I have been hearing a lot about Taylor Jenkins Reid in the last couple of years. People really seem to like her novels, so I decided it was about time I read one. I was going to read Daisy Jones & the Six, but then I heard about The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo and the plot sounded more like it was up my alley. Based on this novel, I can understand why her novels are so popular. The story certainly has a tabloid quality that people like to devour, and she practically bludgeons the reader over the head with foreshadowing that will keep you reading instead of doing the prudent thing and going to bed at a decent hour. The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo is certainly an entertaining read, but am I blown away by it? No, not really. I was expecting it to be more original, more profound than it actually is.

Evelyn Hugo is a Hollywood icon who has been living a reclusive life since the late 1980s until she picks an up-and-coming writer at a famous magazine, Monique Grant, to give an exclusive interview to. Monique’s boss is surprised that Evelyn picked Monique for the interview and thinks they must have some sort of connection, but Monique is not aware of any connection to Evelyn and agrees to the interview in the hopes it will lead to being able to write better stories. The interview, and the narrative structure of the novel, ends up being framed around Evelyn’s infamous seven husbands and tells the story of Evelyn’s life from growing up as the daughter of poor Cuban immigrants in Hell’s Kitchen, to doing whatever it takes to go to Hollywood to become a famous actress, and winning that elusive Oscar, all the while jumping from one husband to the next.

Evelyn Hugo is an impressively unapologetic character that I suppose you are meant to feel conflicted about, but I had no problem understanding why she was so mercenary in her quest to have a successful career as an actress. The problem with Evelyn Hugo is that she is not an original character and none of the situations she ends up in are original. Everything that Evelyn has been through has been done before, in other novels (Evelyn kind of reminds me of Scarlett O’Hara) and in real life. There is nothing to be shocked or titillated about. I do not know much about the glamourous actresses from the “Golden Age” of Hollywood, but I think that Evelyn is meant to be a bit of Marilyn Monroe and a bit of Elizabeth Taylor.

Because this is Evelyn’s story, I found Monique to be an underdeveloped character that I did not care much about. I actually forgot what Monique’s last name is, so when the “big twist” happened and the reader does learn the connection between Evelyn and Monique (because of course there is one, contrary to what Monique is led to believe), it totally went over my head. Oops. Monique comes across as surprisingly dense for a thirty-five-year-old woman in her interactions with Evelyn. Her character probably would have worked better if she had been ten years younger.

I do not feel that I wasted my time reading this novel. At least I know now what to expect if I decide to read another novel by Taylor Jenkins Reid. If you are looking for a novel for pure entertainment value, for something fun to read on the beach or even just a lazy day at home, and if you like sensationalistic stories about famous people, then you will enjoy The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo.