Book Review: Hourglass by Myra McEntire

Timepiece (Hourglass #2) by Myra McEntire
Pages: 336
Grade: 8+ (this series is pretty clean, there is some kissing and talk of sex and some violence, but it’s all pretty tame)
Publisher: EgmontUSA
Series: Hourglass #2
Source: Netgalley
Goodreads | Amazon

Description: (from Goodreads) A threat from the past could destroy the future. And the clock is ticking...

Kaleb Ballard's relentless flirting is interrupted when Jack Landers, the man who tried to murder his father, timeslips in and attacks before disappearing just as quickly. But Kaleb has never before been able to see time travelers, unlike many of his friends associated with the mysterious Hourglass organization. Are Kaleb's powers expanding, or is something very wrong?

Then the Hourglass is issued an ultimatum. Either they find Jack and the research he's stolen on the time gene, or time will be altered with devastating results.

Now Kaleb, Emerson, Michael, and the other Hourglass recruits have no choice but to use their unusual powers to find Jack. But where do they even start? And when? And even if they succeed, it may not be enough...

The follow-up to Hourglass, Timepiece blends the paranormal, science fiction, mystery, and suspense genres into a nonstop thrill ride where every second counts.

Note: Unless you’ve just read Hourglass or have an incredible memory for detail you should go to Myra’s blog and read her Quick and Dirty Recap and then check out Murphys Law for an even more detailed play-by-play of what happened and who’s who.

Review: I know I loved Hourglass. My review of it doesn’t really go into too much detail about why (that was super helpful of me, wasn't it?) and honestly, I couldn’t remember a lot of the plot points from it (I’ve read a lot of other books since reading it).

I do remember loving Michael and Em together. I do remember being solidly on their “team”. However, in Timepiece, I’m suddenly really irritated at them, particularly golden boy, Michael. Mostly, I think that’s a testament to how much I loved having this story told from Kaleb’s point of view. He’s hurting and Em and Michael are (inadvertently) part of the cause. I spent the first 69% of the book wanting to kick them both (about 70% of the way in, Michael comes clean about why he's being kind of a dick and redeemed himself to me).

Timepiece picks up where Hourglass lets off and the hunt for crazed killer and timemesser (is that a thing? No? Well, I’m making it one.) Jack is underway. This book is action packed and full of new information about just how far reaching the consequences of Jack’s actions really are. We learn a ton more about Liam, the Hourglass founder and Kaleb's dad, as well as, more about his former colleagues and their plans for messing with time.

We get a lot more of Lily but a lot less of Em’s family (which disappointed me because I really dug her fam). Lily has some secrets of her own, as does her grandmother.

This book felt a lot less emotional and a lot more action/info oriented than Hourglass did, which is a little odd because we’re so focused on Kaleb and his extreme empathy abilities.

There’s plenty to cheer about for Kaleb fans though. He gets over Em and we all move on. Timepiece does end on a bit of a cliffhanger but not in an annoying way.

I love Myra McEntire’s writing style - it’s so fun and really down to earth (especially considering the Sci-fi/futuristic topic). Fans of Hourglass won’t be disappointed in this one.

Wasn't as intense as Hourglass, but still loved it! A great addition to this series.