A review by kcmag1
The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo by Taylor Jenkins Reid
medium-paced
3.0
Starting with the things I liked: first, I read this in a day, though I can’t say that can be attributed to me dying to know what happened next. I generally liked the concept, which did actually make me think differently about some classic Hollywood stars I’m somewhat familiar with. Also it’s a intriguing way to circumvent the story of a bombshell movie star with a dozen husbands.
So while I did enjoy the story, what kept me from really loving it was the writing. It felt too distinctly modern to be anything but a book from the 21st century. I’m not referring to the LGBTQ or other progressive themes in the book really; I found the actual dialogue to feel too current and lack the feel I would associate with Golden Age movie stars. That could be somewhat explained by the story being told in retrospective by an older Evelyn, but it doesn’t explain how even the newspaper excerpts felt like someone intentionally trying to write like a mid-century journalist. I also found the final few chapters to be a bit rushed.
Also related to the writing, I did not engage with the characters, though I found them interesting. I believe that is because there was no mystery to them. Every one was described so thoroughly - often from the moment that they were introduced - that nothing surprised me or made me want to know more about them. Even with Evelyn, clearly the most complex of them all, the author seemed to be working so hard to convey that she was complex that it made her still seem one-dimensional.
I’m inclined to think I would have like this book more if it was fully the biography that Monique wrote for her. It would have allowed for Evelyn to retain some mystery and allure as a smart and savvy young actress, only to have vulnerable and truly immoral side revealed slowly. It could contribute to this allure of Evelyn that readers are constantly told about, yet do not get to experience for ourselves. It also would have allowed for a little bit show not tell, which I think this book desperately needed. It still could have included Monique’s perspective, even though I found her character to be flat and predictable.
The best thing I can say about this book, and I mean it truly, is that it could be a really good movie.
So while I did enjoy the story, what kept me from really loving it was the writing. It felt too distinctly modern to be anything but a book from the 21st century. I’m not referring to the LGBTQ or other progressive themes in the book really; I found the actual dialogue to feel too current and lack the feel I would associate with Golden Age movie stars. That could be somewhat explained by the story being told in retrospective by an older Evelyn, but it doesn’t explain how even the newspaper excerpts felt like someone intentionally trying to write like a mid-century journalist. I also found the final few chapters to be a bit rushed.
Also related to the writing, I did not engage with the characters, though I found them interesting. I believe that is because there was no mystery to them. Every one was described so thoroughly - often from the moment that they were introduced - that nothing surprised me or made me want to know more about them. Even with Evelyn, clearly the most complex of them all, the author seemed to be working so hard to convey that she was complex that it made her still seem one-dimensional.
I’m inclined to think I would have like this book more if it was fully the biography that Monique wrote for her. It would have allowed for Evelyn to retain some mystery and allure as a smart and savvy young actress, only to have vulnerable and truly immoral side revealed slowly. It could contribute to this allure of Evelyn that readers are constantly told about, yet do not get to experience for ourselves. It also would have allowed for a little bit show not tell, which I think this book desperately needed. It still could have included Monique’s perspective, even though I found her character to be flat and predictable.
The best thing I can say about this book, and I mean it truly, is that it could be a really good movie.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual content
Moderate: Homophobia, Lesbophobia, Domestic abuse, Grief, and Toxic relationship
Minor: Abortion and Incest