you. There is so much going on here and it’s woven so beautifully that I just let it sweep me away to the satisfying finish.
I will say that the romantic parts are romantic AF, yanking on my heartstrings like crazy. Muldoon, of course, is kickass and smart. Ellen is a standout to me, so much nuance even in a sea of nuanced characters and relationships.
There are deep moral questions in this story too, decisions that the characters face that some may brush off as wrong, but are also so real and understandable. So many times I sat there staring at my ereader, blinking, thinking 'Well, what would *I* have done?'
And it’s funny, too. Overall just killer, stellar work!
You don’t need to read The Spider before The Ring, but you should read both just because they’re both excellent. 10/10 recommend!
Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews