#ashley weaver

[koalathebear]

Electra McDonnell fan fiction: A Number of Combinations (Electra McDonnell / Gabriel Ramsey)

I love this series of books. Electra McDonnell and Gabriel Ramsey are delicious. Like many of my fics, this fic will be comprised of a bunch of snippets. Some scribbles are missing scenes, some are just my own imaginings. They will be written out of order, but when I post them I'll put them in an order following book events.

If you haven't read the books, you should!

Blurb for book 1: The first in the Electra McDonnell series from Edgar-nominated author Ashley Weaver, set in England during World War II, A Peculiar Combination is a delightful mystery filled with spies, murder, romance, and the author's signature wit.

Electra McDonnell has always known that the way she and her family earn their living is slightly outside of the law. Breaking into the homes of the rich and picking the locks on their safes may not be condoned by British law enforcement, but World War II is in full swing, Ellie's cousins Colm and Toby are off fighting against Hitler, and Uncle Mick's more honorable business as a locksmith can't pay the bills any more.

So when Uncle Mick receives a tip about a safe full of jewels in the empty house of a wealthy family, he and Ellie can't resist. All goes as planned--until the pair are caught redhanded. Ellie expects them to be taken straight to prison, but instead they are delivered to a large townhouse, where government official Major Ramsey is waiting with an offer: either Ellie agrees to help him break into a safe and retrieve blueprints that will be critical to the British war effort, before they can be delivered to a German spy, or he turns her over to the police.

Ellie doesn't care for the Major's imperious manner, but she has no choice, and besides, she's eager to do her bit for king and country. She may be a thief, but she's no coward. When she and the Major break into the house in question, they find instead the purported German spy dead on the floor, the safe already open and empty. Soon, Ellie and Major Ramsey are forced to put aside their differences to unmask the double-agent, as they try to stop allied plans falling into German hands.

*

I've been trying to figure out in my head what Ellie and Major Ramsay look like, so here are some possibilities :)

Electra McDonnell:

And here are some possibilities for Major Gabriel Ramsey

Link to my fic is here. I am literally the only person who has written any fic for this fandom. Oh well.

A Number of Combinations

[missingmissfisher]

Book Review: Locked in Pursuit by Ashley Weaver

Nothing could take the place of our beloved Miss Fisher, but there's still other fantastic female heroes out there that are worth getting to know.

If you haven't already discovered it, I highly recommend you dive into the wonderful world of Electra McDonnell!

I absolutely devoured 'Locked in Pursuit,' Book Four in the series by Ashley Weaver within two evenings of receiving it, and after constantly checking for updates due to the cliffhanger she left us poor readers dangling from in Electra's previous adventure. I can't wait to go back and re-read it slowly as I rushed through it, in order to savour my favourite passages.

And what a love letter indeed to Ellie/Electra's devotees with enough backstory for any reader joining midway because this latest edition doesn't disappoint!

I was super delighted that this one picked up not too far along after where things left off previously, nor that we didn't have too wait long before Ellie and Major Ramsey are back on the trail of one of the things they do best together: sniffing out enemy spy activities. I was honestly guffawing out loud at the author's deft way of portraying their 'battle-of-the wits' intermingled with their warring personal emotions towards one another, which have been one of my favourite aspects of these characters and this series. I also love the addition of meeting others from the major's world that provide more insights to Ellie's (and us readers) need to discover more about his closed-book life.

Without going into spoilers territory, I also felt Ellie's increased uncertainty and post-traumatic stress from the events of the previous book rang true, especially during war time, as she tries to cope with it on her own. Even though she was keeping things from those she normally trusted, it was good to see her continue to delve into the intel she learned about her parents' past.

On the relationship front, I was glad to see more progress with the dreaded triangle, and Ellie's attempts to muddle through this quagmire. It's good to see her budding maturity in terms of wanting to clarify things with Felix and the major, even if things take heart-beating turns with both of them.

The mystery and sleuthing plot retained more of the wonderful WWII spy caperesque pacing from the first book that I love about this series. Again, without giving too much away, I could not have predicted the ending at all.

Fellow lovers of Electra and Ashely Weaver's writing, you will absolutely LOVE this continuing tale, and new readers, I highly recommend you go back and start at the beginning to get the full meal deal.

Huge thanks to Netgalley and Ashley for providing this advance copy that has actually whetted my appetite for the next one already.

[oldshrewsburyian]

Hello!! I was wondering if you have any recommendations for something along the lines of Miss Fisher!! IM sorry if you've already answered, I just couldn't find it. Thank you!!

Hello! This is the first time (recently, at least) that I've seen an ask like this, so I haven't already answered it. I have more book recommendations than TV recommendations, and a thought on why this is. In no particular order, books:

Ashley Weaver's Amory Ames series, starting with Murder at the Brightwell. Fun, genre-savvy murder mysteries set in the 1930s. Hijinks and high society.

Elizabeth Peters' Amelia Peabody series. These are set earlier than the Phryne Fisher books (at least they start a few decades earlier), and are in my experience uneven. But they're also self-aware, escapist good fun about an independent woman striding boldly into the future and pulling assorted friends and accomplices in her wake, along with one chronically frustrated and eternally adoring romantic interest.

Laurie R. King's Beekeeper's Apprentice series. These can be polarizing, but I really like Mary Russell, the main protagonist of these. Sherlock Holmes is the deuteragonist, remarkably. But anyway: they're a fun team, and Mary -- unapologetically prickly, intellectual, and independent -- is a delight. And I like King's passionate, austere, self-possessed, demisexual Holmes. The series is up into the 1920s by now.

Sujata Massey, Perveen Mistry series. Set in 1920s Bombay (with some flashbacks) this mystery series also stars a fiercely independent woman determined to make her own way in the world. She is loyal to her friends, inventive, and unafraid to scandalize hotel waiters by drinking gin with her lesbian best friend. I love her.

Ovidia Yu, Crown Colony series, set in 1930s Singapore. I've only read the first one in this series (it's up to 4 volumes now), but I thought the first installment was very strong. Its heroine/sleuth, Su Lin, is physically disabled, extremely intelligent, and determined not to be married off. How she ends up involved in mystery-solving is a very satisfying narrative.

TV:

...look, here's the thing, I have a real objection to how things set in the interwar period get branded as ~cozy~ by TV execs and suffer from bright color palettes and jaunty theme tunes. Don't get me wrong, I love the jaunty theme tune of MFMM, and the rest of it, but this is largely because I think MFMM does a better job than most of acknowledging complex historical realities. To be fair, Agatha Christie's Poirot was always pretty good at this, and got more complex over time. Both Marple series sort of gesture at things without exploring them, though Joan Hickson is a marvel. Ditto the Mrs. Bradley mysteries, though Diana Rigg is, inevitably, stunning. If anyone else has recs, do let me know! If, Anon, you're looking for great mystery TV with a found family trope, I recommend Granada Holmes, which holds up incredibly well; Foyle's War, which I concur with NPR in finding "mysteriously perfect"; and Vera, led by the magnificent Brenda Blethyn, which I hope comes back to gladden our screens soon.

[katemosswaif]

[my-52-weeks-with-christie]

Book Review: A Deception At Thornecrest by Ashley Weaver

Change is a tricky thing. Often uncomfortable, awkward, unsightly, and a difficult thing to manage gracefully. Whether it's moving to a new house in a new city, purchasing a new car, or adopting a new pet, unexpected complications always seem to creep into the proceedings.

Books series are no different.

Any author worth their salt, who endeavors for a successful string of books knows - eventually - they will need to change things up. Otherwise, the series stales and stalls.

Elizabeth Peter's efficiently handled this problem by sending Amelia Peabody to a different location in Egypt (generally speaking) for each installment. Patricia Moyes employed a similar tactic by sending her husband & wife team on vacation all over the world. J.K. Rowling sends her famous wizard off to school (or to defeat dark wizards every year.

In the case of Ashley Weaver's A Deception At Thorncrest, she does the reverse - she sends Amory Ames and her husband Milo home.

And it works beautifully.

Over the past six books, neither member of our dynamic duo has spent much time at Thorncrest - so it's the perfect place for Weaver to set her transition mystery. By mixing a bit of old with a bit of new, Weaver is all set to send our heroine into new and exciting directions in future books. Even better? She accomplishes this aim with such flawless skill it makes A Deception At Thornecrest a joy to read.

One of the most significant changes in Amory's life? She's about to become a first-time mother! A fact which both she and Milo are over the moon about, in their understated way. The only hitch in the giddy-up? During the annual Springtide festival, a stable hand is murdered...Amory, our remarkable amateur sleuth, is discouraged at every turn from investigating because of her "delicate condition".

Fortunately for Lady Justice and us readers, Amory has zero interest in heeding their unsolicited opinions.

A Deception At Thornecrest was a compelling historical mystery, one which I thoroughly enjoyed reading from beginning to end. Even better, if you're not interested in reading the previous exploited of our heroine and her husband (but I would highly suggest you do as they are lovely), you don't have to! Because this is a transitional book, so long as you know aren't starting with numero uno, you can start with this installment and be alright.

Honestly, I cannot say enough good things about A Deception At Thornecrest.

[the-final-sentence]

And he pulled me to him and kissed me thoroughly in the blinding glare of the flashbulbs.

Ashley Weaver, from Death Wears a Mask

[katemosswaif]

[katemosswaif]