The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo by Taylor Jenkins Reid
Genres: Fiction, Historical Fiction
Pages: 389
Goodreads
Aging and reclusive Hollywood movie icon Evelyn Hugo is finally ready to tell the truth about her glamorous and scandalous life. But when she chooses unknown magazine reporter Monique Grant for the job, no one is more astounded than Monique herself. Why her? Why now?
Monique is not exactly on top of the world. Her husband has left her, and her professional life is going nowhere. Regardless of why Evelyn has selected her to write her biography, Monique is determined to use this opportunity to jumpstart her career.
Summoned to Evelyn’s luxurious apartment, Monique listens in fascination as the actress tells her story. From making her way to Los Angeles in the 1950s to her decision to leave show business in the ‘80s, and, of course, the seven husbands along the way, Evelyn unspools a tale of ruthless ambition, unexpected friendship, and a great forbidden love. Monique begins to feel a very real connection to the legendary star, but as Evelyn’s story near its conclusion, it becomes clear that her life intersects with Monique’s own in tragic and irreversible ways.
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Finally, a book over 2 stars in 2023.
This was a significant improvement from Daisy Jones and the Six. While this story still followed the life of a person just like Daisy Jones did, it was much more entertaining.
WHAT I LIKED
- Evelyn is a character to root for. She’s not perfect and has made many questionable choices in her life but she always tried to do right. Sometimes that means to do right by herself, other times it means to do right by others. But even when she’s doing things for herself, you understand her reasoning. It makes sense the decisions she’s making and you hope she succeeds in her goals. She’s authentic but flawed. Frustrating but understandable.
- Compared to Daisy Jones, so much more happens in this book. Yes, it’s still a walkthrough of someone’s life, but Evelyn Hugo’s life is full of higher stakes. There are plenty of ups and downs and times when you truly question what’s going to happen next. I also enjoyed the way this one was told – as an interview between a journalist and the celebrity.
- I genuinely didn’t think I was a sucker for old Hollywood glam, but here I am, wanting to know more about the Hollywood starlets of the time.
- I cried. I can’t tell you why, because that’s a spoiler, but I never cry because of a book. And this one made me cry. For a short time, but still.
WHAT I DIDN’T LIKE
- I don’t like how it made almost every male character, except the gay best friend, so unlikeable. I’m all for women empowerment, but not at the detriment of men. Males aren’t inferior to females, and females aren’t superior to males. We are equals. So, it just doesn’t sit right with me when a book that has so many male characters treat only the gay males as good human beings. I loved View Spoiler », but I just wanted more likeable male characters.
- Celia is the worst. Which I really hate to say because of the significance she has in the story – but she was just insufferable. Her insecurities, and the way she lashed out when things didn’t go her way, were terrible. I wanted to root for her, but I just didn’t. The only time I cared about her was when View Spoiler »
- You don’t get a whole lot about Monique, the one tasked with writing the biography. More time needed to be spent with her to care about the ending of her story – but that time just wasn’t there.
Overall, this book fell pretty much in the middle. There were plenty of things that I enjoyed about this book, but plenty of things I didn’t enjoy. On that note, I want to give TJR one more chance – which book should I absolutely read by her?
2 Comments
Nice review. I like how you listed your pros and cons. I loved this book.
Thank you!