Locked in Pursuit is book 4 in An Electra McDonnell series by Ashley Weaver.
Ok, so this was a remarkable historical cozy mystery.
This is a WWII-era series that takes place in London.
The mystery is excellently plotted and the book is well-written and perfectly paced.
It has all the feels of a cozy mystery.. there’s intrigue along with slowly dialed up tension.
I am so invested in these characters. They are just the best!
The character cast is complex, intriguing, and likable.
Locked in Pursuit is a cozy historical mystery that kept me turning pages. It had Ashley Weaver’s typical attention to historical detail with a beautiful layer of mystery and intrigue.
I enjoyed the murder/mystery plot, pacing, direction of the narrative, characters, and I am excited to read more in the future.
If you’re interested in starting a series that is entertaining + fun with a great historical mystery to solve. This is the fourth book in a great series for Ashley.

I would like to thank NetGalley and Minotaur Books for the opportunity to read this ahead of its publication date in return for my honest review.

Another wonderful story in one of the best historical mystery/thriller series out there! I usually describe this series as Foyle's War combined with a spy movie. Featuring quick moving plot; great characters; a greater long-term mystery; and a will they/won't romance between Ellie and Major Ramsay, reading these books is like eating the best chocolate cake ever. It's smooth and tasty and before you know it, you've eaten it all. *sigh* The worst thing about these books is that they all end with a very strong "to be continued" and, as usual, I want the next book now!

What a ride this book was! I have fallen in love with this series & hope every time I see an ARC available that I'll have the honor of being selected because I just can't wait to read the next book. I really enjoy the unique take on the WWII cozy mystery this series has. There is some great character growth & emotional scenes in this installment. Ellie really shows some growth from the first books & we get to meet Major Ramsey's sister. We are back in London with Uncle Mick & Nacy a few months after the events in Sunderland. The repercussions of that case are felt throughout this book. The last few chapters really put you on an emotional roller coaster, and as usual I am now impatiently waiting for the next book! Write like the wind, Ashley!

A huge thanks to NetGalley & the publisher for the ARC. All opinions are my own.

4.5 stars rounded up to 5.

I recently discovered this series and read the first three books in a week. I jumped at the chance for an ARC of the fourth book.

Ellie McDonnell and Major Ramsey are back, trying to thwart the Germans. This time it was Ellie who came to the major after reading something in the paper that made her suspicious.

**Possible Spoilers**
She is warring with herself, feeling the adrenaline rush aiding the war effort that she used to feel while committing crimes. But favors are asked that could jeopardize her new resolve.

While the culprit wasn't easy to spot in the first three books, it was still possible. It's much more difficult in this one, but I don't think it was an important part of the story. This story seemed more focused on Ellie's involvement (not just in the war effort) and how it could affect her future.

First, isn’t this cover gorgeous? I love the safe inserted into the title- perfect!

Electra McDonnell comes from a family of thieves. The murder of her father and subsequent conviction of her mother for the crime shaped young Ellie’s life. She lives with her safecracking uncle and male cousins, learning all that they know about the ‘business’. When a burglary goes wrong, Ellie is arrested and earns her freedom by agreeing to help the handsome and aloof Major Ramsey in the war effort.

In this instalment of the popular series, Ellie reads of a suspicious robbery at a fancy London soiree and takes her misgivings to the major, who is still in recovery from four gunshot wounds from their last mission. A passionate kiss in their past creates an awkward distance between them and Ellie must argue for her place in the investigation.

A rash of burglaries traced back to a missing map and a woman’s murder forces the major to set his personal feelings aside to call in Ellie and her uncle to find the map before the Germans get hold of the critical information.

It was difficult sometimes, this job. It’s easy to think of the enemy as a shadowy figure until he’s a man bleeding on a cellar floor.
Locked in Pursuit- Ashley Weaver

There is an underlying storyline to this series that is masterfully doled out to keep the reader hooked, and it works! lol. Ellie has a bone-deep feeling there is more to the death of her father than she’s been told. There are too many aspects of the case, and a remembered devotion between her parents, for Ellie to believe her mother brutally killed her husband. The truth seemed to die with her in prison until things come to light that changes everything.

I can’t wait for book five!

“I voluntarily read an ARC of this book which was provided by the publisher via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.”

In this 4th book in the series Ellie and her handler, Major Ramsey, set out to find an item they believe was smuggled out from Lisbon. The skills she learned as a thief again come in handy. At the same time she is trying to discover who killed her father before she was born. And ,yes she does have feelings for the Major. A delightful book

This ended Way too soon!! I even got to read an early copy, but I want more!! I guess this is the drama of a series and there’s still plenty of story to tell.

Electra makes some impulsive decisions, (but then, does she make any decisions that aren’t impulsive? Maybe that is one reason I like her so much!). But she does some things she regrets and they cause results she wasn’t prepared for and reveal things she wasn’t ready to face. Read the book to find out more 😉.

I’m really enjoying this series!

Huge thank you to NetGalley for the opportunity to read and review this ARC!!

This was a hard one to rate. I lingered on 4 or 5 stars. Compared to the 3rd book this wasn't as big of a hit for me, but on its own it still was a great read. So 5 stars I go.

This story seemed like it could be told at a much faster pace, but it still feels effortless in reading.
The author has a way with writing that makes it a very enjoyable read. It was very simple sentences but it was not boring, and still kept me enthralled. I do feel it didn't keep me on edge as much as the prior book. I was yearning for more hiccups with the characters but I was still engaged in the book the entire time.

I like how the story has many different moving pieces, and always seems to leave you on a cliffhanger in one way or another. Normally, I would not be drawn to a book series like this. I am surprised it is not considered a romance story as well as a mystery. If it was labeled a romance I would of been less likely to read this, and feel like I would of missed out. There is a lot of romance but it is done tastefully that I can focus on other factors in the story as well.

I am very excited for the next book installment. I will definitely praise this book and the series, and will be picking this up for my collection.

Thank you St. Martin's Press, Minotaur Books for an ARC of this book in exchanged for an honest review.

OH MY LANTA
I mean… 5 stars for sure. But I have to get my thoughts together to be able to write a review. What a ride.

Update:
I've had a book hangover for 3 days. And writing a review is proving to be quite difficult because I don't want to give any spoilers! What I can say is that had I been reading this book in paper form, there was one point where I would have slammed it shut and tossed it across the room. Now, that might not sound like a good thing, but listen - that is a sign that the author made me feel things that I didn't want to feel and honestly, I think that's a compliment. haha! I also would have immediately walked across the room to pick it back up because I had to know what would happen. There were times that I held my breath and tried to read faster to find out what would happen. We're introduced to a few new side characters that I adored. Noelle and Aristide were fantastic. And the ending! Y'all.... the ending! That's all I can say about that. I am most definitely looking forward to the next book!

I loved this book. I love this series and can't wait for the next one to come out. I like all Ashley Weaver's books, but her Electra McDonnell series is my favorite. The book was gripping and suspenseful. I couldn't put it down and now I'm sorry it's over do soon.

The fourth book in the Electra McDonnell series, Locked in Pursuit, continues the story of Ellie McDonnell's safecracking assistance to Major Gabriel Ramsey in London and its surroundings during World War II. The two work together once again to solve a series of robberies that could pose a threat to Brittan during a very tense time. Who can be trusted? What deceptions are required to get the needed information?

While I have enjoyed the banter and tension throughout the series between Ellie and Major Ramsey, it seemed a bit overdone here. While neither are perfect, one is much more noble in my opinion. The triangle storyline with Felix is annoying, but all the other characters give much colorful interest to the story. I will definitely continue reading as the cliffhanger at the end was of great interest.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the advance copy of this book in exchange for my honest review.

I totally absorbed and adored this new espionage caper set in war torn London 1941. It is always a thrill reading about this cast of characters from the brilliantly talented mind of Ashley Weaver. My favorite passages are between Major Ramsey and Miss McDonnell as their chemistry is absolutely Electra- ric.

This is book four in a fantastic series set amongst spies and thieves in London during the Blitz. In book one, Electra McDonnell and her family of safecrackers and thieves are caught by British Intelligence and blackmailed into using their skills as part of the wartime effort to catch German spies operating on English soil. In Locked in Pursuit, set three months after the previous novel, a series of suspicious robberies sends Electra on the trail after a mysterious package that may have come into the country from Lisbon, which was a hotbed of spies because of its neutral stand on the war.

While this is a a historical mystery, the characters have real growth throughout the series, and I would not recommend reading them out of order. This book, in particular deals with the reverberations from the explosive ending in book 3 -both in the way Electra and her handler Major Ramsey interact with each other and also in the way the characters see themselves. Despite a more serious tone than the previous books, it is still great fun with delightful new characters, a touch of romance, and a cliffhanger ending that sets up book 5. I look forward to the next book, which promises to broaden the world that Ms. Weaver has created, and hopefully answer a few of the questions that have run throughout the series.

I love this series, and this newest entry is as well-written and compelling as the rest. Elly is drawn into another case of espionage in WWII London as she tries to work out dark family secrets and her complicated connection to her military intelligence handler. The book builds nicely on the earlier entries. It could be read as a stand-alone but I would strongly suggest reading the previous books, in part because they are excellent. As always, the characters are great, the wartime setting worked in seamlessly, and the sense of danger and uncertainty well done. The ending leaves lots of questions and some emotional angst, which I’m hoping get cleared up at least partially in the next book. Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an advance copy in exchange for an honest review.

Summary: This is the fourth novel in the series about Electra McDonnell. In this latest book, Electra hasn’t seen Major Ramsey for several months since they concluded their last adventure in Playing It Safe. Major Ramsey has been healing from his gunshot wounds, and Electra has been missing the excitement of espionage. She visits Ramsey on the pretense of discussing a rash of recent burglaries and is soon invited on a mission to investigate the link between the burglaries and international espionage based in Lisbon.

Thoughts: This is an incredibly enjoyable series – set in London during the Blitz – with a likeable heroine and a cast of interesting supporting characters. However, I have noticed that compared with the first book in the series, A Peculiar Combination, the subsequent books have gotten shorter (272 pages versus 388 for book one) and less substantial than the first novel. There really didn’t feel like there was much to the plot in this one, so much so that I was startled to find I had reached the end of the novel, which apparently is to be continued in the next one.

The third novel in the series was released in September 2023 and now this fourth one is set to be released in May 2024, with the fifth to come out in 2024 I suspect. I have to wonder if the pressure to keep churning out novels is having a negative impact. That would be unfortunate because the first novel in the series was exceptionally good. This one was just OK.

I really enjoy this series. I'm no thief, never picked a lock, didn't live through a war at home, wasn't alive in the 1940's. But something about this series really speaks to me. The characters come alive and I truly feel the emotions of the characters.

Setting aside my personal biases, the story is engaging and the characters are likable. There are good guys and bad guys and some that live in the gray area in between. Ms. Weaver avoids the trap of making her characters continue on as they are without the development or impact of significant events. Instead, readers are able to see real, appropriate changes in behaviors of the main characters as a result of the events in book 3. Those changes play out realistically with realistic outcomes.

Well written. Well done. Well worth the read.

I was disappointed and a bit shocked by this entry in the Electra McDonnell series. Previously, Ashley Weaver’s writing and characterization had been sharper and more enjoyable with each new book that came out, so finding my familiar, beloved characters changed so much was a real let-down.

Ellie is smart, independent, and well-trained in all areas of her profession. She’s a proper thief. Yet the way Ellie is portrayed in this book is inconsistent, erratic, and illogical compared to past books; most often she acts stupidly, blindly lovesick. It causes her to keep secrets from people she should trust, trust people she should not, ignore unmistakable signs of danger ahead, and glibly dismiss major mistakes she makes during an ill-advised return to her criminal roots, even as she waxes poetic about how she's left that world behind.

Also, I found it beyond ridiculous that Ellie, formerly so determined to find out more about her parents, would without warning or explanation drop the whole thing to spend all her time pining over Major Ramsey.

Those are the biggest inconsistencies in this book, but there are plenty of others. At the end of the book, Major Ramsey abruptly changes from his usual stern-yet-kind self into a petty, selfish jerk. Nacy rarely appears and hardly says a word the entire book; considering all the things that happen, that would be improbable, even impossible for this character. And unlike other books in the series, this one was absurdly predictable; I knew the entire ending by page 105.

All of this was not a natural part of the overarching story progression, nor was it vital to progress this specific plot; it was done simply because that was the easiest way to get to where the author wanted to go. It was lazy writing. Added to that, she turned an intelligent female main character into an idiot over a man just to advance the plot and I find that extremely problematic.

I grudgingly rate this 3 stars and hope for better things from Ashley Weaver in the future.

Each book in the Electra McDonnell series has left me with a book hangover, and each one in increasing severity. So with this fourth book I expected the book hangover, I expected it to be a page turner, and I expected Weaver to suck me in to 1941 in the midst of WWII. She did not disappoint. I could not put this book down until the end. Promptly causing me to curse Weaver for making me wait for the next book, and praise her for more stories within this world of Electra McDonnell. Every aspect of this book is expertly woven together. Highly recommend!

I simply could not put Locked In Pursuit down after starting the latest book in the Electra McDonnell series. The historical detail of London during the Blitz of WWII was fascinating and helped set the tone of the mystery. What pleased me the most was the moral development of the main character as she slowly evolves across the series. I’m excited for the series to continue with the exploration of a romantic relationship spanning the class divide, the risk posed by spies and espionage during WW II along with the plot development of the story behind Electra’s parents tragic demise.

I absolutely devoured 'Locked in Pursuit' 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. As much as I liked the banter and swoon-worthy aspects of their interactions in this story, I do hope that things resolve more between Ellie and Gabriel by the next adventure because it now feels a bit needlessly drawn out.

The mystery and sleuthing plot retained more of the wonderful WWII spy caper pacing from the first book that I love about this series. It was good to meet others from the McDonnell's shady community and see Uncle Mick involved again. Without giving too much away, I could not have predicted the ending at all, and look forward to seeing how their next mission plays out.

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.