One Wicked Night
Sari Robins
Avon, Jul 2004, $5.99, 384 pp.
ISBN: 0060575344

In 1810, Lillian Kane shocks the Ton when she refuses to marry Marques Dillon Mayborn, but instead shows HER SCANDALOUS INTENTIONS by becoming his mistress. Lillian likes Dillon, but does not love him. The mistress is a sham to fool her odious stepfather Cornelius who wants Lillian to marry one of his chosen losers so he can control her trust fund that she inherits when she turns twenty-four.

In 1811, a desperate Cornelius gains an advantage when the distraught brother of Dillon, Russell, talks with him. They arrange a plot to get Dillon away from Lillian so that her stepfather can abduct her. Russell thinks that his ally wants him to wed his stepdaughter, but Cornelius has other plans. Meanwhile, the Solicitor General Dagwood arrests Dillon charging him with the murder of Lady Langham. Knowing he is innocent, Lillian turns to Enquiry Agent Nicholas Redford to prove her contention. As he works the case for his client, Nicholas realizes that she is the target of an odious scheme even as they fall in love.

ONE WICKED NIGHT is an engaging Regency romantic suspense that grips readers once they understand the motives of key players. The story line moves rather quickly from the time Dillon goes to Newgate until the final confrontation. Though Cornelius is as odious as they come, fans will appreciate Dillon's sacrifice, an enlightened Lady, and the courage of the lead couple that all come together in a fabulous tale.

Harriet Klausner