“The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo” by American novelist Taylor Jenkins Reid was published in 2017. It is a historical fiction novel that explores themes of loyalty, betrayal, loss, sacrifice and tragedy.
Despite what the title may suggest, the book focuses more on Evelyn Hugo than her husbands.
Hugo, a 79-year-old reclusive Hollywood icon, decides to sit down for an exclusive interview and tell the truth about her glamorous and scandalous life after years of dodging the press. But when she chooses an obscure magazine reporter, Monique Grant, to conduct the interview, no one is more surprised than Monique herself.
Though she can’t understand why she’s been chosen, Grant goes to Evelyn’s luxurious apartment and learns that Evelyn doesn’t simply want to do an interview but wants to reveal every aspect of her mysterious and private history for a biography to be published after she dies.
The journalist seizes the rare opportunity to jumpstart her career. As Everlyn tells her story, Monique listens in fascination as the actress details her life; from making her way to Los Angeles in the 1950s to her decision to leave Hollywood in the 1980s.
In “The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo,” two women wrestle with what it means — and what it costs — to face the truth as they travel from the glamor of old Hollywood to the brutal reality of the present.
This widely loved bestselling novel conveys the central message that at times a strong family connection does not come from marriage or biological ties, but rather from the depth of connection two or more people share.
Reid is the author of several New York Times bestsellers including “Carrie Soto is Back,” “Malibu Rising,” and “Daisy Jones and the Six.”
Hugo’s story is to have a Netflix adaptation by Liz Tigelaar, the Emmy-nominated showrunner and executive producer of Hulu’s “Little Fires Everywhere,” which is based on the novel of the same name by Celeste Ng.
