It’s axiomatic that in today’s oversaturated media landscape, publicity stunts that aim to stand out from the crowd have to be fairly creative. Gone are the days when Jack McClelland and Sylvia Fraser could catch people’s attention by dressing in togas and parading down Yonge Street in February. (Well, maybe not.) In response to this reality, Doubleday Canada has partnered with Escape Manor on a unique promotion: a custom escape room experience based on Linwood Barclay’s new thriller, Elevator Pitch.

Set in New York City, Barclay’s novel is about a series of fatalities that result from sabotage in high-rise building elevators, causing mass panic throughout the city. In the Elevator Pitch escape room, which will be located in downtown Toronto, four people enter a custom-built elevator and must find a way to break out based on clues connected to Barclay’s book. The author himself provides voice-over narration.

Amy Black, Doubleday’s publisher, says in a statement, “Linwood Barclay has always kept his readers on the edge of their seats. We are excited now to be plunging them into the thick of the action.”

The entire experience takes between 20 and 25 minutes. The Elevator Pitch escape room will be in Escape Manor’s Toronto location at 383 King St. W. It opens on Oct. 22 and is scheduled to run for one year.