Hourglass by Myra McEntire

About the book

Hourglass is the first book in the Hourglass series by Myra McEntire. It was published by Egmont USA on 14^th June 2011 and the book is 390 pages long.

Synopsis

For seventeen-year-old Emerson Cole, life is about seeing what isn't there: swooning Southern Belles; soldiers long forgotten; a haunting jazz trio that vanishes in an instant. Plagued by phantoms since her parents' death, she just wants the apparitions to stop so she can be normal. She's tried everything, but the visions keep coming back.

So when her well-meaning brother brings in a consultant from a secretive organization called the Hourglass, Emerson's willing to try one last cure. But meeting Michael Weaver may not only change her future, it may also change her past.

Who is this dark, mysterious, sympathetic guy, barely older than Emerson herself, who seems to believe every crazy word she says? Why does an electric charge seem to run through the room whenever he's around? And why is he so insistent that he needs her help to prevent a death that never should have happened?

(Taken from Goodreads.com)

What I thought

So many bloggers mentioned this book to me as well as others on Twitter when I said I wanted books about time travel. This is one that had a lot of hype around its release but one I hadn’t managed to get around to reading at the time.

I really loved this book from the very first page where we meet protagonist Emerson. She thinks she’s a complete freak and that there is something terribly wrong with her. After all, she sees what she thinks are ghosts and has once been committed for what she can see. No matter what she does, these people from the past haunt her and she hates it. Although this may sound like Emerson was quite depressing, she wasn’t at all. She was full of sass and quick come-backs and only wanted to feel normal again. Even though Emerson has all of this going on, she is still super sweet and caring and has a close connection with her brother and his wife which was a really nice touch.

As people seem to think she’s crazy, Emerson’s brother Thomas attempts to help her by contacting others who think that they can help. This is where Michael comes in. Hired by Thomas, he works for something called Hourglass and knows exactly about Emerson’s ‘problems’. However, not long after they meet Michael explains that these people Emerson can see aren’t ghosts but ‘rips’, people from the past. I loved Michael just as much as I did Emerson. Even though he has been hired to help Emerson, there is a clear connection between the two which he fights so hard to ignore. He’s also such a gentleman at times but has some hidden secrets of his own which were exciting to find out about.

This is one of those books where the author gets the romance so spot on it’s unreal. Emerson’s brother has made sure that Michael agrees to a strict business only agreement and this is partly what is driving Michael to stay away. The getting to know each other part of the relationship was perfect for me as there were trust issues to deal with and also having to get to know a complete stranger. While there is a slow build up to the romance, it was well worth it. The drawn out moments created immense tension between Emerson and Michael which was so fantastically written. I couldn’t get enough of these two.

As well as having amazing main characters, Hourglass has some great supporting characters. First there is Emerson’s best friend Lily. I could see why the two of them were best friends instantly. They complimented each other really well and Lily had her own quirks which didn’t make her seem boring in comparison to Emerson. Then there is Kaleb who is a friend of Michaels. Kaleb was someone really special who has so much about him that I couldn’t get enough of. I wanted to know so much more about him. I think that both Kaleb and Lily will have bigger roles in future books of this series… at least I hope they will.

Hourglass has a wonderful plot and one that sets this book apart from other YA books. The time travel element is why I read this book to begin with and it really was amazing. Out of the other time travel books I have read, this one is by far the most original. I loved the way that different people could do different things and could either go into the past or the future. There are so many different aspects of the plot which made it interesting and unique but saying too much about them will ruin a massive part of the story for anyone who hasn’t read this. The plot had me hooked and I was desperate to find out what was really going on and what you happen in the end.

Hourglass is one of the best YA time travel books that I have read and now I can’t wait to get started on the sequel, Timepiece.