Ashley Weaver
Author of the Electra McDonnell series
and the Amory Ames Mysteries
Electra's thrilling final adventure is available now!
The fifth and final installment in the Electra McDonnell series brings safecracker Ellie on a mission across World War II-era Europe to Lisbon, Portugal to rescue a key group of escaped POWs.
Ellie McDonnell is about to embark on her most perilous mission yet: go to Lisbon, Portugal to save her beloved cousin Toby who has reportedly escaped from a German prisoner of war camp. Toby has been missing since the Battle of Dunkirk and Ellie had all but lost hope in ever seeing him again until Major Ramsey, the British military intelligence officer she had been working closely with over the past few months, shared the news he’d intercepted.
Nothing will stop Ellie from finding her cousin, not even the awkward experience of having to travel to an unknown country with Ramsey after he’d dismissed her for being untrustworthy just as she’d realized she had fallen in love with him. Under the supervision of Captain Archie Blandings, a charming intelligence officer based in Lisbon, Ellie meets with undercover operatives to track down where Toby might be hiding from the Nazis and whether they are too late to safely recover him, all the while fighting her feelings for Ramsey and the incessant burden of war looming around her at every turn.
An Amazon Editors’ Pick for Best Mystery, Thriller & Suspense (June 2025)
“There’s a definite swoon factor from the love and espionage angle here—readers will be reminded of Hitchcock’s Notorious (1946) and Curtiz’s Casablanca as Electra uses all her skills to once again thwart the secret plans of the Nazis. A rip-roaring finale for a terrific series.”—Booklist (Starred Review)
“Satisfying . . . Weaver manages to tie up the series’ loose ends without shortchanging the core chase plot. Readers will miss Electra and her cohort, but Weaver has given them a worthy send-off.”—Publishers Weekly
Reviews for Electra McDonnell Book One,
A Peculiar Combination
"A cracking good mystery! A Peculiar Combination, the first in a new series, proves that Weaver’s writing chops are as strong as ever. She introduces readers to a smart and gutsy new heroine, and takes them on an adventure filled with clever twists, flourishes of romance, and her signature sparkling wit."
―Anna Lee Huber, bestselling author of the Lady Darby Mysteries
​
"Deftly plotted with twists and turns that ultimately unlock a thrilling conclusion, Weaver’s gripping mystery is set against the World War II Blitz in London, making it all the more compelling. A Peculiar Combination introduces a sparkling new series featuring a feisty heroine and her dashing counterpart, with just the right amount of wit and romantic nuance to round out the story’s high stakes drama."
―Jess Montgomery, author of The Stills
“A wonderfully unique take, A Peculiar Combination is a standout in the historical fiction genre with its dash of romance and adventure, its winsome narrator in the irrepressible Ellie and the marvellously detailed rendering of London during the Blitz. Destined to stand-out in a sea of World War II era fiction, Weaver’s intelligent banter and pitch-perfect research make for an utterly immersive story certain to thrill fans of Kate Quinn and Susan Elia MacNeil.”
―Rachel McMillan, author of The London Restoration and The Mozart Code