Before Houdini - Jeremy Holt

London, 1888. A shadowy killer stalks the streets of London, his appetite for blood unleashed upon the city's lower classes. To defeat him, MI6 turns to its most top-secret team: four teenage agents with extraordinary giftsincluding a young American immigrant with a talent for illusion . . .
After Houdini began the story of Josef Houdini, son of the famous Harry Houdinibrilliant illusionist, acclaimed escape artist, and top-secret covert operative. Now we turn back the clock and meet Ehrich Weiss, a young man whose skill at picking locks is about to land him the adventure of his dreams, and pull him into a war that will affect his lifeand his son'sfor years to come. This is the story of Ehrich's strange beginnings, from before he was a world-famous magician. Before he was a master of espionage. Before he was . . . Houdini.