The Pirate and the Pagan

Gratuitous cursing and fatuous one-liners abound, and from its tasteless double entendre opening to its predictable ending, Henley's ( The Falcon and the Flower ) romance slogs through 17th-century England with all the wit and originality of a mud-wrestling match. The impoverished Lady Summer St. Catherine and her brother Spencer live in the family's ramshackle country house until, during a brief trip to London, Summer catches the eye of Lord Ruark Helford, her wealthy neighbor in Cornwall. Upon their return to the country, Summer conceals her poverty as she charms Ruark, who proposes. Their idyllic happiness ends in a major row when Ruark learns the truth and concludes he's been used by Summer for his money and his power as a magistrate to free her brother who has been imprisoned on smuggling chargesp. 277 . Summer flees and finds romance, mystery and financial assistance in the arms of a dashing pirate called Rory (obviously Ruark in disguise). Subsequently, Summer romps at court, sports with ``Rory,'' clashes with Ruark and even gets herself tossed into prison on her way to a final happy reconciliation. (Dec.) RED WOLF put into 1019