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

May 2024 Reread:

I’m sobbing in my bed at 2am as I write this, and I adore this book so much.

Original review (May 2022):

Rating: 5/5 stars

Lowly staff writer Monique Grant is stunned and confused when she is personally requested by aging Hollywood superstar Evelyn Hugo to write an article for Monique’s magazine—and she’s even more confused when Evelyn reveals that what she really wants is for Monique to tell her life (and love) story to the world.

Before picking this one up, I regularly felt like the last person on earth who hadn’t read it, so there’s not much I can say here that hasn’t already been said elsewhere, and you almost certainly don’t need me to convince you to read this one. That said, I’m adding my voice to the chorus to say I absolutely loved this book and all the glowing reviews and rave tributes are 100% correct. It’s a thing of stunning beauty, hilarious wit, and breathtaking heart, and if you haven’t read it yet, you should.

Recommended to anyone, but especially if you like: historical fiction; LGBTQ+ stories; Hollywood glamour vibes.

CW: Homophobia; misogyny; death (including death of child and death of parent); terminal illness; suicide.

Content Warnings

bashahn5's review

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emotional mysterious fast-paced

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

4.75

Heartbreakingly beautiful. Evelyn Hugo is a developed, complex, and adoring character. The writing is engaging, nuanced, fast paced, and will make it very difficult to put this book down.

Content Warnings

zediant's review against another edition

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emotional funny informative reflective sad tense medium-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

4.5

Content Warnings

jessicabearbooks's review against another edition

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dark funny hopeful inspiring mysterious reflective sad tense medium-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

4.0

"Evelyn always leaves you hoping you’ll get just a little bit more. And she always denies you."

This book broke my heart and mended it at the same time. The character arcs and relationships were gripping and shocking and beautiful. Harry Cameron you have my absolute heart.

There were lots of twists and turns, some expected and some completely out of the blue.
There were a few chapters that felt a little slow so that's what dropped this down to a 4 star - but looking back, all was necessary and made perfect sense at the end.

I’ve learnt so much from this story, I think a little part of me has changed because of this story.

Content Warnings

fierygecko's review against another edition

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challenging dark emotional funny hopeful medium-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

4.0

I think this is the kind of book that deserves to -and should- be read twice. It is written uniquely; its incredible how different enough Monique and Evelyn’s storytelling styles are that you can tell who is the narrator of each chapter without ever being told. Each character is diverse, complex, and so fleshed out. Evelyn is a fantastic protagonist, partly because she has had a wild and morally gray life but also because she’s an unfiltered, brutally honest 79-year-old lady. As the reader you are never told to love or hate her; that is up for you to decide. I think that given the message of the story, you would decide on both. Monique is a lens for Evelyn’s story, almost. She processes Evelyn’s life through her own, and vice versa. She learns from Evelyn, and it’s so satisfying to witness. This book is about love, loss, and learning from your ex-Hollywood elders with a chip on their shoulder. I look forward to reading it a second time in the future.

Content Warnings

louisa_pre's review against another edition

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emotional inspiring mysterious reflective medium-paced

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

5.0

Ich habe das Buch wegen des Hypes angefangen und kann sagen es ist den Hype wert. Es ist definitiv nicht mein Go-to Genre. Obwohl ich auch nicht weiß in welches Genre ich es einordnen würde. Das Buch ist im Prinzip wie eine fiktive biographie geschrieben. Man erfährt alles über das Leben von Evelyn Hugo, die ihr Leben in vollen Zügen gelebt hat. Evelyn Hugo hat alles getan was nötig war, um an die Spitze zu kommen. Wenn sie eines nicht war, dann ist es naiv, sie verstand wie die Welt funktionierte und machte es sich zu nutzen. Sie erlebte Liebe, Leid, Glück, Ruhm, Verlust, 7 Ehen, das Muttersein und alles was das Leben zu bieten hat. Was ich an dem Buch so mochte, war, dass ich an keinem Punkt geahnt habe, wie die Geschichte enden wird. Der Leser erfährt auch von Monique, die Evelyns Biografie auf ihren Wunsch schreiben soll. Doch warum ausgerechnet Monique das Buch schreiben soll erfährt man erst am Ende. Mir hat der Schreibstil auch sehr gefallen und wie das Buch aufgebaut war.

Content Warnings

bellasierra's review against another edition

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emotional mysterious reflective medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes

5.0

Content Warnings

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