@user98606 There nothing wrong with the progression in an of itself, but I don't hear it as a tonicization — the effect is too weak. One of the key elements to most tonicizations is having the 4-7 tritone (e.g., f-b) resolve to 3-1 (e.g., e-c), which doesn't happen here.
The spelling would make more sense if the voice leading went a-ab-g, or if the chord were a b dim — which would tonicize the C major, because of the f-b tritone. The ab-d tritone isn't strong enough relative to C major to have that effect.
To hear the difference, consider the below, which combines E7 with Bdim (i.e., E7b9).
The Auditorium
