***This article will contain spoilers for the book***
OKAY, so I just finished reading The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo by Taylor Jenkins Reid and we HAVE to talk about it. I ended up reading this book without even reading the back of the book. After the book was recommended to me I immediately picked it up and began reading and once I started I could not stop.
Plot summary: 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 in the journalism community is more astounded than Monique herself. Why her? Why now?
Monique is not exactly on top of the world. Her husband, David, has left her, and her career has stagnated. Regardless of why Evelyn has chosen her to write her biography, Monique is determined to use this opportunity to jumpstart her career.
Summoned to Evelyn’s Upper East Side apartment, Monique listens as Evelyn unfurls her story: from making her way to Los Angeles in the 1950s to her decision to leave show business in the late 80s, and, of course, the seven husbands along the way. As Evelyn’s life unfolds through the decades—revealing a ruthless ambition, an unexpected friendship, and a great forbidden love—Monique begins to feel a very a real connection to the actress. But as Evelyn’s story catches up with the present, it becomes clear that her life intersects with Monique’s own in tragic and irreversible ways.
Monique
When I first started reading I wasn’t really interested in Monique’s character. I even found myself somewhat dragging through the parts of the book that were about her life. Though I found her pretty uninteresting most of the book, I ended up becoming invested in her character when I learned about the connection between her and Evelyn. I also really enojyed reading about the growth in Monique throughout the story. She goes from someone who is not willing to stand up for herself to someone who won’t back down. Monique’s personal story pops in and out throughout the book, but only in short spurts then you get to get back to what is driving the story at hand: Evelyn Hugo.
Evelyn Hugo
Man, Evelyn Hugo is fasinating. I loved getting to read her story. Evelyn purposefully states that she wants to tell her whole story; free for people to judge critically. She warns that she has done some deeds she’s not particularly proud of, which may make her unlikeable in some eyes. It’s true – she’s not a saint. But I love her. She’s very nuanced, even in her ‘own’ telling and it’s hard to come out of the novel not liking her. Evelyn was an extremely powerful and strong woman in Hollywood and was keeping a huge secret about her sexuality. Her love stories in the book were all so unique, but the forbidden love with Celia stole my heart. Evelyn’s story is glamorous and scandalous to say the least.
Celia St. James
The forbidden love. The relationship between Evelyn and Celia was intense. It was forbidden and it was real. I was not a fan of Celia at first. I thought she was toxic for Evelyn. Even later in the book I found myself angry that even when Evelyn was ready to give everything up for Celia she still refused. I know there was a risk involved but I also wish I could read a verision of the story where Evelyn and Celia did give up everything for their love. I wanted them to fight for their love more than they did.
Harry Cameron
We all have a favorite husband. Mine so happens to be Harry Cameron. The relationship between Evenlyn and Harry was so passionate. Harry Cameron is a man who is hiding his own sexuality in the Hollywood scene. He and Evelyn decide to get married because they are best friends. Seeing the relationship grow and end between the two tore me apart. I had tears running down my cheeks in the last moments Harry was alive. I felt like I was feeling the hurt and the panic Evelyn felt in those moments. Their relationship was so real. They had so much support and passion for one another. They supported eachother in seeing their other lovers. They had a child together. What was not to love about the love Evelyn and Harry shared?
The other husbands
One thing that suprised me when reading this book was the lack of repetitiviness with Evelyn’s husbands. I expected the story to get boring with so many husbands, but all of the husbands were vastly different. I was impressed that the writer was able to give every husband such a unique story line. Some husbands I loved, some husbands I hated. The rest you’ll have to read for youself.
Overall, I picked up this book not knowing what to expect.The book had unexpected twists and I was excited to find out what was going to happen next. 10/10.