Prelim Review: Realistically speaking this is more like a 4.5 for me. Even though I stayed up all night reading it, and skipped out on doing something else.

The concept behind Hourglass had me hooked. Its a blend of paranormal and scifi--time travel tempered with scientific reasoning and explanations, none of which I understand (they said Doctor Who! I understood that)--that works well. There's insta-love involved, kind of and I can't really explain more than that without spoilers, but thank you McEntire for not making the romance sappy and overly dramatic.

Full review to be posted at Poisoned Rationality ( )

Tienes una hora para reescribir tu pasado... A sus diecisiete años, Emerson Cole ve cosas que no existen: damas de alta alcurnia, soldados de la guerra, conciertos de jazz. Todo es efímero. Envuelta en una nube de fantasmas desde la muerte de sus padres, Emerson sólo quiere dejar de tener visiones y llevar una vida normal. Lo ha intentado todo, pero las apariciones persisten. Su hermano decide, entonces, confiar en el guía de una fundación secreta, La esfera, y Emerson pone todo su empeño en encontrar una cura. Pero conocer a Michael Weaver no sólo le da alas para cambiar su futuro, sino que también descubre que puede cambiar su pasado. ¿Quién es de verdad ese tipo reservado, misterioso y tan dulce, el único que la entiende? ¿Por qué tiembla cada vez que lo ve? ¿Y por qué él la necesita tanto para evitar una muerte que nunca debería haber sucedido?

Hourglass is a paranormal thriller by Myra McEntire. Emerson has seen "time rips" in the form of people from the past for the last four years. It started just prior to the death of her parents. Her visions in combination with her deep depression led her brother, Thomas, to have her committed to a mental institution. When Emerson leaves the institution, she tries to establish a somewhat normal life, but her brother continues to try to find people to help with her problem. Most are frauds, but the most recent seems legitimate. Michael Weaver is a consultant with Hourglass, a place for people with the "time gene." Michael tells Emerson that all of the people at Hourglass have that same gene, just as she does. When he tells her that she is capable of traveling through time, she begins to doubt his sanity. There are problems, however, at Hourglass. Its founder has been killed and the man running it now seems to be using the time gene for his own purposes. Michael has a plan to stop him that involves Emerson, who starts to wonder if she is being used.
I really like the premise of this book. My only complaint is that it takes a frustratingly long amount of time for Michael and Emerson to realize that they had to be together even though that realization comes to the reader fairly early in the book. Some of the obstacles put in their way seem artificial. Overall, this is a very interesting book with enough twists, turns, and emotional bombshells that make it very much worth reading. ( )

Teen fiction; time travel/suspense - kind of like xmen with alternate/overlapping/confusing realities. McEntire is a writer in need of a good editor. I would've liked this a lot more if I didn't have to keep going back to reread all of the dialogue to figure out whatever the characters are talking about. Sometimes it was actually clear enough, and I just wasn't playing close enough attention (it happens when you read a lot of teen fiction very quickly), sometimes it's there, but not emphasized enough (apparently the main character has a photographic memory when it comes to replaying conversations; most of us won't remember every single detail, especially if quite a few concepts are revealed in same conversation)--and sometimes there really wasn't anything there to warrant the reference. So, lots of (unintentional) skips and gaps that I feel a good editor should've been able to smooth out, for which the story unfortunately suffered. Also, Em's jokes often fall flat (just aren't funny) and her self-deprecation gets tiresome--the reader has long stopped considering her a crazy freak--why does she have to keep up with it? The writer has left room for a sequel, but don't know if the plot is satisfying enough to qualify. ( )

Someone please pinch me. I'm pretty sure I've died and gone to book heaven and, if Hourglass is what I can look forward to, I'm not coming back! Wow, just wow. I apologize in advance for all the rambling that will ensue. This book is so fantastic, so amazing, that I just cannot seem to express exactly how much I loved it. I'll try though, for you.

First of all, there are the characters. Emerson Cole takes her rightful place among my all time favorite female characters. She's sassy, she's fiery, and the best part is that Emerson isn't taken in by bedroom eyes and vivid smiles. Oh sure, she might notice them. However if you want to be a part of Emerson's life, you'd better be prepared to hold your own on the battleground of wit. The snark that comes out her mouth so naturally cracked me up, and I loved the chemistry between her and the other characters. Then there is Michael. Smooth, put together, and off limits for Emerson. The tension between them just crackles deliciously. Finally, and my favorite, the beautifully broken bad boy, Kaleb. This boy is a mess, but wow does he own it. In this humble reader's opinion, he is the only person who can stand their own next to Miss Emerson Cole.

The Science Fiction portion of Hourglass comes into play in Emerson's unique ability. She can see ripples from the past, and it's not doing her any favors in the normalcy department. I could definitely see that Myra McEntire had done her research on time travel. Everything that is presented is completely plausible, and as a regular reader of Science Fiction I found that amazing. In fact, this whole story is blended together so perfectly, so seamlessly, that I could almost believe I'd be walking down the street and come face to face with Emerson, or any one of her unwanted guests. Truth be told, the web that is woven in Hourglass is one that I wasn't able to pull out of, and I really didn't want to.

I know I'm rambling now, so I'll finish off with a last thought. I have read over 100 books so far this year, and sometimes they start to blend together. However, after finishing Hourglass, I am reminded that there are gems out there that stand out. Myra McEntire has written a stunner of a novel. Complete with realistic characters, gorgeously blended science fiction and paranormal elements, and one heck of a story line, this is a book that you need to read. Buy it.
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