McKettrick's Pride - Linda Lael Miller

McKettrick’s Pride
Linda Lael Miller
HQN

Contemporary Romance

Since losing his wife several years ago, Rance McKettrick has dedicated himself to running the family business. Rance uses the work partly to keep his mind off of his loss, even though he knows it isn’t healthy. He realizes that he’s not being fair to his two young daughters, but consoles himself with the knowledge that they’re loved and looked after by his mother-in-law, Cora. Even so, he feels guilty about not spending more time with them. Recently, he’s considered the idea that the best thing for all of them would be to leave Indian Rock, the place his ancestors settled and thrived for generations.

Echo Wells arrives in Indian Wells from Chicago with one thing on her agenda: open the town’s first and only bookstore. As it happens, her store is next door to Cora’s beauty salon. Echo quickly bonds with Cora and the two young girls in her care. Romantic entanglements are not on the menu for Echo, especially not with the start-up business taking her time. Meeting Rance, she’s both attracted and confused. It’s not a perfect situation, but maybe with a little encouragement from Cora, it could be.

Echo instantly won me over on the very first page when she rescued an abandoned dog during a rainstorm. Add that to her genuine love for books, and a very nonconformist outlook on life, and you’ve got an interesting, intelligent character. Rance is also very believable as a man who’s been emotionally destroyed by the untimely death of his wife, now wondering if it’s worth risking his time or his feelings again. The relationship develops very naturally between the two main characters, both of whom carry a bit of baggage. Cora adds some humor without being eccentric, and also dispenses wisdom without being strident. This novel is a follow-up to McKettrick’s Luck, but works well as a stand-alone story.

A side note, but a very important one. Linda Lael Miller has a real love for animals that shows in her writing and her life; she supports The Humane Society of the United States. As part of her book tour in 2007, she’ll be including stops at many animal shelters. To check her schedule, visit www.lindalaelmiller.com. To find out more about The Humane Society, how you can help or adopt a pet, please visit www.proud2adopt.org and www.spaydayusa.com.


Rating: 8 ½
March 2007
ISBN# 978-0-373-77190-5 (paperback)