Member Reviews
A deliciously fun read. A girl in high heels, an acerbic housekeeper, a castle, a hunky farmer and cats, this story is full of humor and grit. Although there's a lot of head-hopping, the thrill of the plot along with a superb cast make this a fabulous read.
Thank you to the publisher and Netgalley for providing me with an arc of this title in exchange for an honest review.
This was the perfect afternoon escape! A light romantic comedy that features sisterly rivalry and a dilapidated castle in the Highlands.
Clem is determined to assess how salvageable the castle is. Her sister Ari has entrusted her to conduct inventories, propose renovations and brainstorm how the rambling estate can pay for itself. She doesn't expect to meet an arrogant sheep farmer or a prickly housekeeper. And she doesn't expect to find a treasure trove that could restore her career and make her mark.
Rory may be a sheep farmer, but he certainly isn't immune to the charms of the brash, temperamental whirlwind that is Clem. He even comes up with a nickname for her-- and according to his family, that's something he never does. But can she be convinced to abandon her life in London?
this was my first liz hurley’s book and unfortunately, it did not work for me. i feel bad giving it such a bad review but since i did not enjoy reading it at all, i cannot rate it higher.
firstly, with all the respect, this was one of the most boring books i’ve ever read in my life. it was long and full of events that brought nothing to the plot and that i had no interest in reading about. it got a little better after 60% but the first half was very hard to get through and i really struggled with it. if not the fact the i’ve got an arc, i would definitely not continue reading it.
the other thing was romance. i actually expected this book to be a romance but if that’s what you’re after, you won’t find it in this book. clementine and rory had maybe eight scenes together, most of which were one-minute conversations. there was no development there and the characters had zero chemistry. i honestly wouldn’t mind poor romance if the plot was interesting, but like i’ve said before, it wasn’t.
another thing was clementine herself. one of the worst things for me that can happen in the book is not liking the main character because it immediately makes the story harder to enjoy. and i absolutely couldn’t stand clem. she was an adult and yet she was acting like a child almost all the time. she was often screaming and huffed when something went not the way she wanted to - i was sure at some point she will start stamping her feet, which wouldn’t surprise me at all (she didn’t, but still, you get the point). she was very annoying and hard to like.
what was also a problem to me were some things that was written in the book. i usually try not to analize every word or line and not to get angry while reading but i do think it is a possible to write a book that does not contain problematic statements. here’s two examples:
,,she had watched, flabbergasted, when girls with nothing between their ears but a pretty smile and beseeching eyes would sail to the front of the queue to get the best jobs, snaffle the richest men. What would they do when their looks faded and their waistlines got fat?”
,,thanking him, she offered to walk him to the front door, and she she said goodbye to him he realised that she hadn’t even offered him a drink. she really was lacking any feminine graces”
i’m sorry but what was that suppose to mean?
so yes, this book was a total miss for me. i did not enjoy it and it is not a book i would recommend a friend.
1.5 stars.
A easy lighthearted read that is perfect for on the beach or unwinding after a long day at work. I did not realise it was part of a series and whilst it is stand alone, there are a few mentions which make more sense now I know they are covered more fully elsewhere. I will read the other books.
Great for transporting you to another world. One of Scottish caste leaders, fashion shows and exhibitions at the V &A, none of which are accessible at present and so why not get lost in a boom and enjoy their fictional versions.
Clem is a fiesta character and, if she were not the focus of the book, might come across as too rude and hot headed, but because we get to read her thought, we understand,
Get away from lockdown and enjoy this land of make believe and get to met someone different peopl.
I really liked the author's descriptions, especially those of Scotland, and I rather enjoyed the writing style in terms of sentence flow and lexicon. I loved Clem's passion for designing, I thought that was well written and I liked her background of a big family of Hiverton sisters. Overall the characters were fairly good throughout, except for Otto and Clem right at the beginning - I was cringing at how one dimensional they both were in their singular combative emotional states. I understand that to take us on a relationship building journey, it has to start somewhere bad, but it was honestly excessive how disgustingly short tempered and hatefully rude they were to each other from the second they met.
This book is also just not a romance, Clem honestly interacts with her love interest about 5 times, and often with many other people present. That in itself doesn't make it a bad book but it is a definite misrepresentation. In the last quarter of the book, there are several really jarring mini POV switches to utterly insignificant characters and like 7 different subplots (art forgery, heist, mafia involvement, unexpected modelling, getting back at a power abusive boss, police trap, meeting with an old love) that appear and are resolved within 1-4 pages each, I would've instead loved to see more of Clem building relationships with the Scottish community. Her supposed new best friend doesn't get mentioned after about 70% and it makes the nice gesture Clem pulled off for Mari's wedding seem very performative and empty, only serving as very obvious exhibitionism from the author of how "well" Clem fits in. And as a book billed as a romance, definitely should've been more of Rory. Overall though it was entertaining enough and a nice fluffy read, so if you're okay with minimal romance and laughably ludicrous, utterly unrealistic, minor plot twists at the end that get solved extremely easily, then go for it!
Although I was unable to get very far in this book, I wanted to give feedback to explain exactly what pushed me away.
From the get-go, the story felt dizzying. There was so much yet so little thrown at the reader in Chapter 1 that I felt confused and more than a little frustrated. Worse, even the first chapter felt like reading some cheesy, poorly written fiction put on the Internet by a teenager. Her supposed set-down to the construction worker was not at all witty, and not so effective as the characters acted it was. And then all of a sudden she is randomly teaching a little girl to draw earning the gratitude of some random mom. Both of these scenes felt irrelevant, unnecessary, and cringe=worthy.
Omg y'all!!! This was such a fun and cute read. Wow, it was exactly what I needed to read. Love the main character and her wittiness and absolutely loved the writing. It really transported you into the book!
This is the first of Liz Hurley's books I've read, only to find out that there are more in this series. I'd like to read the other books to hear more about the sisters.
Clem is the second oldest sister and a fashion designer. I loved learning more about the life of a designer and the challenges she faced.
The writing was excellent, the relationships between the sisters felt authentic. The author includes many unique characters which adds layers to the book.
I would have liked to read more about the relationship between Rory and Clem. It didn't feel developed enough for me - maybe I wanted more romance in the story?
Overall, I'd recommend and would gladly read more by this author.
This is full of fun characters, a Scottish castle, a fashion show, the art world, and ‘High Heels..’ is an ideal beach read.
However, do not start questioning the plot, because once you do the story becomes a little annoying.
There are just loads of things that don’t add up, not least why do the girls inherit the castle in the first place when their uncle has two surviving children who are the direct line? Also why is it decided by the sisters that it’s Clem who goes to investigate the castle when as far as they know she’s about to launch a fashion show? Nick who has given up her job to focus on the finances for the estate is surely better placed to visit? The list goes on.
Anyway, ignore that and it’s light-hearted upbeat writing. Thank you to netgalley for an ARC in exchange for my honest opinion.
After an Uncle passes away Clem and and her sisters find themselves heirs to a massive fortune they had no idea existed.
Clem leaves London and heads out to the Scottish highlands to check out a castle they inherited.
Clem was one hilarious, fierce female full of heart and at times lots of spitfire! I loved her personality and her intense loyalty to her sisters and her friends.
Clem has a heart of gold, and I loved seeing her make new friends in the Highlands. She has plenty of hilarious run ins with the locals including the curmudgeon castle keeper, a sheep, a very rugged farm hand, a whole pub, and the entire castle staff and several cats.
This was a fun, light hearted read that made me smile, and laugh. I enjoyed it so much! It incorporated fashion, art, farming, and family, into this tiny town of strange characters and it blended so perfectly.
Clem reminded me of a modern day Princess Merida. She had the fiery spirt, loyalty, and the intense love for her family and of course that fantastic red hair! She was an amazing character, I loved everything about her!
A beautiful, fashionable story about love and family relations. Clem starts really low and comes up her own way! It's beautiful and wonderful how she meets every single character and how she creates a bond with each and every one of them. My favorite character has to be Otto, gotta love some sass!
This was such a great read for Winter, I felt so good and fuzzy reading it! Just grab yourselves a cup of coffee or tea and put on some comfy pajamas and get to read this book!
I really love this series so I'm so glad there was another to get stuck into.
This one is set just after the first book and although you can probably read fine without reading the others, I would recommend reading them so that you get the full background of the characters (they are brilliant books too, the first book was in my top 10 favourite reads of the year!).
What I really like about this series are the completely different characters. Although there are quite a few sisters, they are as different as chalk and cheese with their own way of dealing with things.
A brilliant series that I genuinely love - I can't wait to read more.
My thanks to NetGalley for making an eARC copy of this book available to me.
First off, I did really enjoy this book. I liked the progression of the relationship between Clementine (aka Clem) and "Otto", the housekeeper. I thought that the Clem/Rory scenes were handled in a very entertaining way, especially the sheep-in-a-snowbank initial meeting scene.
However, I think that labeling this book as a rom-com is problematic. There are not enough outright funny scenes, and the romance between Clem and Rory was quite a minor part to the overall book. So, I can understand why some of the reviewers ranked this book down a bit because of the lack of more romance. Perhaps this book would be better labeled as the more generic "women's fiction". I had read the previous two novels in this series, so I wasn't surprised by the lack of more romance or comedy, but I enjoyed the book on its own merits nonetheless.
#netgalley
I received this book for an honest review
Oh wow such a fun read! A great read for summer. The characters were funny and light.
#HighHeelsintheHighlands #NetGalley
Absolutely loved this book. Clem is a blunt, no nonsense, tell it like it is person. She and Otto are so funny in how they interact with each other. Rory has the patience of a saint in dealing with Clem. Her sisters are so different and she deals with each one differently. Loved the ending.
though I did not realize that this was part of a series at first, it was not a confusing book since it can be read as a standalone if you'd like. the book focuses on clem, who moves to Scotland to see the castle that she inherited. there is a bit of romance, but th main focus is clem and otto's friendship. overall a great read to get away from the pandemic we are dealing with
If you enjoy Katie Fforde books then this should be your jam. Featuring a wonderful cast of characters and a prickly heroine who is finding her footing after getting dumped/losing her job. I enjoyed getting to know Clem and watching her bloom after going through everything. Just a note the book ends more of HFN.
High Heels in the Highlands by Liz Hurley
Clement is the second eldest in a family of 5 sisters who have had, a loving, but relatively poor upbringing upon the sudden death of both parents when she was in her teens but now they discover on the death of a distant relative they have a title and estates. Part of which is a castle in Scotland and Clem is sent to make it viable and decide whether to keep or sell it off.
Great book loved it a couldn’t put it down and how I laughed.
A great warm hearted well written book by Liz Hurley.
Fabulous Characters, great humour and a few twists along the way and the scenery is so well described you think you are tramping through the hills with Clem.
There are parts of this book that I really loved; all of Clem's adventures in the highland community, exploring the castle and grounds, making friends in the community, and her relationships with Rory and Otto. Clem is absolutely a "do it now, think later" kind of gal, which makes for some emotional whiplash and a bit of drama. The beginning and end both felt odd and clunky to me. I didn't like being introduced to new characters in the last quarter of the book, even though they were deemed necessary to wrap up a minor storyline.
Thank you to the publisher for sending me a copy of this book. All opinions expressed in this review are my own.
Thank you author Liz Hurley, Hera, and NetGalley for giving me a copy of this Arc in exchange for an honest review! All thoughts and opinions are my own!
3.5 stars
While this book is the fourth one in a series, it can be read as a stand alone. This book follows Clementine to the hills of Scotland to look over her family's newly inherited castle. As Clem begins to spend time in the village and the castle staff, Clem begins to try to come up with ways to save the castle.
This book had a great premise. The author did an amazing job creating the Scottish atmosphere for the reader including village and castle life. The character development throughout this book was a little all over the place. Some of the characters were well developed and showed growth; while other characters seemed to be one dimensional and not really memorable. I thought the author could have done away with some of the non plot driven characters. This would have helped the reader keep track of the more important characters. Clementine was not a very likeable person at times. She seemed to be self-absorbed and had a hard time asking the right questions about the running of the castle and/or asking for advice from the more seasoned staff on ways to save the castle. I did like how helped out with making a beautiful wedding dress for one of the women. Rory and Clementine's relationship was a little under developed and awkward. I would have much rather them develop a solid friendship rather than a romantic one. Overall, this was a middle of the road book for me! I would like to read more books by this author. Her settings and writing are beautiful.