Sounds like the mark on the leather is a definite defect. But as for the "softness" and "pebbliness" of the boot, surely that is going to vary a bit with every batch of leather. Or am I missing something here?

Hi Tam,

The Rory's are described as "This boot is all about the leather - soft, buttery to the touch, premium leather."

If the leather isn't buttery soft, the boots won't slouch as much and that's not what I'm going for.

Zappos doesn't have a 5.5 in either the Sand Vintage or the Brown Vintage which are the only colours I'd consider.