Michaels, Kasey 1943- (Kathryn Amelia Charles, Michelle Kasey, Kathryn A. Seidick)

PERSONAL:

Born Kathryn Amelia Charles, November 12, 1943, in Allentown, PA; daughter of Edward R.N. and Catherine Charles; married Michael D. Seidick (an oil company executive), June 8, 1963; children: Anne, Michael, Edward, Megan. Education: Attended high school in Whitehall, PA.

ADDRESSES:

Home—PA. Agent—Cantrell-Colas, Inc., 229 East 79th St., New York, NY 10021. E-mail—[email protected].

CAREER:

Part-time bank teller, 1962-68; writer. Has appeared on television, including the Today show.

AWARDS, HONORS:

RITA Award for regency novel, Romance Writers of America; multiple awards from Romantic Times, including a career achievement award; Waldenbooks award.

WRITINGS:

SILHOUETTE ROMANCE NOVELS

Maggie's Miscellany, Harlequin Silhouette (New York, NY), 1984.

Compliments of the Groom, Harlequin Silhouette (New York, NY), 1987.

Popcorn and Kisses, Harlequin Silhouette (New York, NY), 1988.

To Marry at Christmas, Harlequin Silhouette (New York, NY), 1988.

His Chariot Awaits, Harlequin Silhouette (New York, NY), 1990.

Romeo in the Rain, Harlequin Silhouette (New York, NY), 1990.

Lion on the Prowl, Harlequin Silouette (New York, NY), 1991.

Sydney's Folly, Harlequin Silhouette (New York, NY), 1991.

Prenuptial Agreement, Harlequin Silhouette (New York, NY), 1992.

Uncle Daddy, Harlequin Silhouette (New York, NY), 1993.

Marriage in a Suitcase, Harlequin Silhouette (New York, NY), 1993.

Timely Matrimony, Harlequin Silhouette (New York, NY), 1994.

The Dad Next Door, Harlequin Silhouette (New York, NY), 1995.

Husbands Don't Grow on Trees, Harlequin Silhouette (New York, NY), 1995.

Five's a Crowd, Harlequin Silhouette (New York, NY), 1996.

Baby Fever (three novellas), Harlequin Silhouette (New York, NY), 1999.

(With Joan Hohl) Carried Away, Harlequin Silhouette (New York, NY), 2000.

His Innocent Temptress, Harlequin Silhouette (New York, NY), 2001.

Bachelor on the Prowl, Harlequin Silhouette (New York, NY), 2002.

HARLEQUIN ROMANCE NOVELS

The Anonymous Miss Addams, Harlequin (New York, NY), 2002.

The Chaotic Miss Crispino, Harlequin (New York, NY), 2002.

The Dubious Miss Dalirymple, Harlequin (New York, NY), 2002.

The Questioning Miss Quinton, Harlequin (New York, NY), 2002.

The Toplofty Lord Thorpe, Harlequin (New York, NY), 2002.

The Ruthless Lord Rule, Harlequin (New York, NY), 2002.

The Enterprising Lord Edward, Harlequin (New York, NY), 2002.

The Beleaguered Lord Bourne, Harlequin (New York, NY), 2002.

(With Carolyn Davidson) Heir to the Throne, Harlequin (New York, NY), 2002.

The Wedding Chase, Harlequin (New York, NY), 2003.

The Butler Did It, Harlequin (New York, NY), 2005.

Shall We Dance?, Harlequin (New York, NY), 2005.

Stuck in Shangri-La, Harlequin (New York, NY), 2005.

Everything's Coming Up Rosie, Harlequin (New York, NY), 2006.

AVON REGENCY NOVELS

The Belligerent Miss Boynton, Avon (New York, NY), 1982.

The Tenacious Miss Tammerlane, Avon (New York, NY), 1982.

The Rambunctious Lady Royston, Avon (New York, NY), 1982.

The Lurid Lady Lockport, Avon (New York, NY), 1983.

The Savage Miss Saxon, Avon (New York, NY), 1983.

The Mischievous Miss Murphy, Avon (New York, NY), 1983.

The Playful Lady Penelope, Avon (New York, NY), 1988.

The Haunted Miss Hampshire, Avon (New York, NY), 1988.

The Wagered Miss Winslow, Avon (New York, NY), 1989.

"COLTONS" SERIES

Beloved Wolf, Silhouette (New York, NY), 2002.

The Hopechest Bride, Silhouette (New York, NY), 2002.

The Raven's Assignment, Silhouette (New York, NY), 2002.

"MAGGIE KELLY" SERIES

Maggie Needs an Alibi, Kensington (New York, NY), 2002.

Maggie by the Book, Kensington (New York, NY), 2003.

Maggie without a Clue, Kensington (New York, NY), 2004.

High Heels and Homocide, Kensington (New York, NY), 2005.

High Heels and Holidays, Kensington (New York, NY), 2006.

"ROMNEY MARSH" SERIES

A Gentleman by Any Other Name, HQN (Don Mills, Ontario, Canada), 2006.

The Dangerous Debutante, HQN (Don Mills, Ontario, Canada), 2006.

Beware of Virtuous Women, HQN (Don Mills, Ontario, Canada), 2006.

A Most Unsuitable Groom, HQN (Don Mills, Ontario, Canada), 2007.

OTHER ROMANCE NOVELS

Out of the Blue, Dell (New York, NY), 1992.

The Legacy of the Rose, Pocket Books (New York, NY), 1992.

The Bride of the Unicorn, Pocket Books (New York, NY), 1993.

A Masquerade in the Moonlight, Pocket Books (New York, NY), 1993.

The Secrets of the Heart, Pocket Books (New York, NY), 1995.

The Illusions of Love, Pocket Books (New York, NY), 1995.

The Passion of an Angel, Pocket Books (New York, NY), 1995.

The Homecoming, Pocket Books (New York, NY), 1996.

The Untamed, Pocket Books (New York, NY), 1997.

The Promise, Pocket Books (New York, NY), 1998.

Indiscreet, Warner Books (New York, NY), 1998.

Escapade, Warner Books (New York, NY), 1999.

Come Near Me, Warner Books (New York, NY), 2000.

Waiting for You, Warner Books (New York, NY), 2000.

Can't Take My Eyes off of You, Zebra Books (New York, NY), 2000.

Too Good to Be True, Zebra Books (New York, NY), 2001.

Someone to Love, Warner Books (New York, NY), 2001.

Love to Love You Baby, Kensington (New York, NY), 2001.

Raffling Ryan, G.K. Hall (Waterville, ME), 2001.

Then Comes Marriage, Warner Books (New York, NY), 2002.

Be My Baby Tonight, Zebra Books (New York, NY), 2002.

This Must Be Love, Zebra Books (New York, NY), 2003.

The Kissing Game, Warner Books (New York, NY), 2003.

This Can't Be Love, Zebra Books (New York, NY), 2004.

OTHER

(As Kathryn A. Seidick) … Or You Can Let Him Go (nonfiction), Delacorte (New York, NY), 1983.

Also author, under pseudonym Michelle Kasey, of The Enterprising Lord Edward, Moonlight Masquerade, The Difficult Disguise, The Somerville Farce, all for NAL/Signet (New York, NY).

SIDELIGHTS:

Kasey Michaels is the primary pseudonym used by Kathryn A. Seidick, a prolific and popular romance writer who specializes in historical and contemporary tales of love. In the former category are the novels Waiting for You, Someone to Love, Then Comes Marriage, and Indiscreet. In typical Kasey Michaels fashion, Indiscreet opens with the Widow Winstead and her lover, the Duke of Selbourne, "cavorting naked on a balcony—a very narrow balcony," as Ellen Micheletti described it in an All about Romance review. When someone throws open the balcony doors, the lovers hurtle to their deaths, providing no end of scandal and gossip for the town. Years later, the widow's marriageable daughter, Sophie, enters the life of the late duke's son, Bram, a pinched and proper gent still upset by the undignified death of his father. "Sophie's charm can't help but have an effect on Bram," noted Micheletti, "and as he unbends, Sophie begins to question her rejection of love." Characteristic of a Kasey Michaels romance, Indiscreet injects humor into the traditional romantic format. Library Journal critic Kristin Ramsdell cited the "bevy of delightful supporting characters" and "ingenious twist" to the book's plot.

In a more contemporary vein, the author produced her first mystery-romance, Maggie Needs an Alibi. The title character, a romance writer herself, finds her contract with her publisher severed and reinvents herself as a mystery writer. After setting her beloved Regency characters into a murder mystery, Maggie is surprised to find that the dashing, egomaniacal Alexandre Blake, Viscount Saint Just and his aide-de-camp, Sterling, have stepped out of the pages and into her world, "determined to torment her with their 19th-century take on 21st-century urban life," as a Kirkus Reviews writer noted. When Maggie's publisher dies under suspicious circumstances, the author and her historical creations work together to clear her name. Kasey Michaels, said a Publishers Weekly reviewer, "handles it all with great aplomb, gaily satirizing the current state of publishing."

Maggie by the Book, finds Alexandre, now Alex Blakely and the houseguest of Maggie, taking control of her life. When he registers her for a conference run by a romance writers' group with which she has had differences, she grudgingly agrees to go and signs up Alex and his friend Mary Louise for a cover model contest. A number of dangerous pranks are played during the conference, one of which results in the death of a member. Alex, who solves mysteries in his own world, plans to expose the killer at a masked ball, while Maggie's former boyfriend, New York City Detective Steve Wendell, provides her with a distraction.

In reviewing Maggie without a Clue, a Publishers Weekly contributor felt that having Saint Just and Sterling "enter the real world and help Maggie solve mysteries lends an amusing metafictional twist to the series." The pair, who have rented a sublet together across the hall, are approached by a former tenant who says that something wanted by the mob is in the apartment, and that they should turn it over. The two characters have no idea of what it is they want, and are busy helping Maggie investigate a most unusual crime when Maggie's publisher awakes to find the bloody body of her husband beside her. In addition Maggie is juggling her romance with Steve and her feelings for Alex. Booklist reviewer Patty Engelmann wrote: "New characters and old make this a fun series to follow as the Regency characters grow more complex."

High Heels and Homicide finds Alex modeling for fragrances by Pierre and becoming the toast of New York. As the story opens, Maggie, her editor, Alex, and Sterling, travel to England to watch her latest hit mystery being filmed. Maggie is angered by the changes being made to the story, including the casting of a blonde surfer to play the sophisticated Saint Just and the alteration of her story's ending. They stay on location in an old mansion offered by Sir Rudolph Medwine where they lose power during a storm and flood. Before long, dead bodies begin to turn up. The first is screenwriter Sam Undercuffler, who is found hanging from Maggie's window. Alex helps Maggie in solving the murders. The suspects include actors Troy Barlow and Nikki Campion, former porn director Amaud Peppin, the nephew of Medwine, and possibly the manor's ghost, Uncle Willard. Engelmann commented that Michaels "lampoons the movie industry" in this "outstanding mystery with a unique cast of characters."

As for Love to Love You Baby, "simply adorable doesn't begin to describe this charming contemporary romance," said a writer for Publishers Weekly. The book introduces professional baseball-playing twins Jack and Tim Trehan. At twenty-eight, Jack has retired with injuries and finds his life empty until he meets sprightly interior decorator Keely McBride, hired to spruce up his drab mansion. It is Keely who helps Jack raise his abandoned baby niece; the two must pretend to be married to throw a meddling social worker off their trail.

The other Trehan twin, Tim, is spotlighted in Be My Baby Tonight. A catcher for the Philadelphia Phillies, Tim fears that injury will sideline him as they did his brother. Determined not to follow in Jack's footsteps, Tim impulsively proposes to his high-school crush, Suzanna Trent. "Just three short months later, however, reality has set in … and the romance is kaput," noted a Romantic Times reviewer. "Yet what should have been a clean break with a quickie divorce soon gets messier." Indeed, "Tim realizes that he loves her but is afraid she won't believe him," noted Engelmann in what she characterized as a "delightful summer romance." To Jennifer Vaughn of Sensual Romance Reviews, the author "has hit another home run" with Be My Baby Tonight.

The "Romney Marsh" series is about a British family headed by patriarch Ainsley Becket, whose family consists of children he bought, adopted, or merely "scooped up" during his years in the Caribbean. The debut book begins in 1811 with eldest son Chance, and the varied origins of the many family members provide a constant source of interesting plots as the series progresses.

The author's one departure from romantic novels came as the result of a crisis in her family: the illness of her son. As she once told CA: "… Or You Can Let Him Go is the story of a family in crisis—that crisis being the illness of one of its members, a child who has suddenly lost the use of his kidneys. The parents are not devoutly religious, quietly heroic, or even especially intelligent. The children, including the affected child, are just average kids, special only to those who love them. The story is not sugar-coated—all the horror of crisis, the day-to-day life within a seemingly never-ending nightmare, the dreaded nights spent on a lumpy hospital cot at a child's bedside, the endless days within the walls of a big city hospital, the fears, the tears, and the hatred—it is all written as it happened. To help parents newly thrust into crisis, to console and perhaps aid parents already living in crisis, to explain people like us to our friends and relatives, and to let the medical world know a bit of what goes on within the families of their little patients—these are the aims of this book. All of that and more is what I looked for and could not find when I needed it—when our average family was told we had three options concerning our son's treatment: dialysis, transplant, or nothing (‘or you can let him go’).

"As for using my writing as a vehicle for my own views—I imagine everyone does that to some extent whether they are aware of it or not…. My fiction to date has been lightweight; I enjoy it, I am writing to entertain, not to educate or convince. Those books will come someday—I am sure of it—but not now, not yet. I am still too hung up on looking for the laughter."

BIOGRAPHICAL AND CRITICAL SOURCES:

PERIODICALS

Booklist, February 1, 1984, review of … Or You Can Let Him Go, p. 776; March 1, 2001, Patty Engelmann, review of Someone to Love, p. 1232; June 1, 2002, Patty Engelmann, review of Be My Baby Tonight, p. 1694; January 1, 2003, Patty Engelmann, review of The Kissing Game, p. 859; February 15, 2003, Patty Engelmann, review of ThisMust Be Love, p. 1058; July, 2003, Patty Engelmann, review of Maggie by the Book, p. 1870; March 15, 2004, Patty Engelmann, review of This Can't Be Love, p. 1276; July, 2004, Patty Engelmann, review of Maggie without a Clue, p. 1825; March 1, 2005, Patty Engelmann, review of Shall We Dance?, p. 1149; November 1, 2005, Patty Engelmann, review of High Heels and Homicide, p. 28; September 1, 2006, Patty Engelmann, review of Everything's Coming Up Rosie, p. 65.

Kirkus Reviews, December 15, 1983, review of … Or You Can Let Him Go, p. 1300; April 15, 2002, review of Maggie Needs an Alibi, p. 530; July 1, 2003, review of Maggie by the Book, p. 888; October 1, 2005, review of High Heels and Homicide, p. 1054.

Library Journal, January, 1984, review of … Or You Can Let Him Go, p. 194; August, 1998, Kristin Ramsdell, review of Indiscreet, p. 72.

Publishers Weekly, December 23, 1983, review of … Or You Can Let Him Go, p. 47; June 15, 1992, review of The Legacy of the Rose, p. 97; December 13, 1993, review of A Masquerade in the Moonlight, p. 66; January 2, 1995, review of The Secrets of the Heart, p. 69; August 21, 1995, review of The Passion of an Angel, p. 58; February 26, 1996, review of The Homecoming, p. 99; October 7, 1996, review of The Untamed, p. 69; December 11, 2000, review of Too Good to Be True, p. 68; March 19, 2001, review of Someone to Love, p. 82; September 24, 2001, review of Love to Love You Baby, p. 75; May 13, 2002, review of Be My Baby Tonight, p. 57; June 10, 2002, review of Maggie Needs an Alibi, p. 44; January 20, 2003, review of This Must Be Love, p. 63; February 10, 2003, review of The Kissing Game, p. 168; August 23, 2004, review of The Butler Did It, p. 42; September 26, 2005, review of High Heels and Homicide, p. 65.

Top of the News, fall, 1985, review of … Or You Can Let Him Go, p. 94; July 7, 2003, review of Maggie by the Book, p. 56; June 7, 2004, review of Maggie without a Clue, p. 34.

ONLINE

All about Romance,http://www.likesbooks.com/ (October 8, 1998), Ellen Micheletti, review of Indiscreet.

Kasey Michaels Web site,http://www.kaseymichaels.com/ (February 2, 2007).

Internet Writing Journal,http://www.internetwritingjournal.com/ (February 2, 2007), Claire E. White, "A Conversation with Kasey Michaels."

Romantic Times Online,http://www.romantictimes.com/ (February 2, 2007), Joan Hammond, reviews of Waiting for You and Someone to Love; Teresa Roebuck, review of Raffling Ryan; Jill M. Smith, reviews of Love to Love You Baby and Can't Take My Eyes Off of You; Kathe Robin, review of Come Near Me; Karen Matheny, review of Bachelor on the Prowl; review of Be My Baby Tonight.

Sensual Romance Review,http://sr.thebestreviews.com/ (February 2, 2007), Jennifer Vaughn, review of Be My Baby Tonight.