A review by astrangewind
The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo by Taylor Jenkins Reid

emotional sad fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? No
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo tells an incredibly queer story from what seems like an incredibly heterosexual premise, which is something I can totally get behind. In fact, I was quite surprised by how gay this book turned out to be. Despite that, though, it was sad, and I couldn't stop reading once the pace picked up. Each husband had a unique flair and purpose in Evelyn's scandalous life, and the sections are executed well.

Despite liking the plot, I liked neither Monique nor Evelyn. I think Evelyn isn't meant to be a likable character; she herself even claims she's a bad person to Monique's face. That's the whole point of the book. She's beautiful, and cruel, and generous, and loving. All of these things at once. However, Monique was probably meant to be likable, but I found her mostly annoying, and her own story much less compelling than Evelyn's.

I am happy that this book is queer, and I'm happy that it's not just about being queer during puberty, as a lot of books with queer characters are. It's about being queer in Hollywood in the late 20th century, dodging the media and dealing with the AIDS crisis. That said, it bugs me that the only characters who treat Evelyn with any kind of respect are queer.
When Evelyn first meets Harry, she makes a note of it that he doesn't stare at her breasts, like all the other men do. It seems unfair for the one man to treat her like a human instead of an object only does so because he doesn't like women. Similarly, it feels unfair that the only woman who treats her with respect happens to be in love with her. Queer people can have platonic friendships with non-queer people.
Also, every mention of
Evelyn's
bisexuality reads like two people talking back and forth on a Tumblr post; it's over-explained and stilted, like Reid is afraid to offend bisexuals. It's fine, Taylor, I promise, to not repeatedly explain that bisexuality is liking men and women (Gasp!). Truth be told, though, that's my main gripe with Seven Husbands, and it's not that bad. 
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