The author wrote a great account of the personal journey they embarked on. The honest and detailed writing made it easy for the reader to feel invested in their journey.

I received a copy of this book in exchange for my honest review. Thank you NetGalley!

beautifully written book.
This memoir is about William; a gay man that comes out to his wife, kids, family and also to himself.
The book follows his journey into discovering his sexuality and his new life.

Such an open and honest book. Beautifully written and at points I forgot that it wasn’t fiction. An emotional read for sure. Highly recommended indeed.

This was a beautiful memoir written with such brutal honesty and compassion that it just begged to be read. This story is all out our main character William and his struggle to come out as a gay man, to his wife and children, the world, but also to himself. What I liked was how in the beginning William didn't even know he was gay. He had his marriage, and his children and he didn't even know that something was missing in his life. I found this book flowed really well and it really spoke to me as a reader. This was beautifully written. I can just imagine how hard it had to be to confess a secret like that after you've been living a lie for so long. I did find it admirable that he was able to become true to himself, however I do feel bad for his family having to put up with all of that and especially for his wife. Very compelling read and nothing like I've ever read before. The one thing I found a little hard to believe is how he just woke up one day almost said I'm gay and then started going on gay dating sites etc. I think that it would have taken a little bit more time especially since he was coming out of a long straight marriage. While I don't think that this book is for everyone I am glad that I got the chance to check it out.

The Lie: A Memoir of Two Marriages, Catfishing and Coming Out is William Dameron’s touching story of “coming out” after more than 20 years as a straight, married man. The memoir is written in non-linear fashion as it opens with Dameron recounting how he discovers he has been catfished numerous times as the face of “a typical 40-year old white male.” He uses the metaphor of catfishing to represent his own deception as a purported straight man. He is raised in a North Carolina town by a religious mother who was also deceived by a philandering husband. According to Dameron, the twin pillars of virulent homophobia perpetuated in his upbringing and the conservative religious beliefs held by his mother worked to keep him closeted.

The second half of the book details his coming out and the repercussions of one life being destroyed and a new, authentic one being created. The coming out section was skillfully told as you could feel the pain, shame, and guilt that kept Dameron living the lie. The relationships with his landladies, lesbian couple Debra and Linda and his eventual husband Paul are shorn through with emotions. Conversely, it was harder to grasp much depth in his recounting of his relationships with his former wife, Katherine, and his daughters. Although he fleshed out his relationship with his mother more fully, especially his reconciliation, the story might have benefitted from more specificity as it related to his North Carolina community and his mother’s religious trappings.

Still, the book was an engrossing read that adds to the rich body of queer memoirs. This one shows the reckoning of a gay dad living a lie and his journey of self-acceptance. That theme of self-acceptance may resonate with a wide readership.

This was a beautifully written book. I felt very close to all the characters and could feel their emotions. Bill Dameron is a middle-aged man, who finally comes “out of the closet”. He has a wife and 2 beautiful children which he adores. Try as he might, he cannot suppress his true feelings. This book takes us on Bill’s journey to finally face his true self and then the revelation of the truth to his family and friends.

Bill knew at a young age that he was gay, but society was not accepting of alternate lifestyles. He marries, has children and tries to suppress his true character. I felt much emotion as I traveled with Bill and felt the pressure and the pain he felt, as well as, the sadness that his wife experienced. The children were equally affected when their father revealed what he had been hiding for all these years. Many emotions were portrayed before Bill finally found his peace. The prose in this book is stunning
In conclusion, no matter what your stance is on or alternate lifestyles, this book is just beautiful. I cried and felt the pain of everyone involved.

Not my usual kind of book to read, and when i started it wasn't sure if i would finish it. But what a great truthful book, ended up reading it in one sitting. Bravo for coming out and telling your story about it.


Thanks to net galley and the publisher for an early release of this book.

This is an amazing memoir that is touches on so many things. I found it hard to put it aside. This is a great first memoir.

I would like to thank netgalley and the publisher for providing me with a copy free of charge. This is my honest and unviased opinion of it.

Thank you to NetGalley for my copy of this book.

What a fabulously delicious book. This book has a fantastic story line, excellent characters and is just unputdownable. I would highly recommend this book to anyone and I enjoyed it immensely.