Review: Hourglass

Hourglass, by Myra McEntire. The summary:

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 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?

Full of atmosphere, mystery, and romance, Hourglass merges the very best of the paranormal and science-fiction genres in a seductive, remarkable young adult debut.

So honestly? I’m not sure how I feel about this book. There were so many things that drove me crazy, and admittedly I was tempted to give up a couple times. For one, the writing was definitely not my type--it was a little too melodramatic for my tastes. I was seriously rolling my eyes at least once per page. Like this description of Michael:

His black hair was on the longish side--no help there either. Casually sexy, but no definitive style. I focused on his face. Clean shaven, but I’d bet his five o’clock shadow was heavy. Wickedly arched eyebrows accented long-lidded dark eyes. Olive skin suggested Mediterranean ancestors, and his defined cheekbones were congruous with the angles of his face. The exception was his very full mouth. His lips disturbed me.

HIS LIPS DISTURBED ME?!? Do you see what I’m talking about?!? I really cannot handle over-the-top writing. It’s the one thing guaranteed to turn me off a book.

And, in case you couldn’t tell from the excerpt above, this book has a major case of insta-love going on. Admittedly, there’s an explanation for why Emerson and Michael are crazy about each other from the start, but that doesn’t explain why Kaleb, Michael’s friend, falls for Emerson immediately too. It was seriously getting ridiculous. Especially since I wasn’t particularly fond of Emerson. I really could not see why these two smokin’ hot guys were so in love with her.

But the book did have redeeming qualities. The plot itself was pretty interesting actually--even if it didn’t get started until three-fourths of the way through the book. And there was one plot point towards the very end that I definitely did not see coming, so I totally loved that. Another redeeming quality was Emerson’s brother and sister-in-law. They were such good people. It takes a lot of love to deal with someone with as big of problems as Emerson has. Oh, and of course the two hot guys mentioned above didn’t hurt. Even if it did annoy me that they were both in love with Emerson for no reason.

Overall, this wasn’t really my type of book because of the writing and the whole insta-love thing, but I am glad that I didn’t give up on it. The last fourth of the book really saved it, in my opinion. I probably won’t be picking up the sequel, but if you’re more of a paranormal fan than I am, this book might be more to your taste than it was to mine.