Till Dawn with the Devil

Hawkins follows All Night with a Rogue with a tiresome tale of a dissolute lord in pursuit of an innocent young lady. When Sophia Northam was six years old, the Earl of Rainecourt murdered her parents and struck Sophia over the head, leaving her half-blind. Now Sophia is a lovely, strong-willed young woman, while the Earl's son, called Reign by his fellow "Lords of Vice," is a grown man struggling to recover from a bitter first marriage that ended in his pregnant wife's mysterious death. When Reign and Sophia meet at a ball, they end up pursuing a scandalous acquaintance. Hawkins's style is crude rather than sensual or romantic, and her story falls short in both characterization and plot development. Even die-hard fans of historicals should look elsewhere for their fix. (Aug.)