A Better Man

Written by Leah McLaren

Narrated by Eva Kaminsky

What if the only way you could get out of your marriage was to become the perfect husband? Nick and Maya Wakefield's relationship has been in crisis since Maya left her high-powered legal career to stay home with their now 3-year-old twins. Today she feels invisible, anxious, and under-appreciated, and Nick has checked out of family life. Sex is a distant memory and the love is gone.
A workaholic and a consummate flirt, Nick has decided he wants out. But he balks when their old friend, a divorce attorney, shows him that as sole breadwinner, he stands to lose the most. Together, he and his friend hatch a plan: Nick will act like an ideal husband and father in order to ease the pain of leaving and make out better in court. So he encourages Maya to go back to work, spends time with the kids, and even takes her on a vacation without them. But with his cynical ruse comes a surprising change of heart. Nick is astonished to find his actual emotions match his act and now his marriage is truly on the mend. That is, until Maya finds out, and Nick's world falls to pieces. Now his only hope of saving his family is to prove to his wife that he really is the man he was pretending to be. A BETTER MAN is a sharply observant novel of the pitfalls of marriage and success, and how one couple must lose it all before they can hope to find their way back.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Hachette Audio
• Release date: Jul 7, 2015
• ISBN: 9781478904168

Leah McLaren

Leah McLaren is an award-winning journalist, screenwriter, and novelist. Her two novels, The Continuity Girl and A Better Man, have been published in half a dozen countries and translated into several languages. She has also written for film and television. She began her career as a columnist for the Globe and Mail, where she spent a decade on staff and was posted to the London bureau. For many years she was Europe correspondent for Maclean’s magazine, for whom she now serves as a contributing editor. She is a frequent contributor to many respected publications, including the Guardian, the Observer Magazine, the Spectator, and Toronto Life. In 2013, she won a gold National Magazine Award in the long-features category. She was born in rural Ontario, and grew up in Cobourg and Toronto, Ontario. Today she lives in London, England with her husband and two sons.

Reviews for A Better Man

[blodeuedd_1 · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

Men can be such fools. And this is the story of one.

Nick is married and bored. He wants to flirt and have affairs. But who knew divorces were that expensive! Especially since his wife are home with the twins. So for selfish reasons he plans to be a better man, so he does not have to give her so much.

Maya who thinks he works too much (he does). Who thinks he should play with the kids more (that he should). Who thinks they should go to therapy, or something to make things like before. I will give that she spends too much thinking about what the kids should be better at, and worrying about the food they eat. Or cleaning too much. But she at least wants things to work. Oh, and she should let things go. Let it go! Relax.

I saw them at their worst, and their best, even if it was all a big lie. But then the things you thought you did not want, might just be what you have been looking for. I liked that, they became a better family.

It was a nice journey, and I was not even sure how I wanted it to end ;)