Customer Reviews

Trouble in High Heels

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When is too much money too much? How about when heiress Lori Granger just wants to give away as much as possible. Alas. Lori's late father's will has specified that she can only spend so much of the money. It's up to accountant Jackson James to put a screeching halt to her spending.

Jackson sees Lori as a spoiled rich woman with too much time on her hands. While her charitable acts might be honorable, it's his job to make sure she follows the rules of the will, which are to have a yearly allowance until she turns age thirty, at which time she can inherit the bulk of her father's estate. Then, Lori offers up a solution to their problem, a loophole in her father's will, which is to marry a man--for convenience, not love--with no commitment past her thirtieth birthday. And no sex. She asks Jackson to help her find that man.

Lori isn't a bubble-brained socialite incapable of working. Deep down is a woman who wants to help as many as possible, and her money is a good opportunity to do so. When her harebrained idea to marry for her money leaks out and attracts too many applicants, Jackson whisks her away to a ranch belonging to one of those people Lori benefited with her generosity. But the longer it takes Jackson to find her the perfect husband, the more it becomes apparent that he may the best man.

TROUBLE IN HIGH HEELS proves that one should look beneath the surface when judging someone by what they seem. Lori Granger, with her expensive clothes and a mansion with her dog as her only companion, appears to be the perfect example of spoiled, rich and brainless. It doesn't take long, however, before readers see the woman who has a heart of gold and who will give the shirt off her back to those in need. Jackson isn't looking forward to reining in Ms. High Society Lori, but the practical accountant in him will do whatever it takes, even if he hates every moment of working with her. Or so he tells himself...ha, deep down, Jackson is attracted to Lori. But can he let go of his lust long enough to find her a husband?

Off to a horse farm, Lori and Jackson hide out from the gold diggers, staying with Virginia, a recent widow in need of funds to keep her farm open, which helps disabled children. There is also Maria, an employee, who thinks Lori can't hack the hard farm work. But Lori proves her wrong. Jackson and Lori are followed to the farm by royalty, one Duke Geoffrey Taylor, who's vying for the title of Lori's husband, but who soon discovers he likes Maria much better and revealing a secondary plot in TROUBLE IN HIGH HEELS.

Leanne Banks has provided readers with another rip-roaring romance that is witty and charming right from the first page. The chemistry between Lori and Jackson sizzles and entertains, while the intriguing plot will keep readers laughing out loud. TROUBLE IN HIGH HEELS is related to other previous releases by Ms. Banks, including WHEN SHE'S BAD and SOME GIRLS DO, but can be read as a standalone.

Sexy and sassy, TROUBLE IN HIGH HEELS should be put to the top of your book buying list.

Patti Fischer
Romance Reviews Today

I will not tell the story since others have done so. This is a nice little book if one has not read the previous two of the triliogy. However, I have. As soon as I saw the size of the book, I knew it could not be as well developed as the other two were.
I was disappointed that the sisters stories were not woven into this one more. LeAnne did such a wonderful job of character development in the other two that I fear she was in too much of a hurry to get this one out for us to do that for this one. That was partly my own fault since I would get on her blog and beg her to hurry!
LeAnne, you are a wonderful writer. The next time you write a trilogy, and please do, take your time with each one of them. I will never throw or give away these three books. They are keepers, but the first two were your best. I could 'see' these people in my mind. Tea Leone should play Priss and Jodie Foster with black hair should play Delilah. If you haven't read the first two, get them!

Lori Granger has never met a charity that she didn't love and know it had to be donated to. Good thing she is an heiress with more money then she can ever spend. Well she will have once she has all her trust funds, but so far Lori has not been able to get around those pesky rules and regulations.

Jackson James has just been made the youngest and newest partner in his accounting firm. It includes the pay raise and the corner office, the only requirement is to keep one client within the terms of her trust - and she is a spendthrift who has gone through almost all the money allowed to her for the next few years.

Lori and Jackson don't have the best first meeting, after all she is expecting her old accountant and he is determined to put her on a budget - a strict one with no donations allowed. Lori's reason for being is to give money to causes and she has found a loophole in the trust rules. Now Jackson has to help find Lori a husband with conditions. After all how hard can it be to find someone for a ditzy heiress?

What happens when you tell an heiress that the next few years her byword is "budget"? Trouble in High Heels had me laughing as I read about Lori and Jackson coming to terms. Lori can't believe that her father not only kept things from her but also is still trying to control her after his death. Jackson has plans for his future and one out of control heiress is not going to make him lose his job and take those plans off track. Both Lori and Jackson believe they know what the other is about, but funny things happen as they discover just how wrong they are. I was shaking my head several times as beliefs were proven to be totally wrong. When Lori and Jackson finally faced the fact that they deeply loved each other, I was worried that maybe they couldn't find the way to their ever after. But Ms. Banks knew just what they needed and gave not one happy ending but several. Trouble in High Heels will keep a smile on your face while love is discovered in the most unexpected places.

Jo
Reviewed for Joyfully Reviewed

STORY BRIEF:
Lori's wealthy father Harlan never married her mother. Harlan had sole custody of Lori and raised her alone. Lori felt guilty for living a life of wealth. Harlan died six months ago. Since then Lori has been giving away large amounts of money to charities, some of them seeming frivolous, for example: instead of buying $10 teddy bears for firefighters to give to rescued children, her charity provides $200 collectible teddy bears. Another charity she supports takes preschoolers to the opera for cultural arts appreciation. Lori lacks self confidence and feels better when she gives to almost any charity that approaches her. Her father's will provides for a yearly allowance until age 30 when she will receive a large distribution. In six months time she has already spent 4 years of her 6 year allowance. Her accounting firm recently assigned Jackson to help her budget and manage her funds. Lori refuses to live on a budget. Since the will gives her more money if she's married, she decides to hire someone to marry her for six years with a divorce at age 30. She wants Jackson to find candidates for her to marry. He starts bringing her candidates, but word leaks out, and a huge number of men line up outside her home offering themselves. Jackson takes Lori to a ranch for awhile to escape the men. The ranch is a charity helping handicapped children. While there Lori cooks, cleans and helps with the horses and children. Jackson helps out as a handyman.

REVIEWER'S OPINION:
Lori is frivolous and lacks good judgment, but she does have a good heart. She gains some strength and self confidence during her time on the ranch. Other characters added some interest. This story is like an ice cream sundae. Don't expect anything deep. There is a wonderfully sizzling sex scene.

DATA:
Story length: 266 pages. Swearing language: moderate. Sexual language: mild. Number of sex scenes: 6. Total number of sex scene pages: 19. Setting: current day Dallas, Texas area. Copyright: 2009. Genre: contemporary romance.

As usual Leanne Banks delivers the kind of book that reminds me why I began reading romance in the first place. Great characters, I couldn't put it down - nor did I want to!

Trouble in high heels is the perfect early spring read. It's fun. It's fast. It's sexy. What more could you ask for?

Heiress Lori Jean Granger does not spend most of her money on material things. Instead, she is famous for GIVING it away to just about every charity she comes across. Her accountant, Mr. Till, retires because he was unable to deny Lori anything. The other firm partners refuse to take the Granger account and the account is too big to toss away. So they call in Jackson James and offer him a junior partnership. Twelve years ago Jackson had been nothing. Since then he had worked long and hard to earn his way through college and get his CPA. But finally his dreams are beginning to come true. All he has to do is be firm with a little heiress, teach her about keeping a budget, and then keep track of her finances. It sounds almost too easy.

Lori is not as incompetent or lacking in judgement as everyone seems to believe. She just has a soft heart. Thanks to the terms of her late father's will, Lori is about to have a very hard time getting any of her funds. This is, until she found a loop hole. To get access to her own money, which is held in trust, all Lori had to do was wed. After six years they could divorce and the man would be well compensated. Finding a man to agree to those terms and sign a prenuptial agreement should be easy. It became Johnson's job to find the best men for her to choose from. After all, he is her accountant and the marriage is only going to be part of her financial business. The only real problem is that neither Jackson, nor Lori, is as immune to the other's charms as they pretend to be.

***** Only Leanne Banks could be talented enough to take such an outrageous plan and actually make it seem sane! From the beginning until the end I could not make myself put the book down. I simply HAD to know what was going to happen next. There is also a subplot running dealing with poor English duke, who originally planned to be the man Lori chose to wed, but finds himself drawn to a totally different lady. Well written, witty, and oh-so addictive! *****

Reviewed by Detra Fitch of Huntress Reviews.

Leanne Banks is a national #1 best-selling author of romance novels. She is the winner of the Romantic Times Career Achievement Awards in Series Sensuality and Love and Laughter. She is also the winner of the Florida Writers Beacon Award, the Golden Quill Award, the Georgia Romance Writers' MAGGIE Award and Booksellers' Best Award. Her books have been recognized by the Award of Excellence Contest, the Romance Writers of America Rita Contest, and the National Readers' Choice Awards. Other titles include: Footloose, Underfoot, Some Girls Do, and When She's Bad. Leanne resides in Virginia with her husband and two children.
When Lori Granger's esteemed father died, she inherited a fortune. Known for going through her money like normal people do water, Lori has stretched her funds too tight on her many charitable donations. Now, not even her alluring and illustrious image can save her. Hired by her father's estate, Jackson James is determined to control her spending. Worse, he appears immune to her many charms. He refuses to loosen his grip on her trust fund and helps her to fulfill a condition of her father's will- to find a husband! As the attraction between them intensifies, and Jackson finds that Lori is much more than a rich girl with a credit card, could Mr. Straight-as-an-Arrow and Miss Break-All-the-Rules be just what the other needs to find true love...And right in front of their bickering, lusting eyes?
The only issue I had with the book was two phrases that the author used, "inundulated" and "French kiss". It may be just me who feels this way, and the author only used them a couple of times each, but they drew me out of the story when they were used. They just didn't seem to fit there.
This was a great story to get you out of your hum-drum life. The characters were charming and relatable. The setting drew you in. The plot flowed agreeably and smooth. There weren't any dead spots where I lost interest. You know that you've been sucked into a great book to escape when you find yourself laughing out loud uproariously- which I did, several times, in fact. I especially loved the side story with Geoffrey and Maria. I wanted to read their outcome as much as Jackson and Lori's.
Trouble in High Heels, by Leanne Banks, is a hilarious and zesty story, filled with heart and vigor.

Kelly Moran,
Author and Reviewer

Recieved this book before I knew it. Got it fast Read it fast and loved it. What a fun, good feeling story. Thanks for a bright spot in my life.

I enjoyed it not as much as others but it was a good read. It was worth reading. I loved the ending. it had fun twist and is a good sit downfor me time book if you have a rushed day or busy one,