“The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo” by Taylor Jenkins Reid

Rating:

“The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo” was not a book I was going to read. I saw it perusing book stores with one of my best friends. We took a look at it and I said “Was she married to seven husbands in total? Or all at once?” After reading the description of the book I put it down and said “I think it would be more interesting if she was married to the seven husbands all at once.” We laughed and moved on from the book.

Recently, I have been seeing it everywhere. I still laughed at the joke I made in the bookstore until I watched a YouTube video. I have been watching “BookTube” more and more. One of my favorite BookTubers does a lot of YA, which I’m not really interested in, but she reviewed “The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo” because she also reads adult books as well. She raved about this book and said it was probably her favorite adult book ever written. So I borrowed the book from the library.

Let me tell you that I made a mistake. I should have never put that book down and laughed at it in the bookstore. It was a book I needed that I didn’t know I needed until I started to read it. I would have given it 5 stars as a personal choice, but my professionalism kicked in and I know there were flaws with this book (even though I don’t want to admit it).

First the description:

“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.”

The writing was lacking, the book wasn’t long enough, and Monique was very disappointing. I wish they would have expanded her story so you got to know her better. This goes hand in hand with the book not being long enough. Sure, the focus is on Evelyn Hugo and her life, but I wish Taylor Jenkins Reid would have paralleled Monique’s story with Evelyn’s, especially since Evelyn’s character and story had an effect on Monique that led her to make choices she normally wouldn’t have. Monique has such potential and I was interested in her until I figured out I wasn’t going to get anything.

The story was captivating. When I wasn’t reading, I wanted to be reading. I kept thinking of the book. When I was reading, I didn’t want to stop. I don’t bring physical books or my chromebook to work (I listen to audiobooks), but I brought this with me to read on lunch.

It was a story about love and all the different types of love. It was told as a celebrity tell all. The only issue I had with that is that Evelyn forgot names of people she interacted with in the industry. From all of the celebrity tell alls/auto-biographies I have read, no celebrity ever forgets whom they were with, when, and where, if it is an important factor in their life or career.

The characters that were in Evelyn’s parts were very well rounded. You felt like you knew them or had seen their work. You felt like you were there or at least read all the gossip on them. They weren’t fictional characters when I was reading. They were actual stars and big names. They felt that real.

There were three really big twists in the book. The first one and last one I figured out almost instantly, which was disappointing. The middle twist, I did not see coming. And it was a doozy. I gasped as it was revealed. Looking back, the clues were there, but I just didn’t piece them together.

To be honest, I cried. I cried a lot. The last third of the book were me shedding tears. The heartbreaks that Evelyn Hugo went through and how she coped just broke my heart.

I highly recommend this book. I gave it a four because on a professional level I would have given it a 3, but a personal level I would have given it a 5. The pros and cons of the writing and story balance each other out. I really need to find someone else who has read it and gush over it, because my emotions are welling up inside me and I don’t want to spoil anything for anyone who hasn’t read it and wants to.

If you pick it up and read it, please reach out to me!

-K.