Reviews with content warning for Physical abuse - The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo

Wow. Read this one in two days. I couldn’t put it down. Not at all what I expected it to be. Love the complexity of both loving/empathizing with Evelyn and also completely not understanding/disliking her. Complex characters going through complex things. But also put in a matter of fact way (or maybe it’s because it’s someone telling about their past?) so that you don’t sit there disagreeing with the path the author chose. It doesn’t feel like ‘a path the author chose’, rather these feel like real people.

I’m seeing that there’s to be a Netflix adaptation of the book. Books to movies don’t always turn out well, but I think this could be done very well if given a good budget. Nervously excited to see what comes of it.

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amiamor's review against another edition

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challenging dark emotional inspiring mysterious reflective sad medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

2.0

I enjoyed her various love stories in all their forms. I was not a fan of the ending and I am sensitive to the topic of cheating so this wasn't my thing.

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freckles_13's review against another edition

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dark emotional mysterious medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

I have so many emotions about this book.

This book wasn’t what I expected it be. I have avoided it for a long time due to everyone loving it, and was scared that because it’s not my usual read, and the hype behind it, I would be underwhelmed by it.

But I wasn’t.

This book is about a morally grey woman who will do anything - and everything - to get what she wants. A powerful, flawed woman who goes through so much in her life, and watching it come together and to fall is just an amazing reading experience.
This book has some lovely quotes in it, such as “be wary of men with something to prove”. I would want to say more but I don’t want to spoil it.

I think the only thing that made me rate this less than a 5 star was the actual main character, Monique. Yes, she was good but I felt like her whole story was just boring compared to Evelyn’s own - and maybe that was the point.

Evelyn Hugo, you are correct, you will not be remembered by your multiple husbands, but for your own story.

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apriltee's review against another edition

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emotional sad slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.25

I’d recommend the audiobook. The person playing Monique was very expressive, and Evelyn’s voice was very realistic and engaging. Some little annoyances like mentioning people’s ethnicity when not super relevant makes some parts feel a bit performative. There are parts where that vibe comes through and it felt a bit cringey, but I think overall the story was engaging and emotional. It was a pretty emotional rollercoaster and I need to sue the author for all the Kleenex I went through. I truly cannot wait to see some kind of Netflix adaptation of this

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knkoch's review against another edition

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reflective sad medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

2.25

It's so hard to write a story that covers a long period of time, and to do it well. Anne Patchett did it in The Dutch House, as I remember, but even so, I tend to prefer books that cover a shorter, denser period of time. Stories like Evelyn Hugo that attempt to cover 60-80 years at some depth, are really tough to pull off, and I don't think TJR accomplished that here.

I found some aspects of the story worthy (notably, the beginning of the heart of it), but the arc overall didn't capture me. Too many things turned me off and away from its slim merits. The questions, "What was it all for?" and, "Was it worth it?" resonated for me, in term's of Evelyn's career. I know that I come to this with my own deep skepticism of the dubious value of fame and celebrity, and I found Evelyn's classic Hollywood struggle against misogyny (among many other things) rather grim. I didn't take much pleasure in her story, the power grabs she made, or the gossip magazine asides. I think that because the life Evelyn chooses is so far from anything I would choose for myself, I don't feel any delight in vacationing in her point of view. There's an obsession with physical beauty present that I just can't get myself to care about.

The framing device (Monique, the writer listening to the story in modern times), was way too thin to stand up against Evelyn's narrative. So many characters were scantily developed because again, the story covers a huge span of time. I also disliked the frequent, obvious telegraphing of upcoming plot points TJR did (i.e. "That was the last time I ever saw him", or "My feelings about her were about to change dramatically", etc). That's a pet peeve of mine in writing! Let the plot develop naturally, and if you have to rely on teasing your readers, well, your story isn't as juicy as you'd hoped.

And yet? If this whole thing had been more in-depth and centered on the heart of the story? If it explored the happy moments, and given them more weight? That may have held me more. Several of TJR's novels (I'm thinking of Carrie Soto is Back, Daisy Jones and the Six, and this one) seem to center on very famous people. I'm curious if I would like her books that deal with regular people better.

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emmysforeverbooked's review against another edition

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emotional inspiring reflective medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

After sitting overnight with my thoughts on this book, I can say that Taylor Jenkins Reid writes a memoir better than any non-fiction author I've ever seen. This book was so captivating and written so beautifully and interestingly. I genuinely don't know how I ever managed to put this book down because every time I flipped the page, I didn't want to stop reading. Evelyn Hugo, you are now my emotional support fake celebrity ❤️

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picaresquedreamer's review against another edition

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dark emotional mysterious reflective sad tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.75

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mobymaize's review against another edition

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adventurous challenging emotional inspiring reflective sad slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

Evelyn Hugo is a quintessential fictional biography that has consumed my waking moments. If you do anything, it should be to read this novel.

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