Title:   The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo

Author:  Taylor Jenkins Reid

Genre:  Fiction 

Why I picked his book up:  It has a beautiful cover

What this book is about: 

This is a fast paced read that covers the success and failures of the main character, Evelyn Hugo a former Hollywood starlet as she is dictating her life story for her autobiography. Evelyn is 79 in the present day and reflecting on her youth in Hell’s Kitchen to her transformation in Hollywood.

Monique who has been personally selected by Evelyn to write her autobiography, is at a crux in her first marriage and is learning about her own strength through her interactions with Evelyn Hugo as she tries to discover who was Evelyn Hugo’s greatest love and why Evelyn chose her to be her biographer and how everything is connected.

What makes this book stand out:

• Evelyn Hugo is an unlikeable character, she is gorgeously flawed but in reading this novel you are propelled forward wanting to more about Evelyn, her life, her husbands and what this means for Monique.
• There is excellent queer representation in this book as well as snapshots of progression in the gay rights movement from 1950-present day.
• There is a twist at the end.

You may also like: 

Old Hollywood Glamour: All the Stars in the Heavens by Adriana Trigiani

For strong females in bad relationships: My Brilliant Friend by Elena Ferrante

Adult Female Queer representation: Swearing Off Stars by Danielle Wong

The telling of a life story: Lillian Boxfish Takes a Walk by Kathleen Rooney

Cuban/American Characters:  Next Year in Havana  by Chanel Cleeton

Rich vs. Poor: The Wangs vs the World by Jade Chang

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