A Clever Wife is a novel written by William Pett Ridge and published in 1896. The story follows the life of a young woman named Lucy Wray who, despite being born into poverty, is determined to make a better life for herself. She marries a man named Tom, who is kind but lacks ambition, and together they start a small business selling household goods. Lucy is a shrewd businesswoman and their business thrives, but she soon realizes that Tom is not the partner she needs to take their business to the next level.As Lucy's business grows, she becomes increasingly frustrated with Tom's lack of ambition and begins to question whether she made the right choice in marrying him. She meets a successful businessman named Charles, who offers to invest in her business and help her expand. Lucy is torn between her loyalty to Tom and her desire for success, and must make a difficult decision about the future of her business and her marriage.The novel explores themes of ambition, loyalty, and the role of women in Victorian society. It offers a glimpse into the challenges faced by women in business during this time period and the sacrifices they often had to make in order to succeed. A Clever Wife is a compelling read that will appeal to fans of historical fiction and anyone interested in the struggles and triumphs of women in the late 19th century.This scarce antiquarian book is a facsimile reprint of the old original and may contain some imperfections such as library marks and notations. Because we believe this work is culturally important, we have made it available as part of our commitment for protecting, preserving, and promoting the world's literature in affordable, high quality, modern editions, that are true to their original work.