BOOK REVIEW: THE SEVEN HUSBANDS OF EVELYN HUGO BY TAYLOR JENKINS REID.

Nobody’s life is as glamorous and lovely inside, as it is, outside. When you peep into anyone’s heart of hearts, it is nearly impossible to still see them as charming, as flawless.

EZIOMA KALU.

BLURB

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.

MY REVIEW

There is so much to Evelyn Hugo, the superstar, and Oscar winning Hollywood actress. There are so many layers to her extremely complex life that no one seems to know how to unravel. And she is not the one to talk about her life. Never. The Hollywood sensation is an enigma, because it is not everytime you get to read about someone who has married seven husbands in their lifetime. And when she reaches out to Monique, a writer, to tell her story, everyone is giddy. Alas, the great Evelyn is about to unveil her mask, everybody is curious to find out what exactly she has hidden under all that glamor, all that success.

She was married seven times and outlived all of her husbands.

Taylor Jenkins Reid, The seven husbands of Evelyn Hugo.

Evelyn Hugo’s life isn’t as perfect and classy as people think it is. As a child, she never experienced love, because of her deadbeat, abusive father. In fact, she is a survivor, because given her childhood and the circumstances that surrounded it, becoming the universal star, Evelyn Hugo, is such a far-fetched luxury that is almost impossible to enjoy. However, Evelyn is so many things, but one thing she’s not is a coward. She takes the bull by its horns, and is never willing to give up on anything she feels will make her climb up the ladder of fame. This is because as a celebrity there’s so much more to your life than meets the eye.

Evelyn, I know this isn’t news to you,” the photographer says, “but boy, does the camera love you.”
“Oh,” Evelyn says, shrugging. “It never hurts to hear it one more time.”

Taylor Jenkins Reid, The seven husbands of Evelyn Hugo.

Each of her marriages comes with a different level of experience, some with love and hurt, others with pain, heartbreak, friendship, complications.
When she breaks into Hollywood, she doesn’t have a name, a degree, connections, but she’s not the one to give up easily. She fights her way to the top. And that is where Harry, her best friend turned husband comes in. Harry loves her so much and covers up most of her scandals for her. He’s the only permanent person in Evelyn’s complicated life, and always by her side whenever she needs a shoulder to lean on. When Monique agrees to write Evelyn’s story, she doesn’t know what to expect, doesn’t know why she’s the chosen one among a ton of other great writers. She, too, is experiencing a turbulent life at the moment, with an unstable love and a lonely life. But she decides to make the most out of the situation.

Celia nodded, hearing me. “You know what you want, and you go after it. I don’t think there is anyone in this town doubting that Evelyn Hugo is going to be the biggest star in Hollywood one of these days.”

Taylor Jenkins Reid, The seven husbands of Evelyn Hugo.

Being a smart girl, Monique bends the rule to her advantage and proposes she writes Evelyn’s story on her own terms. She strikes a deal with Evelyn and patiently listens to the good, bad and ugly parts of her story. Evelyn reveals so much about her life, sexuality, and many of her decisions; some she’s proud of, some she isn’t. Some she regrets, some she holds strongly to. When Evelyn reveals to Monique she was in love once, it comes as a shocker. For someone who has married seven husbands, saying she has loved only one human her entire life is weird. But it is true. Evelyn has only loved one human dearly, and she is a woman, her co-actress Celia.

Because they are just husbands. I am Evelyn Hugo. And anyway, I think once people know the truth, they will be much more interested in my wife.”

Taylor Jenkins Reid, The seven husbands of Evelyn Hugo.

When Evelyn talks about Celia, you can feel the passion, the love, the admiration. She was confused before meeting Celia, but after that, clarified. Because she doesn’t know of her sexuality, or is living in denial. But she finally comes out as bisexual, and doesn’t regret that life one bit. She doesn’t regret loving Celia wholeheartedly, doesn’t regret fighting for the LGBTQ community’s rights. But she has her regrets too. She made a lot of mistakes in her past, mistakes that people do not know of, mistakes that she covers up with her power and influence. This book is an absolutely amazing read. It exposes the facade celebrities pose as their reality. It shows that things are not really as they seem, and most of the celebrity marriages are just for show. They are not real.
Being a celebrity entails so many things. One is pretending to be married to the love of your life, when in reality you both don’t give two fucks about each other. And then you can get married just to cover up a scandal, hence Evelyn’s seven marriages.

I love your eyes and your tits, and your talent. I love the fact that you’ve got absolutely no ass on you.

Taylor Jenkins Reid, The seven husbands of Evelyn Hugo.

This book is as fascinating as they come. You don’t know what to expect. It keeps blowing up your mind with each page and chapter, and the twist at the end is obviously not expected at all.

I enjoyed reading the book, though I felt some parts of it were boring. The first few chapters were kind of slow for me and I didn’t feel the last few chapters as much as I felt the ones preceding them. But in all, it’s a wonderful read and I will recommend. It’s one queer book that I really loved reading. And I will rate it as 4/5.

Have you read the book? What do you feel about it? Please share your thoughts with me in the comment section. Don’t forget to subscribe to my newsletter, follow me on all social media platforms and share with your friends.
Bye🥰🥰 I love you guys!