Do you believe that a relationship like the one between Kate, David and Jane could survive in the real world? Do relationships like that have the ability to work in the long run?

The love triangle that Kate, David, and Jane put themselves into is a different take on love and relationships. Do you believe that a relationship like the one here could survive in the real world? Do relationships like that have the ability to work in the long run?

I do believe this 'threesome' relationship could exist in our current world. There are many different types of families and support systems. I think the key is they wanted what was best for each of them.

The world changes and so must we. As terriej said, it worked for them. And everyone needs a family and the support that community brings. They could survive in today's world if they were committed to it.

What a great question! This was an extraordinary situation with three extraordinary people. Without the profound impact of having come back from the dead, would Kate have considered agreeing to David's affair? Without the experience of working with families of Alzhimers victims would Jane have considered getting involved with a "married man?" Certainly, only in the situation that David has lived through would he have ever been in a three way relationship.
I doubt that this situation would endure. The dynamics between the three are so delicate that over time the dissatisfaction of one person would disrupt the threesome.

I discussed this with my husband because I thought this threesome was unrealistic. Being in a profession where he is entrusted with clients intimate lives he told me that not only do these relationships exist, but they can be very successful. Without mentioning names he told me of a relationship where the wife and mistress became good friends and saw each other often.

I think eventually there could be problems. One or both woman could become jealous. David with two women that he is trying to please, helping them with chores etc could eventually get burned out. It is interesting what irisf wrote so I guess these relationships can succeed in today’s world.

I think Lois Irene hit the nail on the head. The people and the situation are extraordinary and not likely to be duplicated in the real world.
If I were to find fault with the novel, it would be that the characters are too good to be true and Kate and Jane are almost indistinguishable from each other. No wonder David could feel the same attraction to each of them.

I don't think a relationship that Kate, David and Jane had could exist in a real world. If they were Mormons, that would be a difference.

In the real world, this type of relationship would be more difficult than a traditional marriage because there is almost guaranteed jealousy. Keeping all 3 people in the relationship happy would be much more difficult than maintaining happiness between 2 people. It's possible but unlikely.

No. The characters, as written, were not believable. In theory you want this to work out but there are too many extraneous factors that would cause this to fail— jealousy, society, family.betc.

I don't think many relationships like this would survive, but I do think it's possible.

Sure - I think that more people than we realize are in open relationships. However, I also doubt the relationship between Kate, David and Jane can be sustained for too terribly long. Someone will need more, or less as the case may be. It seemed to me that Kate was evolving in such a way that she might be searching for something else.

I thought it was very contradictory to present both women as strong yet so enameled by this one man that they would have an exclusive relationship with him, while he jumped from bed to bed and maintained intimacy with both. Had Kate been more interested in a platonic partner and Jane been a mistress, it might be more believable, even in an open relationship. And David's development into a lover for both women made the character much less sympathetic, and more like a fictional character written in a mass market men's magazine.

In the real world, a relationship like this might exist...plural marriage, open relationships, etc.
However, history and public records reveal plural relationships are not always as sweet and succinct as this combined commitment of the (fictional) Kate to David to Jane.
Based on the premise of this story, I do NOT think this kind of a relationship could survive between the three characters, especially considering the "strength" of the two women. Lost my sympathy with the hubby, David when he tried to have both women on a level playing field.

Yes. In fact I know of at least two where there was open communication One is still ongoing and the other did have a happy ending. I do wonder if this relationship might last. The acceptance of the two sons I found more unbelievable.