by Helena Ravenscroft

1745, and England is plagued by the lawless. Lydia Hawkesworth feels torn between her love for Drummond, a sea-faring adventurer turned highwayman, and her all-consuming sexual passion for his decadent younger brother Valerian. With the arrival at Hawkesworth Manor of the icy French beauty, Madame de Chaillot, Valerian's plans to usurp his brother's position and steal his inheritance turn down a sinister and darkly erotic path - one which Lydia is drawn to follow.