“The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo” BOOK REVIEW
E
velyn Hugo is ready to tell the truth about her glamorous and scandalous life to an unknown magazine reporter, Monique Grant. Monique is determined to use this opportunity to jump start her career. As Hugo 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. As Evelyn’s story nears its conclusion, it becomes clear that her life intersects with Monique’s own life. I fell in love with the book. It took me about four days to finish. The way that Taylor Jenkins wrote her characters made me think that they were real. I genuinely thought that Evelyn Hugo was a real person and not a fictional character. I felt stupid for searching up movies and interviews that Evelyn did in the book. I honestly was expecting some sort of a love triangle or a straight relationship with Evelyn, but I was wrong. Evelyn meets Celia St. James, another great actress. As they give each other advice on acting and help each other out, they develop feelings for each other. Their relationship felt like a rollercoaster; they had so many issues and insecurities. I closed the book every time I felt that they were going to break up. Evelyn has an amazing platonic relationship with Harry Cameron, a producer.
Since day one, he has always been there for her. I wish I had a friendship like theirs. I felt this joy whenever Harry would take care of Evelyn. The only reason I bought this book was because I was trying to get away from sad books. I did not expect for this book to make me sob towards its ending. I had to put down the book. I did not expect the plot twist at the end. I -again- had to put down the book. My mouth was literally hanging open. I was shocked, but all I kept thinking was, “I love this book so much.” I feel like I fell in love with almost every character in the book. It really felt like they were real humans. This book does include topics about the LGBTQ+ community. When I finished reading this book, I went to BookTok and searched up the book to see what people thought about it. I was surprised that there were white booktokers who were calling this book a “great representation for Hispanics.” Evenlyn Hugo is Hispanic. She only talks about her ethnicity briefly. I rate this amazing book five out of five stars. When I finished the first chapter, I knew I was going to love this book. I only loved husbands number four, five, and seven. I know if anyone reads this book, they will love the fifth husband. He will always have a special place in my heart.
By Jazmine Jurado
24 Newsletter
