The Way Life Should Be

by William Dameron, Will Damron (Reader)

Two fathers embarking on the second half of their lives together. Two families in the midst of transformation. A warm, funny, and unforgettable novel about the joys and fears of moving on.

Husbands Thomas and Matt are enjoying a second-chance marriage after coming out, leaving their wives, and finding happiness in a summer cottage on the southern coast of Maine. They’ve kept a tenuous peace with their exes. Thomas toils in the garden. There is an ease to their love. This is the way life should be.

But it’s not long before their three children—each nearing adulthood and fleeing personal crises of their own—descend on their fathers’ bliss. The two-bedroom getaway has just enough space for Thomas and Matt’s future. Now they must make room for the past, and all its drama.

During an unintentional family reunion, old lives, broken and in need of repair, are about to converge with the new. Over the course of an unforgettable summer, two fathers and their children will come together. They’ll understand what life still can be. Pain, anger, flaws and all, they’re determined to forge a loving way forward.

Genres: Fiction, LGBT, Romance, Contemporary, Family, Queer, Amazon

Audio CD

First published August 1, 2023

About the author

William Dameron is an award winning blogger, memoirist, and essayist. His work has appeared in O, The Oprah Magazine, The Washington Post, The New York Times, The Times (UK),The Boston Globe, Salon, Literary Hub, The Huffington post, and in the book, Fashionably Late: Gay, Bi and Trans Men Who Came Out Later in Life. He is an IT Director for a global economic consulting firm, where he educates users on the perils of social engineering in cybersecurity. William, his husband, and blended family of five children split their time between Boston and the coast of southern Maine. His book, The Lie: A Memoir of Two Marriages, Catfishing & Coming Out is a New York Times Recommended Read and named one of the Best LGBTQ Memoirs of 2019 by The Advocate Magazine.

Reviews

[Erin · Rating 2 out of 5]

This has a great premise for a contemporary family drama. Two married men-Thomas and Matt, living in their cottage welcome their three children-Thomas's daughter and Matt's son and daughter. Also,Matt's parents and sibling also join. It's a tight little fit for a number of family members who wonder about their place.

But the writing seemes over detailed to me and I failed to connect with these characters at all. Too many pov changes and sometimes on the same page. I wish it had just centered on the couple and their children.


This was my second Amazon original read selection for July.

Goodreads review published 16/07/23

[Kristin E. Perlin · Rating 2 out of 5]

I was drawn to the main story line of the husbands and their three kids. However, then there were so many characters, perspectives, and drama associated to each of the many characters that became part of the novel that I felt ADHD reading it. Occasionally in a single chapter it would bounce from one storyline to the next and I thought, “wait, who and what?”.

[Angell · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book was overall good. I really liked the setting. I want to spend a summer at a seaside cottage in Maine now. I can definitely tell that they author is an older white man who came out later in life. I just wish we had more of that. It wasn’t explored nearly as much as I thought it was going to.

I think there were WAY too many POVs and they kept changing on the same page? I really didn’t like the structure of the story. I really wish we had more about the main couple and the consequences of their actions of coming out late in life and how it affected everyone, but from their POVs only.

I really didn’t like Abbie until the end. She was really mean. I think Bex was the best out of all of them. Connor and what happened with him was… idk. Idk how I feel about the way that it was handled in the book. I think it didn’t have enough depth or nuance for the gravity of it. I feel like we only just glossed over Brian and he was an afterthought. Annie though? God damn she pissed me off. I still don’t like her. Everyone else in this book learned how to communicate at the end but her. I’m still a little confused with what happened with Betty.

Overall, this is a good book. I did enjoy reading it. Even though his Gen Z slang was cringe.

[Gabe Tomlinson · Rating 5 out of 5]

“Be present”. Life comes at us from all directions at times and, let’s be honest, whose family vacation hasn’t gone a little off-track?

I found this book through Steven Rowley, my favorite author, and he may need to keep an eye out. William Dameron really paints an excellent picture of life, just as we know it. A feel-good book can make you feel every single emotion and this certainly does it. While the changing viewpoints can get the slightest bit confusing, you get a clear picture of what’s happening at every step. The characters and situations are real and you finding yourself in even the most complicated ones; well done!

[Marie · Rating 2 out of 5]

Picked this as a Kindle First Read option as I thought the story sounded good. Seemed like a good opportunity for some LGBTQ+ representative in an everyday setting. Sadly I only got around 50% of the way through and dnf (and I hate not finishing a book).
There was so much potential with these characters but all we got was a tiny touch of how great they could be. The characterisation and storytelling just fell flat. It also made it a little confusing. As the characters weren't fleshed out they were indistinguishable and I was left pondering who was who (again and again) which damaged the flow of reading. Such a shame. I think the story and characters had real potential (hence 2 stars not 1).

[Nisha · Rating 2 out of 5]

Another miss from an Amazon First Reads book. I had a hard time getting into it and then when I would we would switch to another POV and leave the one that was finally being developed in the middle. I hated the way what happened to Connor was handled. That was so weird and revolting. I thought I might have misread and missed it, but another review said it was left unfinished as well. Also, the house rules at the start of every chapter were asinine.

I gave it two stars because I chuckled a few times. There were some interesting parts (though they were left underdeveloped) and the setting is nice. This was just so bad. I resorted to skim-reading fo rso much of it.

[Sarah L · Rating 1 out of 5]

This is the way life should not be... the only positive note of the all over the place book was the effect of parents abandoning their children. This book was very short disaster after another with just a brush of the issue before moving onto the next. This was a prime first pick and had some good remarks... personally, for me it was a big not.

[Aimee Carver · Rating 4 out of 5]

Found this on Amazon free reads for the month of July. I'm a stickler for a cover. This was a calm read with nothing crazy happening. It had a story line, but then it didn't. It just bounced around alot. It still was a good read.

[Allison]

I’m giving up.

I got to 50% and decided that if nothing has happened by now, I’m not going to spend anymore time on it.

The two main characters, Thomas and Matt, are adorable and in love. Watching their relationship was the best part.

The other characters were pretty slim, including the dog, and there was a lot of cliche still stuff. There were short sections of “things happening” - for example, some kind of manic episode by the elderly nude neighbour, a dog who growls at someone when her owner has a bad thought about them, or a windstorm hammering the shutters - but all of this was quite disjointed. As soon as the chapter is done, so is the episode.

Not much bringing it all together. Not much of anything at all. So, I’m stopping. Good try.

[Sarah · Rating 2 out of 5]

I liked the premise of this book and the story line, but the writing was erratic (deep at times and wobbly at others) and there were some threads not tied up at the end - like the Betty woman and the candy hearts at the end?

[Florence Hughes · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was such a good book…about two dads (partners in life) and their children from prior relationships, living with their children and aging parents/grandparents. It truly is the way life should be! So many great lines/thoughts in it. It really just made me laugh, cry and sometimes scratch my head and say WTF. I felt all the feels with this book, but sometimes I thought it jumped back and forth too much. Hence, the 4 stars. Still loved this book though. I will be on the look out for more great stories from the author.

[Betty Turner · Rating 5 out of 5]

Really great read

Read this book way into the night. So many twists and turns. The surprises just keep on coming. I would say I read this book in one sitting, but I had to stop and eat. Really hated to get to the end

[Tracy · Rating 2 out of 5]

I really wanted to like this story but, man, this is a tough book to like (much less love). There were so many characters, some of which added absolutely nothing to the story about this family. Every character had some major "issue": gay, anorexic, drug or alcohol addicted, dying, jealous, cheating, and on and on. There were characters that appeared just a couple times and then, poof, they were gone with no explanation as to what happened to them. There were scenes described that I had no idea if they were current or flashbacks because every page switched POV or timeframe. I just could not figure this story out. I did finish the book but was left with feeling "what happened???".

[Jennifer Sanders · Rating 5 out of 5]

A functionally dysfunctional family's story

This book is well worth the read and I am glad I chose it. It is about laughter and tears, happiness and heartbreak, love and dislike all rolled up into a very touching story. I would definitely recommend it to friends. I hope you enjoy it is much as I did!

[Vonnielee · Rating 2 out of 5]

I wanted to like this more, but it became tedious, repetitive, and pointless. So many characters are introduced and then dropped. Problems "solved", but were they? I don't know. I enjoyed the writing style, but not the story. A disappointing start to 2024.

[Heidi (MinxyD14)]

*July 2023 Amazon Prime First Read

[wrkatreading · Rating 3 out of 5]

A Prime First Reads.

[Toni]

dnf but made it more than half way so counting it lol

[Jenna Aubuchon · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5

[Maureen Murray · Rating 3 out of 5]

Just Ok

This book I tried to like, I tried to understand…but so much going on and sometimes unclear if current or flashback…

[Sara Narrow-LaPoint · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5

[Melissa · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book sounded like it could be a good family drama but there was just too much going on. I would have preferred a deep dive into one or two characters over the shallow swath of so many struggling people and relationships. More than once I was not clear what had just happened.

[Jutta · Rating 3 out of 5]

I got this as a free book from Amazon. What made me get it was it taking place in Maine, in a fictitious town between 2 towns I visit every year. It was an enjoyable and at times a relatable reread, but too many characters and at times seemed to jump all over the place.

Enjoyed reading the Cottage rules, one at each start of a new chapter.
And found a typo: Conor, pull you pants down.

[Cynthia Gaydos · Rating 5 out of 5]

Very good!!

I was hooked immediately. I think the story developed well, leaving me wanting more. I would recommend this book to anyone looking for something a little different and a bit on the wild side! This book is not for the prudent reader.

[Ali Thomson · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.75 took me a long time to get into the book but then really enjoyed it and the redemptive ending

[Linda Scheffel · Rating 5 out of 5]

What a Read!

I always love a story I can get totally lost in, and this is exactly that. It is an excellent depiction of family dynamics with all of the love, laughter, and tears mixed in. It gives hope that no matter how strange or dysfunctional a family is, love, understanding, and acceptance can win the day

[Diane · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 ⭐

[don ross · Rating 4 out of 5]

Gay in a new way !

Lots of different folks and different feels. Can be a bit confusing. Both family and friend/neighbor relationships take a while to get straight (pun).

[Sarah Kaletka · Rating 3 out of 5]

Overall a fun and easy read, but also a bit confusing. Characters had really similar names (Abbie and Annie, Donny and Bobby) that I really found it confusing many times. I had a hard time keeping track of the characters and their problems, as the problems the characters faced never really seemed to be discussed more than once or twice, and without much resolution.

There really didn’t seem to be much of a problem or solution, and just felt more like tiny different things happening over a period of time. I think too many characters to keep track of, and just keeping it on the dads and their kids would have been easier to understand. Beautiful setting and scenery and I want to move to coastal Maine, like right now.

[Julia Cassella · Rating 5 out of 5]

I’m writing this review at 4 AM, crying my eyes out, just completely awestruck. Words fail to describe how much I adored this story. I honestly don’t think I’ve ever been so completely blown away by a contemporary novel before. Thank you, dear author, for this gift of a book. It came my way when I needed it the most and I will continue to treasure it.