The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo by Taylor Jenkins Reid Book Review

The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo by Taylor Jenkins Reid Book Review

The lowdown from Goodreads

Publication Date June 13, 2017

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 in the journalism community is more astounded than Monique herself. Why her? Why now?

Monique is not exactly on top of the world. Her husband, David, has left her, and her career has stagnated. Regardless of why Evelyn has chosen her to write her biography, Monique is determined to use this opportunity to jumpstart her career.

Summoned to Evelyn’s Upper East Side apartment, Monique listens as Evelyn unfurls her story: from making her way to Los Angeles in the 1950s to her decision to leave show business in the late 80s, and, of course, the seven husbands along the way. As Evelyn’s life unfolds through the decades—revealing a ruthless ambition, an unexpected friendship, and a great forbidden love—Monique begins to feel a very a real connection to the actress. But as Evelyn’s story catches up with the present, it becomes clear that her life intersects with Monique’s own in tragic and irreversible ways.

Filled with emotional insight and written with Reid’s signature talent, this is a fascinating journey through the splendor of Old Hollywood into the harsh realities of the present day as two women struggle with what it means—and what it takes—to face the truth.

The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo by Taylor Jenkins Reid Book Review

Can I buy the rights???  Seriously, is anyone making a movie out of this book???  I NEED this to be on the big screen.  The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo is one of my favorite reads of the year.  It has everything you could want – drama, romance, loss, humor, feminism, politics, death – and it is wrapped up in the glossy world of an almost fictional Hollywood.

Evelyn Hugo

On its surface, the book is an E! True Hollywood Story of a famous actress, albeit one with more depth and information than any celebrity would actually give.  But deep down this book is about a woman who struggles to come from poverty and make something of herself, no matter the cost to others.  Although Evelyn makes choices in her life that are selfish or cunning, the reader truly feels her struggle and understands why certain sacrifices have to be made.

There is also the story of Monique, the journalist selected to write Evelyn’s story who is a divorcee as well, trying to learn how to traverse life alone.  Why does Evelyn choose her??  How does Evelyn even know who she is?  The lives of these two women seem to be worlds apart, but that doesn’t mean that there isn’t a connection, or that they don’t have things to learn from each other.

The book is so well written, I had to keep reminding myself I couldn’t look Evelyn up to see her clothes!  Taylor Jenkins Reid does a beautiful job creating this woman and the world she lives in.  Everything was so vivid.  Because the book spans the decades of a woman’s life, the reader gets to live through glamorous Old Hollywood all the way through present day.

THE VERDICT

I was Really Into this book.  What I thought was going to be a light, guilty pleasure read was really a story of a woman doing what she had to do to make in her world – and doing it almost unapologetically.  It was really much more than I anticipated and I love when books surprise me like that.  Now let’s get this movie made!

Special thanks to Taylor Jenkins Reid, Atria Books & NetGalley for providing our copy in exchange for an honest & fair review.

Let’s connect over books! Check out all of our review on Goodreads.

Check out our review of Taylor’s After I Do.

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About the Author: Taylor Jenkins Reid

TAYLOR JENKINS REID lives in Los Angeles and is the acclaimed author of One True Loves, Maybe in Another Life, After I Do, and Forever, Interrupted. Her most recent novel, The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo, comes out June 13th. Her novels have been named best books of summer by People, Cosmopolitan, Glamour, InStyle, PopSugar, BuzzFeed, Goodreads, and others.