I couldn't decide between two or three stars for this book. I decided on three because the book did hold my attention enough that I read it quickly, in spite of how frustrated I was.

Birdie Kimble has to be one of the most annoying characters I have encountered in all my reading. I'm not sure if Haigh meant for her to come across this way or if she wanted the readers to feel sorry for Birdie because her husband has abandoned her and she just can't cope. I had trouble feeling sorry for the alcoholic mother that neglects her children all because her husband has jumped ship. It happens. You still have to be a mother. Put on your big girl panties and get on with your life.

I liked Joan quite a bit more, but was still amazed by how easily she fell in with Ken. Seems she shouldn't have been taken so easily by him after her past relationships and all that she had been through in her life. It's not as if he was some otherworldly creature capable of hypnotizing these women and making them fall in love with them. He was only a man.

Dinah, I felt sorry for as a wife and a mother. Realizing what her husband was made me feel sorry for her, but ultimately she found her happiness.

All of Ken's children, especially Charlie, I did like and found them all to be well-written characters. The book could've been better, especially if Haigh had given us a reason WHY Ken Kimble did the things he did. Not a great book, not a bad book, but a book that's okay to read if you want to kill some time. ( )

A dramatic story of the three women who married an opportunistic social chameleon.
Reminiscent of the show 'Imposters', the well thought out plot weaves through each woman's life as they become involved with the Mr. Kimble that is just perfect for them, until he isn't.
Written in alternating narratives, this slow paced story is divided amongst the three women set decades apart, yet seemingly intermingled.
Engrossing and thought provoking, this intriguing novel reflects the societal views of marriage and divorce in each woman's decade, and their struggle to overcome the adversity left in Mr. Kimble's wake. ( )

I had never heard of Jennifer Haigh before but a friend recommended that I read "News from Heaven" The Bakerton Stories." After devouring that book in less than a day I promptly bought Mrs. Kimble.

"Mrs. Kimble" focuses on three women, Birdie, Joan, and Dinah who all marry the same man, Mr. Ken Kimble during different points of the novel that goes from the 1960s up until the present day.

I want to first of all applaud Jennifer Haigh for writing such an engaging novel that takes place in different periods and places and still manages to evoke authenticity throughout the novel with describing the uber traditional marriage and family in the 1960s, to the free love of the 1970s, and women gaining ground in the workplace in the 1980s.

One thing that I am always worried about is that when a novel has different protagonists throughout the novel is that either all of the characters sound the same, or it is very confusing to tell who is speaking at different parts of the novel. However, none of those things occurred in this novel. Ms. Haigh manages to write these three different women, with different backgrounds, stories, with such distinct voices I was loathe to end the novel since I wanted to know how they all ended up.

The one thing that I really wished that Haigh had done (and did not deduct any stars from my rating) was to allow the readers into Ken's head a little bit. He remained a cipher through the whole novel and I know that the novel was supposed to focus on his wives but I really do wish we had been given a glimpse into his machinations a bit more.

I highly recommend this novel! ( )

This is a well written and complex novel that spans 25 years and three marriages, all to the same man, Ken Kimble. Inexplicably, considering his eating habits, Ken Kimble appears to be attractive to women and by targetting women at vulnerable times in their lives he manages to marry three women. The first Mrs Kimble is Birdie, he leaves her in poverty and with two children. The second Mrs Kimble is Joan, a wealthy woman who he lies to and charms his way in to her life. The third Mrs Kimble is Dinah, who lacks confidence and doesn't realise how beautiful she is. Ken Kimble seems to lack any feelings of love for anyone but himself and is only interested in surrounding himself with beautiful things / people. The novel is told from a distance but from the perspective of each Mrs Kimble. An interesting and enjoyable read about a very unpleasant man. ( )

These were the stories of the three successive Mrs Kimbles, married to the one inscrutable Mr Kimble.
Somehow Ken Kimble was able to charm and seduce and marry these women, but the marriages quickly revealed there was nothing beneath his thin veneer. Really nothing. The wives learned they never knew their husband, and we the readers will never know him either. We are just as mystified as they are as to who this man is, where he came from, and why he was like he was. It was a nice maneuver that enhanced our appreciation of the imbalance.
This is the first book I've read by Jennifer Haigh. I like her writing style. It flows smoothly and easily, without clumsy intrusions. This was her first novel yet it was amazingly polished and well crafted, a deserving winner of the PEN/Hemingway award for debut fiction. I will look for another of hers. ( )