Whew I feel like I am flying through books these days and I want to review all of them!The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo has been on my TBR for the longest time. Keep reading to see my thoughts on this bestseller by Taylor Jenkins Reid!

Summary

Beautiful and iconic Hollywood actress Evelyn Hugo has been married seven times. She has pioneered a career most men and woman would be jealous of, and yet for all the time spent being criticized in the public eye, very few people know the real Evelyn Hugo. Monique Grant is a struggling magazine writer trying to work her way up at Vivant while navigating her own broken marriage.

When Evelyn decides to auction off some of her most famous gowns for breast cancer research, she personally requests Monique for what Monique assumes will be a cover story. Instead, Evelyn brings Monique to her Upper East Side palace and informs her she, and only she, will write her biography. All seven husbands. All of the truth and lies finally coming out. If Monique does not to listen, the story dies with Evelyn. Monique, desperate to prove herself as a writer, agrees. Over the course of several days, Evelyn unpacks her entire life story, highlighted by a dangerous love that could have ended her career. As the two grow closer, Evelyn’s final lie to uncover looms over them. The truth connects the two in a way that has and will forever change them both.

Why I Picked This Book:

The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo came on my radar fairly recently even though it was published in 2017. Any book that mentions a forbidden love is right up my alley. Throw in some glitz and glamour of old Hollywood and I am loving it. After reading the description, I knew I had to read the book. When I say I did NOT see that ending coming… I truly did not see that coming.

Honest Review: (Spoilers Ahead!)

What an incredible, heartbreaking, beautiful book. The romance was as romance-y as it gets and I absolutely loved it. The glitz and glamour of Hollywood made me feel as though I was living through it all. I was surprised by how many relevant themes were spread across the pages- abuse, racism, body image, sexuality, misogyny. I mean WOW. And of course, probably the most important theme, that life is too short not to spend it with the person you love.

I love how Taylor Jenkins Reid truly took the time to develop each character in the book. Not that I’ve done many of these book reviews before, but the characters had so much depth I want to take a moment to acknowledge some of my favorites. Unlike so many other books, these characters felt truly human. Attainable. Sometimes a little selfish (or a lot, in Evelyn’s case). 150% human. I loved that. Also- I was surprised to learn that this book is inspired by Elizabeth Taylor and Ava Gardner! Thank you, Google!

Evelyn

As I learned about each husband and Celia St. James, I could not help but fall in love with and admire Evelyn’s strength and ruthlessness. We learn a lot about Evelyn, and I would be surprised if readers did not feel differently towards her by the end of the book. She worked hard, played the game, and damn if she didn’t play it well. Evelyn is unapologetic and ambitious and everything that women can and should be.

Coming from poverty and Cuban descent, Evelyn acted her way out. I truly felt for her when she recalled the misogyny she faced in the industry. When men wanted to see her fail, she flew to the top. The way she described her experience with abuse made me want to reach into the pages and give her a hug. When she and Celia split, I cried. And I cried again. And again. But somehow, she bounced back. Evelyn’s total honesty, past and present, is inspiring to females everywhere. I will forever think: What Would Evelyn Hugo Do?

Monique

At first, I thought Monique was a little annoying. I didn’t love her woe-is-me attitude. However, once she started standing up to Evelyn and demanded the cover story, I was totally rooting for her to get the promotion and make millions off the biography. I would also be lying if I said I didn’t do a little fist pump when Monique told her husband that she wanted the divorce. Girlfriend deserves to find her true love, like Evelyn found with Celia.

Harry

I won’t get into my opinions of each husband or Evelyn’s reasons for divorcing them. But, I do want to take a moment to talk about Harry. What a wonderful best friend, husband, and father. Harry was with Evelyn through it all. Their connection, though not physical, was intimate in other ways. They understood one another on a level that few others could claim to know. And I think this made their relationship the most special of all. I love that they made the decision to have a child together, despite their attraction to other people, and that they worked hard to raise Connor together. When Harry died in that car crash, my heart broke. But when Evelyn told Connor the truth about Celia and informed her they would be moving, Connor’s hug started to put the pieces of my heart back together again.

Evelyn and Celia

I am so glad to see LGBTQ+ representation in this book. Evelyn’s recollections of the moment she realized she was in love with a woman, let alone her best friend Celia, made my heart simultaneously soar and break, knowing what time period Evelyn lived in. All of the descriptions of their love made me actually cry, mainly because the whole time I was thinking about how many people still struggle to find acceptance of that type of pure love. I admire how Taylor Jenkins Reid represented Evelyn as a bisexual woman and gave Evelyn such sheer confidence, especially when it mattered most in those final years with Celia.

Switching between narrators, time periods, and the BEST final twist

I sometimes find it difficult to flip between narrators and go between time periods, but this book was very easy to follow. It was clear that Evelyn’s stories from the past were leading to a big reveal in the present. Like I said earlier, I was so NOT expecting (SPOILER!) the man that Harry was in love with, the man he killed in the car accident that ultimately killed himself, the man that Evelyn and Nick moved into the driver’s seat to cover up for Harry’s drunk driving and manslaughter, to be Monique’s father. The most brilliant and unexpected twist, in my opinion! I was almost expecting Monique to be an unclaimed love child or some distant relative, but I was NEVER expecting their paths to cross in that way. Brava, Taylor Jenkins Reid!