“Riveting, heart-wrenching, and full of Old Hollywood glamour, The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo is one of the most captivating reads of 2017.” –BuzzFeed “The epic adventures Evelyn creates over the course of a lifetime will leave every reader mesmerized. This wildly addictive journey of a reclusive Hollywood starlet and her tumultuous Tinseltown journey comes with unexpected twists and the … comes with unexpected twists and the most satisfying of drama.” —PopSugar
In this entrancing novel “that speaks to the Marilyn Monroe and Elizabeth Taylor in us all” (Kirkus Reviews), a legendary film actress reflects on her relentless rise to the top and the risks she took, the loves she lost, and the long-held secrets the public could never imagine.
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.
“Heartbreaking, yet beautiful” (Jamie Blynn, Us Weekly), The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo is “Tinseltown drama at its finest” (Redbook): 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.more
I think it’s safe to say I have a new favorite author. If Daisy Jones left me with any doubts, Evelyn Hugo absolutely crushed them.
This story was not what I was expecting it to be. It took me by surprise, ripped my heart out of my chest, shredded it into pieces and never put it back together – dramatic, I know, but I feel like Evelyn would approve this sentiment.
This book is certainly making its way into my list of books I’ll have to reread someday. Now I’ll happily continue on binge-reading all of Taylor’s works!
This book was bananas and I loved every minute of it. I don’t know if I was supposed to hate Evelyn….but I didn’t. She did what she had to get the hell out of poverty and to a dream her late mother left her with. I understood her every move, every mistake, every choice. Although at the end, she made me mad. Which made me madder because right before that i was crying ( in the dark, trying not to wake my bf sleeping right next to me lest I freak him out. I mean he’s seen my cry plenty when reading….but that’s a messed up way to wake up..especially at 1 am LOL)
I also liked the way the story read. With some newspaper articles in between. And going from the past to the present. It all read well.
I wasn’t familiar with this author until this book caught my attention. What an incredible story that brings out so many emotions in her readers…well, it did for me at least. Congratulations on such a sad and beautiful story.
If you are looking for something really different to read, something entertaining and unique, this is a great choice. The characters will fascinate you, and the twist at the end will bring it all together.
This is absolutely one of my favorite novels that I’ve read in the last year. If you’re a fan of Old Hollywood and want to read a novel that reads like a memoir, this is for you. Evelyn Hugo is like a composite of Ava Gardner, Elizabeth Taylor, Rita Hayworth, and Marilyn Monroe all rolled into one. I couldn’t put it down. Obsessed!
An overwhelming five stars!
I have wanted to read this book since it came out and all of my favorite booktubers raved about it! Let me just say that they were completely right! This is my favorite book that I have read this year. I am obsessed with old Hollywood but this was the perfect book for me. I listened to the audio and the narrator was fantastic.
Monique Grant who is definitely the low man on the totem pole for the magazine she she works for so both her and her boss are shocked when Hollywood legend Evelyn Hugo wants Monique to write a story about her. Monique thinks she is writing a story covering the auction of all of Evelyn’s gowns for breast cancer research in memory of her daughter. Little does Monique know Evelyn really wants Monique to write her biography, including all the details about her seven marriages. The big question? Who is the love of Evelyn’s life? The answer may surprise you.
With each story that Evelyn shares we get closer and closer the finding out not only who she is but what she was willing to do for the fame that she fought so hard to gain and for the love that she so desperately searched for. Evelyn is not always a likable character but she is an interesting one that makes you care for her even though she has many faults. In fact I think you my learn to love her because of them.
So so good! My first 5 star read this year and also one of my favorite books I’ve ever read.
This one has “big screen” (movie) written all throughout it. Really love those old Hollywood days through this book.
This was one of the best books I read in 2018! I had such a hard time putting it down.
This was my favorite book of 2018. I wish I wrote it!
Great historical fiction, lovingly told, and not your average silver-screen tale. Highly recommended for lovers of strong women, Hollywood secrets, and the grit behind the glitter.
I had no idea what to expect out of this book. I knew I loved the cover, I loved the title, and everybody else loved the book….and I totally agree! Even looking back, it’s odd that I would highly recommend this book. That distinction is usually left for books of historical fiction or epic novels, but a book about a woman and her 7 husbands….I didn’t think it would happen, but here we are. It’s about love, loss, manipulation, success, failure, and looking back on your life wishing you had found what was really important-your relationships.
I highly recommend this book. I loved reading it and you will, too!
I was able to read “Daisy Jones and the Six” a few weeks ago via @Netgalley. I wanted to read more my Taylor Jenkins Reid, and had saw rave reviews about this book as well.
And it did not disappoint!
The Book is about Evelyn Hugo, a woman who grew up in humble beginnings and her rise to be one of the biggest stars in Hollywood. Evelyn was a gorgeous woman, and she knew it. Evelyn was tough, and she knew how to use her body to get what she wanted. Even though she seemed to have it all, she carried a big secret all of her life. The book is about her rise to fame in Hollywood, her many failed marriages and a twist at the end. It was an easy read, I was hooked by the first few pages.
I have since purchased 2 more books by this author, that I can’t wait to read them as well! I highly recommend this book!
Taylor Jenkins Reid is a great storyteller. The way this story is told seems a little unorthodox as we have two narrators…Monique, who has seemingly been chosen at random by a former Hollywood starlet to write her autobiography and Evelyn Hugo, the aforementioned Hollywood starlet, now almost 80, who tells Monique her life story starting in the past in chronological order.
Evelyn’s story is captivating and just like Monique I found myself intrigued and hungry for answers.
The inclusion of the newspaper and magazine gossip columns just added to the allure with insights to public perception. While there is a love story woven into the story I don’t think it’s the love story I was expecting and while I enjoyed it, it didn’t drive as much emotion from me as some of TJR’s previous books. I found myself more touched by Evelyn’s relationship with her best friend Harry and her daughter than anything else. I was surprised after discovering the big mystery as to why Evelyn chose Monique and although I knew the reveal was coming I wasn’t preoccupied with it because I was so wrapped up in how Evelyn’s life had unfolded.
Enjoyable, intriguing, and thought provoking, makes you think a little bit harder about these people we call Hollywood Stars.
Very good, easy read.
Learned a little bit about “old Hollywood”. Couple small twists in the book. Easy summer read.
Well that certainly didn’t go the way I expected it to! After reading a few of Reid’s previous novels, I’m beginning to think that she may be one of the most underrated authors of the last few years. Seriously, this book, like her others, ropes you in with the pretense of being a fluffy, mindless novel, and it turns out to be nothing of the sort. What it ACTUALLY is, is a study in human nature and how people will go to incredible lengths for self preservation, even when in means hard sacrifices. It’s about the complexities of life and love and how things are not always black and white, nor are they easily definable.
Evelyn Hugo is a self made, rags to riches starlet whose work spans the decades from the 40s all the way to the end of the 20th century. She has also been married seven times. When she is in her late seventies, she contacts Vivant magazine, under the guise of giving them a cover story on her upcoming charity auction of her gowns. She requests writer Monique Grant, who is by her own accounts, no one special. Evelyn has no intention of doing a cover story…she has an ulterior motive. She wants Monique to write her life story. And thus begins the interweaving of Evelyn Hugo’s life in the past, with Evelyn Hugo’s (and Monique’s) life now.
I highly recommend this captivating, and sometimes heart wrenching read.
This is the kind of story that keeps you up all night reading–just to find out what happens next. Queer fiction that reads like biography, complete with “clippings” from the tabloids and Evelyn’s careful game of cat and mouse with the journalist she’s “chosen” to write her story. A compelling, riveting read.
A truly enjoyable novel!
This is one of those books where you’re a different person after reading it.
I found myself just walking around lower Manhattan listening to this book, contemplating skipping class because I didn’t want to put it down.
Evelyn Hugo’s life was an interesting one to read about and this book is one I highly recommend to readers looking for a realistic contemporary that will hit close to home.
I listened to the audiobook and it was fantastic! I highly recommend!