[.ca] If the Slipper Fits (ISBN 0060517212)

Where Was This Supposed to Go?:
This is a difficult review to write for a couple of reasons. First by the cover and the back cover description one would think that you were picking up a light contemporary comedy type book. Granted there were a few zany type characters sprinkled throughout the story as the rich heir (Connor) to this magnificent Maine property comes back after an eleven year absence due to having his heart broken irreparably by a young summer housemaid (Anne) now elevated to steward/house curator manager. Connor has returned to sell the property -- and here is where some of the secondary characters come into play as they set out trying to convince the prospective new owner that the property is ready to fall apart and is haunted so that the sale does not go through and their jobs are saved. Unfortunately, while the plot sounds good, and should have been humorous, it fell rather flat as instead of making me chuckle over the humor my emotions were too caught up in the beastly way our hero Connor was treating Anne - as she decided that - even though it had been eleven years and not a word from him - she was going to set out and seduce him without fessing up as to the real reason she sent him packing all those years ago! BE FOR REAL GIRLFRIEND! This plot just didn't do it for me - I had to re-read the book description again to figure out what this book should have been categorized as. The first half of this book had me so caught up in Anne's pain emotionally that the humor seemed so secondary to be almost non-existent. Connor was just too angry to fall for any of the futile seduction attempts Anne was making. If it were not for the intervention of Connor's wonderfully drawn out Uncle Marcello these two never would have been reunited at all what with Connor's wicked step-mother and Anne's bitter grandmother pulling the strings to keep them apart. The only reason I did give this book the rating I did was that the writing itself did pull me emotionally, only not in the direction that I feel the author had intended.

Light- hearted summer time reading:
If the Slipper fits is a good summer book- its a quick, easy, non demanding read. The simple plot features Anne and Connor- two teenage sweethearts from opposite sides of the social spectrum. Anne worked for Connor's family in their vacation home- every summer they would meet. Eventually, they fell in love, but they were forced apart. Years later, they meet again. This time Connor is intent on selling his childhood home and firing all the household staff- including Anne. Anne however, has other plans to keep her beloved home, save her job and win her Prince. Elaine fox writes likeable characters including the two main ones, plus the Italian uncle, evil stepmother, idiot village suitor, gossipping townspeople etc. She also manages to keep the plot moving so you don't get bored and make the story fun.

Light, Funny, Romantic -- A+:
I read this book in one day on the beach and completely loved it. Elaine Fox always delivers smart, witty heroines and sexy heros, but I particularly enjoyed the banter between the two of them in this book.

I was embarassed for the characters.:
Have you ever read a book and cringed when something happens to embarass one of the characters? That is the way I felt throughout this book. There wasn't any real chemistry between Anne and Connor and Anne was at times incredibly weak and pathetic in her attempts to get Connor to reestablish a relationship. Connor clearly did not deserve her and Anne was not as strong as the author tried to make us believe. Anne and Connor hardly spent enough time together to learn about how each other had changed and even then, they clearly weren't ready for any kind of committment. There were also several characters the book could have done without and at least 3 subplots that just sort of died without being resolved. I was not impressed by If the Slipper Fits. I sincerely don't think the slipper fit at all.

Another great Elaine Fox!:
This book is very funny. Yeah, the set-up is a little familiar, but the plot is fresh and fun and I found the chemistry between Connor and Anne to be pretty sizzly. It's not Fox's best book but it's still better than most everything out there!