The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo

January 23, 2020
The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo Book Cover The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo
Taylor Jenkins Reid
Historical Fiction
Atria Books
June 13th, 2017
eBook
391
Owned
Adult

Aging and reclusive Hollywood movie icon Evelyn Hugo is finally ready to tell the truth about her glamorous and scandalous life. But when she chooses unknown magazine reporter Monique Grant for the job, no one is more astounded than Monique herself. Why her? Why now? Monique is not exactly on top of the world. Her husband has left her, and her professional life is going nowhere. Regardless of why Evelyn has selected her to write her biography, Monique is determined to use this opportunity to jumpstart her career.

Summoned to Evelyn's luxurious apartment, Monique listens in fascination as the actress tells her story. From making her way to Los Angeles in the 1950s to her decision to leave show business in the '80s, and, of course, the seven husbands along the way, Evelyn unspools a tale of ruthless ambition, unexpected friendship, and a great forbidden love. Monique begins to feel a very real connection to the legendary star, but as Evelyn's story near its conclusion, it becomes clear that her life intersects with Monique's own in tragic and irreversible ways. The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo is a mesmerizing journey through the splendor of old Hollywood into the harsh realities of the present day as two women struggle with what it means--and what it costs--to face the truth.

(via Goodreads)

 

When I suggested my West Side Stories book club read The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo, I didn’t know what we were getting into. There is no better way to jump into this book, in my opinion. If you thought you were going to read a historical romance, you’re right… but you’re also very wrong.

Never let anyone make you feel ordinary.

Evelyn Hugo is one of the most famous actresses of Hollywood’s Golden Age. She’s done incredible films, won an Oscar, and been the talk of the town her whole life. She had seven different husbands and has survived them all. But no one really knows anything about Evelyn Hugo’s life beyond the surface information the papers can grab. Evelyn Hugo is now in her 70’s and is ready for someone to write her tell-all biography. Not just anyone. Monique Grant, a relatively unknown journalist has been hand-picked for the job. But why? And does it even matter if this is the book that will launch her career?

Sometimes reality comes crashing down on you. Other times reality simply waits, patiently, for you to run out of the energy it takes you deny it.

Evelyn Hugo, born Evelyn Diaz, is not what she seems. This makes Evelyn Hugo one of the most complex characters I’ve ever read. She knows what she wants, or thinks she knows what she wants, but sometimes doesn’t know how to get it.  Evelyn is ruthless is doing what she believes will get her where she wants to be. She knows that she isn’t a good person. But she also makes mistakes. She has regrets. Evelyn is a woman who craves what she has right in front of her but has no idea it’s truly what she wants until it’s too late. Her story is exceptionally heartbreaking.

Heartbreak is loss. Divorce is a piece of paper.

But without Monique, Evelyn’s story would lose some of its power. Monique is a younger, biracial woman who is going through a divorce. She gives us the lens to reality we need to understand how Evelyn’s story applies to us all. This isn’t just about Hollywood glamor – Evelyn’s experiences are the same experiences we all can, and in many cases, will have.

Don’t ignore half of me so you can fit me into a box. Don’t do that. 

It’s impossible to discuss this book without discussing feminism. Evelyn’s story is about race, identity, sexuality, misogyny, and having to conform to societal norms if you have dreams beyond becoming a hermit. Here are a few of the important topics Reid explores both overtly and subtly within the pages of The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo:

  • Hollywood beholds women to its whims, valuing them on their ability to be a sexual object presented for male consumption.
  • Women are expected to dilute their personalities and accomplishments to look more appealing to men.
  • Journalism about stars loves to build up women before tearing them down, over and over again.
  • When women claim a space for themselves, with the assertiveness required to gain that space, the world turns on them publicly and privately.
  • Divorce means eternal shame for women, as apparently, they are the sole reason each relationship ever fails.
  • Queer history, such as the Stonewall Riots, are not as far away as they seem.
  • Sexuality is complex, fluid, and unable to be defined by anyone but yourself.

While this might seem intense or overwhelming, Reid’s exploration of these topics is slow, subtle, and methodical. I was sucked completely into Evelyn’s story and only when I came up for air did I realize what an exceptional job was done sharing these themes.

When you’re given an opportunity to change your life, be ready to do whatever it takes to make it happen. The world doesn’t give things, you take things.

I greatly enjoyed the format. This novel is both historical and contemporary fiction. I love how we go back and forth between present-day and Evelyn’s past. When we’re in the present day, Monique’s narrative drives the story, but the past is all about Evelyn. In this way, we get to see the parallels in their lives as passionate women of color who are just trying to reach their dreams.

My mother raised me to be polite, to be demure, I have long operated under the idea that civility is subservience. But it hasn’t gotten me very far, that type of kindness. The world respects peple who they think should be running it. 

The physical format is also worth noting. While this is The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo, it’s not about her husbands at all. Each section focuses on a single husband and how her relationship with that man changed the direction of her life; almost always intentionally on Evelyn’s part. I appreciate how each section gives us one adjective to describe the husband and the relationship we’re about to explore. In the end, I’m still unclear if I’m reading the book Monique wrote, or if this is just a fun format to show off the eras of Evelyn’s life. Part of me hopes it’s really meta and I was reading the book Monique eventually finished. But part of me hopes I never got a chance to read it because Monique has a lot more to understand about her relationship with Evelyn that I got in these pages.

People think that intimacy is about sex. But intimacy is about truth. When you realize you can tell someone your truth, when you can show yourself to them, when you stand in front of them bare and their response is ‘you’re safe with me’ — that’s intimacy.

If reading The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo taught me anything, it’s that life is too short to pretend to be something we are not. Those who love you will only love you more for being yourself. And if for some reason they don’t, then they never loved you in the first place. Loving people who are worthy and deserving of our love is all life really means.


What do you think?

  • Have you read The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo? What do you think of this book?
  • If you’ve read The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo, do you find Evelyn’s character sympathetic or not? Why?
  • What was the last book you read which caught you completely by surprise? What shocked you about it?
  • Can you recommend other novels that address race, identity, sexuality and/or misogyny that have stayed with you? I’d appreciate it!

13 Comments

  • whatthelog January 23, 2020 at 12:13 pm

    I don’t know HOW I still haven’t read this book!! It’s frankly ridiculous! Great review as always <3

  • Laila@BigReadingLife January 23, 2020 at 1:00 pm

    I haven’t read this either but I think I should!

    I can’t remember the last book that caught me by surprise. I think it’s because I read so many book reviews that I almost always know something about a book before I start it, for better or worse. I’ll say that the first story in the Flannery O’Connor collection, “A Good Man is Hard to Find,” did shock me by the end.

    • Jackie B January 24, 2020 at 8:25 pm

      It sounds like quite a few of O’Connor’s short stories shocked you! This is a different kind of surprise, though– less religion for sure. I hope you read The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo. I really think you’ll enjoy it!

  • Grab the Lapels January 23, 2020 at 8:39 pm

    I’m currently reading the biography of Flannery O’Connor, and the fact that she had pet chickens as a child, and sewed entire outfits for them, surprised me.

    • Jackie B January 24, 2020 at 8:24 pm

      Wow. What does “entire” outfits mean? Like, shoes, pants, shirt, hat? Now I’m imagining a chicken in a suit with a top hat and a monocle!

      • Grab the Lapels January 25, 2020 at 2:57 pm

        Pants, vest, tie, hat.

        • Jackie B January 25, 2020 at 2:59 pm

          Plllllleeeeeaaaassseeee tell me there are photos.

          • Grab the Lapels January 25, 2020 at 3:04 pm

            I just grabbed the book and flipped through the photos. I only see pics of her later in life with her famous pet peacocks. Bummer.

            • Jackie B January 25, 2020 at 3:07 pm

              Darn. Well, one could hope.

  • Birdie January 24, 2020 at 12:02 pm

    EVERYONE talks about this book, and everyone who talks about it loves it. I’m not sure why I’m resisting, but every glowing review is wearing me down, especially this one. (I honestly think it’s because the cover reminds me of those old 90’s contemporary romances, like Danielle Steel, and I was just never a fan.)

    I think I’m going to see how much an ecopy costs.

    • Jackie B January 24, 2020 at 8:10 pm

      Oh, I hope you read it, Birdy! I think you’ll be shockingly into it. I can understand why the cover night give you pause, though. When this book came out, The Seven and 1/2 Deaths of Evelyn Hardcastle had also just come out. I gravitated more to Hardcastle than Hugo. It was the cover and the blurb.

      I’m really impressed that the Evelyn Hugo blurb is written so well, honestly. I cannot imagine trying to blurb this without giving away one of the two twists!

      Please let me know what you think when you get to it!

  • Dani @ Perspective of a Writer January 29, 2020 at 2:27 pm

    I get this book mixed up with another book which is like a murder mystery. I guess the titles are similar. It does sound like an intriguing way to explore that different phases of this woman’s life. The last book that took me by surprise was Loveboat, Taipei. I wasn’t expecting it to be girls gone wild as much as it was. And I’m not a fan of the cover either though it’s not a poor cover, I’m just not interested in the time period it reflects.

    • Jackie B February 2, 2020 at 9:00 am

      The titles are SUPER similar! You’re thinking of The Seven & 1/2 Deaths of Evelyn Hardcastle. So weird. The came out almost a year apart, but it doesn’t feel that way. I want to read Evelyn Hardcastle, but for different reasons — it’s sorta like the film Groundhog Day! Gotta love time loops.

      I read your review fo rLoveboat, Taipei — I am not surprised the girls-gone-wild-ish aspect startled you. For some reason, that’s what I expected from reading the synopsis. But in reading reviews, I’m finding I’m the only person who made that leap! XD I do think the cover is pretty– but you’re right, it doesn’t seem to reflect the insides of the book.

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