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A review by crazygoangirl
The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo by Taylor Jenkins Reid
emotional
reflective
medium-paced
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
3.5
I read this book in two sittings with a break in between when I was travelling. I had no problem recalling events and getting right back into the story. This is my first book from Taylor Jenkins Reid, a Booktube favourite!
This is an easy read in terms of Reid’s smooth-flowing narrative and language. In my head, I was expecting more atmosphere, comparable to Diane Setterfield’s The Thirteenth Tale, which also has a similar central theme, a reclusive celebrity sharing her story with a young, somewhat naive protagonist. That’s where the similarity ends however, since they’re two very different stories. I felt this one lacked atmosphere in parts, although it describes the internal machinations of Hollywood studios and actors in-depth!
Monique Grant, a young, ambitious, biracial woman in her thirties finds herself hired by notorious Hollywood celebrity Evelyn Hugo, to write her memoirs. Hugo insists on Monique interviewing her and as the story draws to its climax, we realise why. I wasn’t expecting the twist when it came. It was cleverly done and perfectly timed! Meanwhile, we meet the seven husbands from the title, each with a dedicated section in which we follow Evelyn’s life as she moves from Hell’s Kitchen to Los Angeles, storms the cutthroat world of Hollywood, and eventually becomes a true blue star and celebrity.
Along the way, she competes, compromises, sacrifices and manipulates her way to fame & success. She is a fascinating character but left me untouched, primarily because of her tendency to be compassionate only when it got her what she wanted and because she didn’t hesitate to use her friends and lovers to achieve her goals, even when she was a well established Hollywood star! Perhaps that’s how Hollywood works but it wasn’t endearing. Also, her instructions to Monique to portray her as she was, cruel, cold and aggressively ambitious weren’t particularly redeeming. Reid does a good job of portraying her as a woman of her times, repressed and suppressed by an unbending, unforgiving society, where being ‘different’ in any way, shape or form often had disastrous consequences. Evelyn is a fighter and a survivor and although I commend her and on occasion sympathise with her, I could not really like her or empathise. Also, I thought she took too long to learn life-lessons and grow a spine. The only real bonds I thought she formed, were with her life-long friend and eventual 5th husband Harry Cameron and their daughter Connor.
The narrative is naturally skewed heavily and primarily to Evelyn’s point of view, but Monique does get her own character arc. She develops a spine and stands up for herself much faster than Evelyn, learning from her experiences and mistakes. I saw the ending coming and thought it satisfactory. This book left me with mixed feelings. It’s well written, with complex characters that for me were often unlikeable, yet understandable in their context. Evelyn’s insecurities and her journey of self-discovery were believable and yet I couldn’t seem to find it in me to empathise. Perhaps that’s what Reid intended. If so, she’s done a great job! I enjoyed my reading experience and Reid’s writing style.
This is an easy read in terms of Reid’s smooth-flowing narrative and language. In my head, I was expecting more atmosphere, comparable to Diane Setterfield’s The Thirteenth Tale, which also has a similar central theme, a reclusive celebrity sharing her story with a young, somewhat naive protagonist. That’s where the similarity ends however, since they’re two very different stories. I felt this one lacked atmosphere in parts, although it describes the internal machinations of Hollywood studios and actors in-depth!
Monique Grant, a young, ambitious, biracial woman in her thirties finds herself hired by notorious Hollywood celebrity Evelyn Hugo, to write her memoirs. Hugo insists on Monique interviewing her and as the story draws to its climax, we realise why. I wasn’t expecting the twist when it came. It was cleverly done and perfectly timed! Meanwhile, we meet the seven husbands from the title, each with a dedicated section in which we follow Evelyn’s life as she moves from Hell’s Kitchen to Los Angeles, storms the cutthroat world of Hollywood, and eventually becomes a true blue star and celebrity.
Along the way, she competes, compromises, sacrifices and manipulates her way to fame & success. She is a fascinating character but left me untouched, primarily because of her tendency to be compassionate only when it got her what she wanted and because she didn’t hesitate to use her friends and lovers to achieve her goals, even when she was a well established Hollywood star! Perhaps that’s how Hollywood works but it wasn’t endearing. Also, her instructions to Monique to portray her as she was, cruel, cold and aggressively ambitious weren’t particularly redeeming. Reid does a good job of portraying her as a woman of her times, repressed and suppressed by an unbending, unforgiving society, where being ‘different’ in any way, shape or form often had disastrous consequences. Evelyn is a fighter and a survivor and although I commend her and on occasion sympathise with her, I could not really like her or empathise. Also, I thought she took too long to learn life-lessons and grow a spine. The only real bonds I thought she formed, were with her life-long friend and eventual 5th husband Harry Cameron and their daughter Connor.
The narrative is naturally skewed heavily and primarily to Evelyn’s point of view, but Monique does get her own character arc. She develops a spine and stands up for herself much faster than Evelyn, learning from her experiences and mistakes. I saw the ending coming and thought it satisfactory. This book left me with mixed feelings. It’s well written, with complex characters that for me were often unlikeable, yet understandable in their context. Evelyn’s insecurities and her journey of self-discovery were believable and yet I couldn’t seem to find it in me to empathise. Perhaps that’s what Reid intended. If so, she’s done a great job! I enjoyed my reading experience and Reid’s writing style.