Whisper to Me of Love

Busbee ( Midnight Masquerade ) tries to fill this quart-size romance of Regency England with a pint-size plot, most of it predictable. The tale repeatedly bogs down in the uninspired ruminations of the hero and heroine as they rehash what's going on around them. And a dreary ``one-eyed'' villain also doesn't enliven the action any. Royce Manchester, an American in London, doesn't know the reason for the Earl of St. Audries's ill-repute, but when Royce nabs Pip, a pickpocket who tried to rob him at a boxing match, he notes in passing the youth's strong resemblance to the arrogant earl. Prodded by a kind-hearted companion, Royce reluctantly agrees to give a job to Pip, who turns out to be a beautiful young woman named Morgana Fowler. However, the thief Morgana answered to, a shadowy man who knows her true parentage, plots to regain control of her. Royce, infatuated with Morgana, extends his protection to the young woman and soon makes her his mistress, bringing him into direct conflict with a murderer whose influence extends from England's sewers to its most fashionable drawing rooms. ( Apr. )