The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo is a historical drama novel by American novelist Taylor Jenkins Reid, published by Atria Books in 2017. It tells the story of the fictional Old Hollywood star Evelyn Hugo, who, at age 79, gives a final interview to unknown journalist Monique Grant.
The novel was nominated for a Goodreads Choice Award for Best Historical Fiction in 2017.
Contents
Book structure
The book is split into seven parts that are all named after Hugo's husbands in order to chronicle her life during the marriages and affairs she experiences; in addition, the titles feature adjectives to emphasize Hugo's feelings and opinions towards them. For instance, "Brilliant, kindhearted, tortured Harry Cameron" or "gullible Mick Riva".
Plot
Evelyn Hugo, a reclusive former Hollywood star, announces the auction of her collection of famous gowns to raise money for a breast cancer charity in honor of her late daughter. She specifically requests magazine reporter Monique Grant to interview her about the auction. Monique, who has no personal connection to her, is confused as to why Evelyn insists she be the one to conduct the interview. When the two meet, Evelyn reveals that she is not interested in giving an interview to Monique's magazine, but instead wants Monique to write her biography. When pressed for an explanation as to why, Evelyn only tells her that she found Monique through an article that she had written about assisted suicide, and otherwise promises that she will answer all of Monique's questions once she is done recounting her story. Monique accepts the offer, and Evelyn begins sharing the events of her life.
Poor Ernie Diaz
Evelyn meets her first husband, Ernie Diaz, at age fourteen. She then marries him in order to reach Hollywood and escape her abusive father in Hell's Kitchen, Manhattan. Her beauty already is exceptional, with a very slim figure and outstanding big breasts. She reckons the effect it has on men, who already preyed on her in her tweens, can be a key asset to get out and climb up the ladder. So she uses that effect boldly and cleverly, for instance hanging out at a café visited by influential or famous Hollywood people in hope of being noticed. Harry Cameron, a young Sunset Studios producer, does notice her and the two later become close friends. Evelyn seduces a Sunset executive in order to advance her career and divorces Ernie after the studio decides to set her up with popular actors to increase their publicity.
Goddamn Don Adler
Evelyn falls in love with and marries actor Don Adler, whom she believes to be the first true love of her life. Shortly after they marry, Don begins physically abusing her.
In a film adaptation of Little Women, Evelyn, now twenty-one, stars opposite fellow actress Celia St. James. Evelyn is initially jealous of Celia's talent, but the two quickly form a friendship. At a party, another actress, Ruby Reilly, tells Evelyn that Celia is a lesbian. Evelyn privately confronts Celia to ask if this is true, and the two share a passionate kiss. Evelyn discovers that Don has been unfaithful to her, at which point he divorces her and sabotages her career by getting studio executives to blacklist her.
Background
Reid released the book cover and an excerpt of the book in Entertainment Weekly on December 6, 2016.
According to Reid, Evelyn is loosely based in part on actresses Elizabeth Taylor, who was married eight times to seven different men, and Ava Gardner, who revealed the secrets of her life to a journalist, who published them in Ava Gardner: The Secret Conversations. Reid has also said Rita Hayworth was an influence on Evelyn. Hayworth, whose father was a Spaniard, had a very similar start to Evelyn's and multiple relationships throughout her career. Other influences included Tab Hunter Confidential: The Making of a Movie Star, an autobiography by Tab Hunter that describes what life was like for LGBTQ+ people in Hollywood at the time, and Scandals of Classic Hollywood by Anne Helen Petersen.
Editions
The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo was released in hardcover on June 1, 2017, by Atria Publishing Group. By June 13, the novel was released in paperback, Audible audio, and Kindle edition. The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo was also translated for print into Spanish, Portuguese, Polish, Serbian, Greek, Turkish, Lithuanian, Swedish, Croatian, Czech, French, Slovak, Hungarian, German, Dutch, Italian, Bulgarian, Ukrainian, Russian, Icelandic, Hebrew, Vietnamese and Chinese.
Adaptations
Cancelled television adaptation
In 2019, Freeform and Fox 21 Television Studios picked up the rights for development. Jennifer Beals and Ilene Chaiken, who worked on The L Word, were to produce the show. Reid was to work on the show as a screenwriter. In June 2021, Reid confirmed in an interview that the rights were no longer owned by Freeform and would be produced on another platform. She said she felt "really good with the direction that it's going in".
Film adaptation
On March 24, 2022, it was announced that Netflix will be adapting the novel into a feature film with Liz Tigelaar writing and Margaret Chernin executive producing. The film was slated to be directed by Leslye Headland, but in a January 2025 interview with Variety, Headland said she "was no longer working on [the] project." In June 2026, Anna Kendrick was brought in to replace Headland.
Reception
The novel received positive reviews. The Globe and Mail called it "a cinematic tale with hardscrabble roots, staggering highs and sickening lows." The novel was nominated for a Goodreads Choice Award for Best Historical Fiction of 2017, and a finalist for Book of the Month's Book of the Year award in 2017.