Ugh, I empathize with the frustration of turning over seemingly every stone and still being foiled. I've long thought that boots need to come in petite sizes too - I share the same issue that several folks on this thread do, is that as a shorter person with a heavier calf, my calf simply gets larger lower than a standard-height boot typically allows for :-(.
I don't have a huge collection, but have had smashing luck with regular-calf boots that have a well-integrated stretch panel in the design somewhere. Sometimes these are indeed still too tall of a shaft, but it's at least a design feature that give some additional flexibility (literally and figuratively). IMO this looks better in black boots than brown, but they're generally doing a better job these days of integrating the feature into the design a bit more.
I've personally had luck with Cole Haan, Franco Sarto, La Canadienne, and Donald J. Pliner specifically in the past. You might also consider looking on Poshmark if you're so inclined, it can be hit or miss but can be a way to track down slightly older styles or to duplicate something you find economically.
