HOURGLASS by Myra McEntire

Hello swoonies!

First? SOME SWOONAGE:

OH SNAP! We’re bringing out the big guns. Go ahead, stare. I know I won’t be judging you. I looked at it for about 20 minutes before I was able to continue typing.

So, why the big guns, you ask? Well, today’s Swoony Rec is HOURGLASS by Myra McEntire and HOLY SWOON BATGIRL!

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?

Lo says: Okay, full disclosure time. Myra McEntire is a Team Root sister, and so of course we’re going to love whatever she writes because – duh – we think our agent has exquisite taste. But this had been on my to-read pile for awhile and in part it was the premise of this book that made us think Holly would be a good fit for us. But the Team Root-centric plug ends there: we only rec books on this site that we sincerely enjoyed, and HOURGLASS was an awesome read.

Emerson is badass. She is tiny but scrappy, throwing grown men over her shoulder without any hesitation. She says what she means, knows what she wants, and most of the time operates entirely without filter. And I LOVE her. Lo and Emerson would be an awesome duo: Amazon girl meets Tiny Ninja. CAN YOU SEE THE AWESOME?

There were a ton of laugh-out-loud moments that I wanted to read out loud to The Husband or The Toddler, neither of whom would appreciate it out of context. McEntire is seriously funny. She’s also really cute on Twitter and one of those wonderfully supportive YA authors we just love to love.

And oh, the guy. Michael is super, insanely swoony. There’s something both modern and old-timey about him. He’s a gentleman with a teasing smirk. He’s got the loyal one-woman vibe with, clearly, a little experience under his belt. My only Michael complaint? Sometimes I hated how secretive he was. I understood why he was written that way, but still. Even with that minor frustration, he’s so sweet and rawr, so clearly drawn, I could imagine every one of his expressions. I’d like to lick his eyebrows.

What? Don’t look at me like that.

So, true story: I’m reading the book, flailing as I do on Goodreads and Twitter (this time specifically about Michael and His Hotness) and Myra replies, saying, “Have you… met… Kaleb?” And I was all, “No, because I’m reading at the pace of a blind lemur. My children need to be fed again today. What is up with that? I fed them the other day already. Alas I am only on page 80.” Or maybe I just tweeted that last part. And she was all, “Oh just wait…” And I said, “But if he is pierced and/or tatted, I am your minion.” And she said, “Then I own you.”

And she does.

Because Kaleb? NOMS. He’s such a cocky+sweet+flirty player I’m surprised Christina hasn’t claimed him for herself. [christina: I am sooooo reading this on the plane Monday.]

Kaleb was so pretty I was jealous. Pretty with ripped muscles and a tattoo of a red dragon covering most of his upper body. “Yes ” he said. “I cook.”

“Do you usually wear a wife beater and, ” I pushed him back a little by his shoulder “an apron that says ‘Kiss the Cook’ while you’re doing it?”

He leaned so close to me my heart skipped a couple of beats. “I’ll wear it all the time if you’ll consider it.”

Still, it’s a testament to McEntire’s Swoony Boys that she can write a male character with tatts and confidence and who is by all descriptions a giant (Kaleb), and STILL I root for the other guy (Michael). GOOD GOOD WOMAN. I MELT. And don’t fear. It’s not even a rehashed love-triangle. The dynamic is different and real and…well here:

“Hey, bro, do you think you can put Shorty back on her chain?”

I stepped forward with my hands on my hips, only slightly intimidated to find Kaleb almost eye level with me when he was seated and I was standing.

“First of all, no one is the boss of me but me. Secondly, if you ever reference my ‘chain’ again, I will kick your ass.” I jabbed him hard in the chest with my finger. Possibly breaking it. “And thirdly, don’t call me Shorty.”

Kaleb sat silently for a second, his eyes wide as he looked at Michael. “Where did you get her? Can you get me one?”

I blew out a loud, frustrated sigh and dropped down beside Michael, who didn’t even try to hide his smile. “You should probably apologize to Emerson.”

“I am sorry.” Kaleb grinned at me. “Sorry I didn’t meet you first.”

I gotta admit, I loved the romantic tension (there were a few moments where my heart actually did that dippy-soar thing that is really my definition of swooning). I even made Christina read this part at dinner:

He bent down burying his face in my neck. I reached back to grab onto the iron bars behind me to hold myself up. My jacket slipped off my shoulders. I was pretty sure I was on fire and at that moment I would have sworn that bursting into flame was a glorious way to go.

The plot was fantastic, and because there were some really awesome things left open (Lily in particular), I’ve already pre-ordered TIMEPIECE (June 12, 2012).  Honestly you guys, it’s a fun read with a great premise, sassy chick and hot boy. Go read it and tell me what you think. This one gets: Badass Chick on Board and Swoony Boy Alert! ::YUM::