The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo by Taylor Jenkins Reid

This glamorous, complex, tragic and scandalous queer Hollywood drama is definitely worth the hype! I didn’t particularly like the main character, but I nevertheless found myself on the edge of my seat wondering what was going to happen next.

This book is about the grand old Hollywood star Evelyn, who has never done any press or personal interviews, but who suddenly picks the unknown reporter Monique to write her completely honest memoirs. As Evelyn tells Monique her story, this book explores the life as a bisexual woman in a period of time when queerness was not accepted, and everything Evelyn has had to do throughout her life to hide her true self.

The story is divided into chapters for each husband, which was a very clever narrative as it so clearly showed how each one of her marriages were to help Evelyn further with her career, but how different they all were. In addition, it also reveals how ruthless, ambitious and flawed Evelyn was as a character, but still managing to make her decisions understandable. Evelyn is definitely one of the most emotionally rich characters I’ve ever come across in any book. And even though I can’t say I liked her very much, I nevertheless rooted for her and was completely intrigued by her. I also loved the romance between Evelyn and Celia so much! Due to the time the story took place (Hollywood in the 1950s and 60s), they both risked so much for that love and it was such a battle for Evelyn finding out if she was willing to put her whole career at stake for it or not. It was so amazing to see the way their love stayed true over the decades even when they were out of touch.

“I spent half my time loving her and the other half hiding how much I loved her.”

I also absolutely adored Harry and his and Evelyn’s friendship. I loved the way they became each other’s chosen family, and the way that Harry accepted Evelyn for exactly who she was. I think Harry might be my favorite character of them all in this story. I didn’t particularly root for Monique though, and if it hadn’t been for the major twist in the end, her part would almost have felt unnecessary. Now it did add another layer to it, in a very ‘Evelyn Hugo way’.

All in all, this is a flawed and tumultuous, yet romantic and intriguing queer love story that is worth all the hype!

Rating:
4.5 dramatic stars rounding up to 5

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​Author info:
Taylor Jenkins Reid