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

Taylor Jenkins Reid’s ‘The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo’ shows the good, the bad and the ugly of the Hollywood life and explores the scandal behind all the money and fame through the eyes of superstar actor Evelyn Hugo as she sacrifices her identity and sexuality for stardom. It is written from the perspective of a tell-all interview with Monique who Evelyn hires to write her biography that is requested to be published after she’s died.

In a book with focus on a woman’s seven marriages, there are many scenes of sex and exploitation, but the book plays the primary hook to be who was Evelyn’s true love among all these men. The conclusion of this was however very predictable and I also worked out the later twists. Even knowing there were seven marriages to get through at times the in and outing of relationships also felt very messy. It was enthralling however nonetheless.

Evelyn was the protagonist but not the narrator, Monique took this role and the narrative would occasionally look at Monique’s personal life that I found myself really not caring for, it was a mundane among all the intensity of Evelyn. It didn’t take up huge chunks of the story though so this wasn’t too bad.

Jenkins Reid makes comment on how riches will never guarantee happiness, and the slippery slope of greed and corruption that comes from stardom, and the lack of remorse for all that are hurt along the way.

Content Warnings

mcc004's review against another edition

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challenging emotional reflective sad 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

3.75

Content Warnings

artisticpie's review against another edition

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adventurous emotional inspiring mysterious sad tense fast-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

4.0

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reddermoon's review against another edition

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lighthearted medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

2.0

the straightest “lgbtq fiction” book i have ever read

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eedle_cacleberry's review against another edition

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challenging hopeful inspiring reflective sad 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

4.25

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lalu's review against another edition

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emotional

Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5

I'm not sure how to rate this... I read it within 4 days which is really fast for me, and I cried twice which almost never happens.

Maybe it was the way the book was written. I really like the chapters where Evelyn and Monique interacted, but I still don't get if the other chapters were meant to be monologues by Evelyn, flashbacks, or chapters from the biography. And I feel like I didn't really get to know the characters apart from Monique, Evelyn and Harry. They felt rather two dimensional, even Celia and Connor. That might have been a stylistic choice because Evelyn's perception was very much centered on herself, but I still didn't like it. It diminished the effect of a novel that spans decades, something I normally love because I feel like I really get to know all the characters.

And even though they were rare, I really hated these ominous foreshadowing bits like

I have no idea that in less than a week, Evelyn Hugo will finish her story, and I'll find out what this has all been about, and I will hate her so much that I'll be truly afraid I might kill her.

Also the car accident and the big secret felt kinda forced, a bit like an afterthought to add more drama?

But overall I enjoyed reading this book immensely so I'm really torn about how to rate and feel about it.

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