Your Oasis on Flame Lake by Lorna Landvik (1997)

I picked this book up becuase I really enjoyed her Angry Housewives Eating Bon Bons. I had a harder time getting into this book, but found it depicted family connections and disconnections pretty well. The story is told by various members of two families - Devera and Dick with daughter Darcy and BiDi and Sergio. Devera and BiDi are best friends from high school, and all the adults seem to be going through a mid-life crises. BiDi seems pretty shallow with ther focus on looks and totally not understanding her daughter Franny, who plays on the hockey team. Sergio really loves BiDi and is very supportive of Franny, though she is not his daughter. Devera is looking for something and ends up having an affair. Dick works on his dream of having a neighborhood nightclub in his basement. He enjoys singing and his daughter Darcy loves to MC and tell jokes. She also becomes a good friend to Franny. Her older sister goes through usual teenage angst, though Franny has the hardest time. I was amazed at the goodness of these two men, and this turned into a feel-good novel for me, even BiDi redeamed herself at the end.