June 4th, 2026
Home | Log in!
Welcome to FreshFiction

Are you a reader
or an author?

Help us personalize your experience. Choose your role below.
You can always change this later using the switcher button.

or

You can switch anytime using the floating button.

Limited Time Fresh Fiction Access

Exclusive Marketing Opportunities for Authors

Curious about how Fresh Access helps authors gain more visibility and connect with active readers?

Discover premium promotional opportunities, enhanced exposure, and author-focused services designed to help your books stand out.

Read More →
On Top Shelf
★ Fresh Access for Authors 📚 New Books This Week 📰 Latest News 🎪 Reader Games πŸ–οΈ Summer Kick Off Giveaways

Love, Danger, Homecomings & Heart β€” Your June Reading Escape Starts Here

Slideshow image


Since your web browser does not support JavaScript, here is a non-JavaScript version of the image slideshow:

slideshow image
One disastrous night. One devastating man. One diabolical proposition.


slideshow image
He’s stubborn. She’s tougher. His kid? Already picked the bride.


slideshow image
A small-town second chance wrapped in danger, desire, and Sharon Sala heart.


slideshow image
She came home to save the ranch… and found the cowboy she never forgot.


slideshow image
From reality TV heartbreak to real-life reinvention.


slideshow image
A missing twin. A deadly cartel. One K-9 team caught in the crossfire.


A MOST CLEVER GIRL

A Most Clever Girl, September 2021
by Stephanie Marie Thornton

Berkley
Featuring: Catherine Gray; Elizabeth Bentley
416 pages
ISBN: 0593198409
EAN: 9780593198407
Kindle: B08QYVF92V
Trade Size / e-Book
Add to Wish List

Purchase

"A mesmerizing story!"

Fresh Fiction Review

A MOST CLEVER GIRL
Stephanie Marie Thornton

Reviewed by Evie Harris
Posted January 13, 2022

Suspense Historical | Women's Fiction Historical | Mystery Historical

The day after President Kennedy's assassination, Catherine Gray was standing outside Elizabeth Bentley's apartment.  She had a gun in her purse and she planned to use it.  One bullet was for Elizabeth and one for her.  She believed Elizabeth ruined her life.  After she told Elizabeth her intentions, Elizabeth asked that she hear her out.  With a gun pointed at her, Elizabeth began telling her story starting in 1933. What a story it was.

Based on the life of the real Elizabeth Bentley, A MOST CLEVER GIRL by Stephanie Marie Thornton tells a mesmerizing story.  This extraordinary American woman went from being a spy for the Russians to an FBI informant. Her reasons and motivations are revealed in crisp dialogue, wry observations, and passion. Elizabeth, an admitted liar, presents a mesmerizing tale.  How much of it is true?  Readers will have to make that decision.

Skillfully written and totally engrossing, this complex and fascinating book is well worth reading.  I found the author's note to be just as interesting as the narrative itself.  Highly recommended.

Learn more about A MOST CLEVER GIRL

SUMMARY

A thrilling novel of love, loyalty, and espionage, based on the incredible true story of Elizabeth Bentley, a Cold War double agent spying for the Russians and the United States, from USA Today bestselling author Stephanie Marie Thornton.1963: Reeling from the death of her mother and President Kennedy’s assassination, Catherine Gray shows up on Elizabeth Bentley’s doorstep demanding answers to the shocking mystery she just uncovered about her family. What she doesn’t expect is for Bentley to ensnare her in her own story of becoming a controversial World War II spy and Cold War informer… Recruited by the American Communist Party to spy on fascists at the outbreak of World War II, a young Bentley—code name Clever Girl—finds she has an unexpected gift for espionage. But after falling desperately in love with her handler, Elizabeth makes another surprise discovery when she learns he is actually a Russian spy. Together, they will build the largest Soviet spy network in America and Elizabeth will become its uncrowned Red Spy Queen. However, once the war ends and the U.S. and U.S.S.R. become embroiled in the Cold War, it is Elizabeth who will dangerously clash with the NKVD, the brutal Soviet espionage agency. As Catherine listens to Elizabeth's harrowing tale, she discovers that the women's lives are linked in shocking ways. Faced with the idea that her entire existence is based on a lie, Catherine realizes that only Elizabeth Bentley can tell her what the truth really is.

EXCERPT

No excerpt available.

BOOK SERIES


 

 

 

© 2003-2026 off-the-edge.net  all rights reserved Privacy Policy