Miller enthralls, once again, in the second entry of her new McKettrick Men series (following McKettrick's Luck), an engrossing, contemporary western romance starring Rance McKettrick, a handsome, successful businessman and cousin to the last volume's hero, Jesse. Having buried himself in work since his wife's death five years earlier, Rance gets a wake-up call in the form of a blonde newcomer to the small ranching town of Indian Rock, Ariz. Riding up in a hot pink VW Bug, eccentric Chicagoan Echo Wells sparks the whole town's interest when she opens up Indian Rock's first bookstore. Echo sets up shop next to the Curl and Twirl, a beauty parlor and baton-twirling school owned by Rance's kindly, nosy mother-in-law, Cora Tellington. Echo quickly befriends Cora and Rance's two daughters, whom he leaves with Cora during his frequent business trips. Once Rance meets Echo, their mutual attraction stirs feelings of love the stolid, scarred man thought he'd put away forever. Miller's masterful ability to create living, breathing characters never flags, even in the case of Echo's dog, Avalon; combined with a taut story line and vivid prose, Miller's romance won't disappoint. (Mar.)