Romance Books Like The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo

If you've ever found yourself completely absorbed in the pages of The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo, staying up until dawn to uncover just one more secret, you understand the magnetic pull of a story that weaves together romance, ambition, and the messy truths behind carefully constructed facades. There's something irresistible about characters who build empires while harboring secrets, who chase their dreams with ruthless determination while their hearts pull them in unexpected directions. These stories remind us that behind every glossy magazine cover and red carpet appearance lies a complex human being with desires, regrets, and choices that shaped their destiny.

The books in this collection share that intoxicating blend of glamour and grit, each offering a window into worlds where success comes at a price and love rarely follows the script. Take Daisy Jones & The Six, another masterpiece from Taylor Jenkins Reid that captures the electric energy of 1970s rock and roll. Like Evelyn's Hollywood tale, this novel peels back the layers of fame to reveal the raw humanity beneath, exploring how creative passion and romantic entanglement can create both magic and destruction. The documentary-style narrative keeps you guessing about the real story behind the band's infamous breakup, much like Evelyn's gradual revelations keep you turning pages.

For those drawn to the historical settings and complicated marriages in Reid's work, The Paris Wife by Paula McLain offers an intimate portrait of Ernest Hemingway's first wife, Hadley Richardson. Set against the intoxicating backdrop of 1920s Paris, this novel explores the challenge of loving a brilliant but difficult man while trying to maintain your own identity. Like Evelyn's relationships, Hadley's marriage is both a great love story and a cautionary tale about the cost of being adjacent to genius.

Sarah Dunant's The Birth of Venus transports you to Renaissance Florence, where art, politics, and forbidden passion collide. The novel's heroine, like Evelyn, must navigate a world that limits women's choices while harboring desires that could destroy her reputation. The lush historical detail and exploration of female agency in a restrictive society will resonate with readers who appreciated how Evelyn maneuvered through Hollywood's golden age.

The theme of ambition versus authenticity runs through Philippa Gregory's The Other Boleyn Girl, which examines the Boleyn sisters' calculated pursuit of King Henry VIII's attention. Mary Boleyn's story, told from the shadows of her more famous sister Anne, echoes the way secondary characters in Evelyn's life had their own rich narratives. The Tudor court's dangerous games of power and seduction mirror Hollywood's cutthroat nature, where one wrong move can topple an empire.

Moving to contemporary settings, Liane Moriarty's Big Little Lies shares Reid's gift for revealing secrets layer by layer while exploring female friendships and the performances we give in our daily lives. The suburban Australian mothers in Moriarty's novel may seem worlds away from Old Hollywood, but they're equally skilled at maintaining perfect facades while their real lives threaten to implode.

Lauren Weisberger's The Devil Wears Prada captures the intoxicating allure of a glamorous industry and the sacrifices demanded for entry. Andy's journey through the fashion world parallels the compromises Evelyn made for stardom, asking whether success is worth it when you lose yourself in the process. Both novels understand that sometimes the most toxic relationships are the ones that promise to make all your dreams come true.

Kevin Kwan's Crazy Rich Asians brings contemporary glamour with its dive into Singapore's ultra-wealthy elite. Like Evelyn's Hollywood, this is a world where appearances matter more than truth, where family legacies shape individual choices, and where love must compete with duty and expectation. The novel's exploration of identity and belonging will resonate with readers who connected with Evelyn's struggle to be her authentic self.

Finally, Meg Wolitzer's The Wife offers a quietly devastating examination of a marriage built on deception and sacrifice. Joan's decision to subsume her own talent to support her husband's career echoes the compromises many of Evelyn's husbands made, reminding us that behind every great success story are often unsung contributors whose stories deserve telling.

These eight novels prove that our fascination with stories about ambition, secrets, and complex women transcends genre and era. Whether set in Tudor England or modern Manhattan, 1920s Paris or contemporary Singapore, they all understand that the most compelling narratives live in the space between who we are and who we pretend to be. Each book in this collection offers its own unique pleasures while exploring the universal themes that made The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo so unforgettable. So pour yourself a drink worthy of Evelyn herself, settle in, and prepare to be swept away by characters who refuse to be simplified, stories that refuse to judge, and relationships that remind us love is never as straightforward as we wish it could be.