Stuck In Shangri-La

The Trouble With Men #1

by Kasey Michaels

Darcie Reed is tired of literally running from her bosses. She did not break her engagement to prove herself in a business environment in Pittsburgh only to wind up being chased around a desk by a randy CEO. She is about to quit when she learns that her only relative, Uncle Horry, has died and left her with a terrible surprise: she must spend a month on his estate, Shangri-La, outside of Philadelphia with her ex-fiance, Cameron Pierce, and her uncle's psychotic housekeeper, Lily, taking care of his cat, Lucky, or an unknown half brother will be Horry's heir.

Cameron is excited to spend the time with Darcie. He still loves her and wants her back. Now they find themselves stuck in a house with a driveway lined with flamingos, ribbiting frogs, a nasty housekeeper, the ghost of Uncle Horry, and a belligerent cat. Then the mysterious half brother, Edwin, shows up. Michaels provides her readers with a lighthearted romance that will leave the reader smiling.

Genres: Romance, Contemporary Romance, Contemporary, Chick Lit, Ebooks, Fiction, Humor

384 pages, Mass Market Paperback

First published November 1, 2005

About the author

Kasey Michaels is the New York Times and USA Today bestselling author of more than 100 books (she doesn't count them). Kasey has received three coveted Starred Reviews from Publishers Weekly, two for the historical romances, THE SECRETS OF THE HEART and THE BUTLER DID IT, and a third for contemporary romance LOVE TO LOVE YOU BABY (that shows diversity, you see). She is a recipient of the RITA, a Waldenbooks and Bookrak Bestseller award, and many awards from Romantic Times magazine, including a Career Achievement award for her Regency era historical romances. She is an Honor Roll author in Romance Writers of America, Inc. (RWA)

Kasey has appeared on the TODAY show, and was the subject of a Lifetime Cable TV show "A Better Way," in conjunction with Good Housekeeping magazine, a program devoted to women and how they have achieved career success in the midst of motherhood (short version: "with great difficulty").

A highly praised nonfiction book, written as Kathryn Seidick, "...OR YOU CAN LET HIM GO," details the story of Kasey and her family during the time of her eldest son's first kidney transplant.

Kasey has written Regency romances, Regency historicals, category books including novellas and continuities and a few series "launch" books, and single title contemporaries. She has coped with time travel, ghosts, trilogies, the dark side, the very light side, and just about everything in between. Hers is also the twisted mind behind her ongoing Maggie Kelly mystery series starring a former romance writer turned historical mystery writer whose gorgeous hunk of a fictional hero shows up, live and in color, in her Manhattan living room – to melt her knees, to help her solve murders, and to leave the top off her toothpaste. And, says Kasey, she's just getting started!

Series:
* His Chariot Awaits
* Lion On the Prowl
* Crown Family
* London Friends
* Chandlers Request
* The Trehan Brothers
* Maggie Kelly Mystery
* Romney Marsh
* Sunshine Girls

Reviews

[Doreen Keele · Rating 5 out of 5]

I thought this was a very interesting novel and a lot of fun to read. I literally could not put it down! it has a little bit of everything in it. it has paranormal activity, romance, mystery and sex. what more could you ask for? Darcie and Cameron are instructed to spend one month living together in guardianship of a cat in order to receive their inheritance. They find that their romance isn't over and there is quite a cast of wacky people to deal with in this month. it is a must read! I received a copy of this novel in exchange for an honest review and I loved it!

[Linda Hawk · Rating 5 out of 5]

I laughed so hard, my husband made me read it to him.

Kasey Michaels topped herself in this book.

When Darcie Reed's uncle dies and leaves everything to his cat, you'd think there wouldn't be much that could be funny. Michael's proves this theory wrong by giving us laugh a minute character descriptions and that is just the beginning of the hilarity.

[Debbie · Rating 4 out of 5]

The sad news that her Uncle Hecuba (Horry) Willikins had passed away came at a good time, Darcie Reed’s boss was unfortunately chasing her around his desk. She quit her job, packed her stuff and headed out to Uncle Horry’s estate (affectionately called ‘Shangri-La’). Saying goodbye to the last of her relatives was going to be hard enough, but the reading of the will made things worse. Finding out that she had to live with her ex-fiancé Cameron Pierce, a picky spoiled cat named Lucky and a cranky possessive housekeeper, Lily for one month if she wanted to get her inheritance was bad enough, but then a long lost Uncle Edwin (who Darc never even knew about), along with his girlfriend Pookie and then the ghost of Uncle Horry all showed up to make things feel even more like a circus. Listening to the ribbit-ribbit of the frog statues is enough to driver Darc and Cam crazy, but maybe not back together as Uncle Horry obviously was trying to do with his strange will request.

Cute, funny and a bit naughty. Hearing (reading) about the intimacies of the older generation is at times weird, but can be funny. I typically like to see the initial ‘falling in love’, but this one had enough of the back story to show that they really hadn’t done the ‘falling’ the first time they were together - they jumped in and then she ran out. Good characters interactions, like between the ghost of Horry and Lucky the cat. I am not a big fan of Darcie, but Cam was open minded and funny and was able to carry the story. On a side note, I have to like any book with so many references to ‘Young Frankenstein’, that has to be one of my favorite movies.

[Anna Paradox · Rating 3 out of 5]

I keep hoping for another author to fill the contemporary romantic comedy niche that Jennifer Crusie vacated after her glorious book Bet Me. I had high hopes for this one. The first third or so set up some truly amusing situations and had me laughing out loud several times. After that, it lost a little steam and seemed both less inventive and less insightful -- there were a few too many repetitions of the main conflict between the hero and the heroine, and they actually seemed to become more generic as the book wen along. Still a good, light, and enjoyable read. I will look for more by this author and see if she improves.

[Becky Black · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fun comedy romance, with lots of eccentric characters and wacky goings on. Very enjoyable.

[Vicki · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book has it all, mystery, ghosts and wonderful humor. There is even a communicating cat. I loved this book.

[Deb Diem · Rating 4 out of 5]

Stuck In Shangri-La is a fun second chance romance by Kasey Michaels. Ms. Michaels has delivered a well-written book loaded with fantastic, sometimes strange, characters. Darcie and Cameron's story is packed with drama, spice, suspense and lots of humor. I enjoyed reading Stuck In Shangri-La and look forward to reading more from Kasey Michaels in the future. Stuck In Shangri-La is book 1 of The Trouble With Men Series but can be read as a standalone. This is a complete book, not a cliff-hanger.

I voluntarily read a complimentary copy of this book that I received from Bookfunnel.

[Molly · Rating 5 out of 5]

I enjoyed reading this book so much! It is a humorous, light hearted romance and mystery. The characters are some nutcases with some just funny laugh out loud lines. Looking forward to reading the next book in this series, The Trouble With Men!

[Katie Chapman · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fabulous

One of the best things about Casey Michaels books are the great little life nuggets she slips into each story, along with lots of laughs, engaging characters, and a great story line.

[Kelly · Rating 2 out of 5]

I didn’t end up finishing this one because I really didn’t care, but I was looking for some stupid fun fluff and this book was that. Can’t say I would spend money on it, but it was a diversion for a night or two.

[Ellen Maag · Rating 2 out of 5]

Silly story about Uncle Horry who dies while having sex with his maid.

[Elena · Rating 1 out of 5]

Can't 1 star this book enough. So cringy on so many levels.

[Christina]

Welp. You can definitely tell this was written 20 years ago. 😬

[Tiffany Rohrer · Rating 3 out of 5]

very cute

[Sandy Digger · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is hilarious! It starts out with Darcie as a corporate woman who has been called to her boss's office for a meeting but instead he puts the moves on her, so she quits after a phone call telling her her uncle just died and she needs to go. This is the second job that ended this way so she's feeling like a failure (really?? I'd say the boss is the failure). So she goes home and when the will is read it's actually a video will and it's bizarre. It also sets the stage for the rest of the story, because for a month, the cat inherits and the terms are that Darcie, her ex-fiancée, and the cat can't be gone from the house for more than 12 hours or her estranged uncle Edwin inherits and he's already got plenty of his own money. Oh, and the cat must remain healthy for that month. OMG! And then the crazy really begins! Oddly enough there's a romance under it all and a happy ending. Truly entertaining.

[Nath · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5/5 (B-)

Basically, here is the break-down: Darcy is 26 y.o. and Cameron is 34. Cameron is ready to settle down and thought that Darcy wanted the same; however, Darcy just graduated from school and she wants to discover herself, see if she can do it on her own and stuff like that. So during an argument, Darcy blurts out that she has a 5 years career plans and only after that, will she settle down to have kids. This lead to an even bigger argument and when the next day, Darcy comes too Cameron's office to apologize, she sees him kissing his ex-gf. Of course, she blows up thing, break the engagement and moves to Pittsburg for her new job. Cameron wants to go after her, but Uncle Horry tells him to wait, that she needs space. Horry is an eccentric man and he changed his will as part of a plan to bring back Cameron and Darcy together... unfortunately, he never expected to really die. So now, he "haunts" his house and keeps Lucky company and see how all this mess is turning out.

So, so, so. Let's start with: I liked Cameron and I really wish I could meet a guy like him :P He really loves Darcy and he's making efforts to get to know her (because in Darcy's opinion, he doesn't) and he was going to make even more efforts to have a long-distance relationship once Darcy went back to Pittsburg and wait for her to be ready to settle-down. I mean, the guy is almost the dream guy... Okay, he does assume a lot of things and he's a guy, but if she talked to him instead of arguing, always jumping and taking everything as a criticism, I'm sure Darcy and Cameron could have work out something. Which brings me to Darcy. She's not bad, but she's annoying. She accuses Cameron of not listening, but she's not doing any efforts either. She says that she doesn't know herself and she needs to discover who she is... but in that case, how can you blame the guy for not knowing you? Also, I'm sure that she could have figured it out while still being engaged to Cameron. Man, I mean, they had a comfortable relationship. Anyway... I liked Uncle Horry and Lucky, Lucky was so damn sarcastic that it was funneh :D I gues this was meant to be a light comedy as the secondary characters are really exaggerated. Anyway, the story wasn't bad overall, but because I found the conflict avoidable and Darcy annoying, it did damper a bit the enjoyment. I also thought that some things were left unexplained: why was Cameron kissing his ex? Why did Uncle Horry not leave his house ever? Little details... So not a bad book, but Everything's coming up with Rosie was better.

[Jo-Anne · Rating 3 out of 5]

Darcie Reed learned that her last living relative (Uncle Horry) passed away and was told to go for the reading of the will. It was actually a video will. Turns out he left everything to his cat! That is unless Darcie and her ex-fiance stay in the house for 30 days. Then Darcie gets the house and his fortune. If they don't meet the stipulations and something happens to the cat, everything goes to Horry's half brother that Darcie didn't know existed.

You'd think this book would be sad because it starts out with a death but it's not sad at all! The characters are hilarious! You've got a grumpy housekeeper, the brother's girlfriend, Pookie, who looks and acts like a stripper, Darcie and Cam trying to keep their hands off each other and Uncle Horry's ghost who talks to the cat.

Uncle Horry called his house Shangri-La and had toys and gadgets all over the place. The walk leading to the house was lined with flamingos and frogs. The frogs were movement activated and ribbetted when set off.

If you want a cute story with great characters try Stuck in Shangri-La.

[Jo-Anne · Rating 3 out of 5]

Darcie Reed learned that her last living relative (Uncle Horry) passed away and was told to go for the reading of the will. It was actually a video will. Turns out he left everything to his cat! That is unless Darcie and her ex-fiance stay in the house for 30 days. Then Darcie gets the house and his fortune. If they don't meet the stipulations and something happens to the cat, everything goes to Horry's half brother that Darcie didn't know existed.

You'd think this book would be sad because it starts out with a death but it's not sad at all! The characters are hilarious! You've got a grumpy housekeeper, the brother's girlfriend, Pookie, who looks and acts like a stripper, Darcie and Cam trying to keep their hands off each other and Uncle Horry's ghost who talks to the cat.

Uncle Horry called his house Shangri-La and had toys and gadgets all over the place. The walk leading to the house was lined with flamingos and frogs. The frogs were movement activated and ribbetted when set off.

If you want a cute story with great characters try Stuck in Shangri-La.

[Nicki · Rating 5 out of 5]

Hilarious and outrageous! A house full of crazy characters and throw in a ghost that talks to the cat and I just cracked up. The yard art was so crazy that I can't imagine why the first thing was not to cover them up! I bet this is one book the author had fun writing! I sure had a good time reading it. Thanks for the smiles!

[Andrea · Rating 3 out of 5]

just plain fun, a ghost that can only communicate with the cat, a neurotic housekeeper, and a couple reunited. with pink flamingos, how cool

[Lynn Calvin]

headless woman cover

[Kelsey · Rating 5 out of 5]

Rather ridiculous, but I laughed out loud several times. Fun.

[Brenda · Rating 2 out of 5]

A witty little book.

[Camille · Rating 2 out of 5]

I couldn't wait for this book to be over. The only reason I gave it 2 stars instead of 1 is because there were some clever and funny bits despite the main couple/romance being dreadfully dull.

[Masha · Rating 3 out of 5]

Cute, quick, quirky romance novel. Not the greatest but a good time fill.

[Karen Desmond · Rating 4 out of 5]

4

[Renee Leeann · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a cute, funny romance with a bit of the paranormal. If you need something light that will make you laugh, this book is it.

[Kathi · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fun! I wasn't sure that I was going to like this one for the first few chapters, but I'm glad I stuck with it. This book was just plain fun.

[Aurora Hauke · Rating 4 out of 5]

A fun romance, with quirky characters and a great location adding to the whimsy.

[Paige · Rating 4 out of 5]

Frustrating at times. More often than not I wanted to slap Lily. But a really horrible bad person always makes a book better.