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Hourglass
When Ben Adler gives in and grants his young daughter's wish, making a movie out of a TV show he used to produce, he knows he's going to have big problems. One of the leads from the original is a big star now, but the other's vanished into obscurity, leading a life far from the glitz and glamour of Hollywood.
Ben can also still remember how the two actors' scorching off-screen romance went up in flames. Undeterred, Ben goes forward with the project, recruiting Ash and Lee by dangling very attractive carrots before them.
The cameras start to roll, but the main action takes place off set. It's never easy to work with an old flame, or to handle the emotions that are bound to surface, but as two men who could never get enough of each other deal with a rekindled attraction, they discover that when it comes to love, there's always time for a retake.
Note: This book was previously released by another publisher, and has been re-edited and revised.
Ben can also still remember how the two actors' scorching off-screen romance went up in flames. Undeterred, Ben goes forward with the project, recruiting Ash and Lee by dangling very attractive carrots before them.
The cameras start to roll, but the main action takes place off set. It's never easy to work with an old flame, or to handle the emotions that are bound to surface, but as two men who could never get enough of each other deal with a rekindled attraction, they discover that when it comes to love, there's always time for a retake.
Note: This book was previously released by another publisher, and has been re-edited and revised.
291 pages, ebook
First published May 30, 2017
110 people want to read
About the author
Jane Davitt
64 books479 followersRetired from pro writing, pretty much. Any books where the rights are with me I've put up at A03, along with all my fic, which I'm still writing.
[Free reads and my fanfic are here:
Jane Davitt at AO3]
Thank you to all who read my books. It meant a lot.
[Free reads and my fanfic are here:
Jane Davitt at AO3]
Thank you to all who read my books. It meant a lot.
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Displaying 1 - 17 of 17 reviews
January 9, 2011
Ten years after Ash chooses his career over his lover Lee he gets an unexpected second chance at love. Is he up to the challenge of convincing the man whose heart he broke all those years ago to forgive him and give them another shot at love?
Hourglass is a very interesting story with three pretty distinct threads running through it. The story starts with Ben, a superpower in Hollywood but just a doting Dad when it comes to his daughter Samantha. When Samantha sees the videos for an old TV show and becomes hooked on it she convinces her Dad to make a movie based on the show. Now the hard part will be to get the original cast including the stars, Ash and Lee, back together. In the years since the show ended Ash has become a well known actor and Lee has disappeared from the business.
As the story unfolds we get glimpses of the show, of Ben and Samantha and also Ash and Lee, past and present. Once the men are convinced to do the movie they see each other for the first in years and despite the pain of their last meeting the deep attraction and love between them flares to life. But this time Lee is not willing to hide his orientation for a career he's really not interested in and Ash has to think about what he really wants in his future and what he's willing to do for it. Ash and Lee can't deny their love for long and quickly become lovers once more. Things are going well until a spontaneous kiss, seen by the wrong person, threatens to bring an end to things.
The near tragedy brings all the players in the story closer together and finally Ash and Lee's love comes full circle. I really liked how their relationship is shown against the backdrop of the show that brought them together. Both men are interesting and well drawn characters although Ash was a bit difficult to like at the beginning. He came across as someone more interested in his career than in love and his ability to easily justify the pain he caused was a bit off putting. That said I enjoyed his journey from movie star to loving partner and I was quite happy by the end of the story.
As I said in the beginning this story isn't solely about Ash and Lee. There is a good cast of secondary characters and Ben and Samantha especially are well written and fun. In fact I'd consider Ben a lead character despite not have a romantic pairing. He opens and closes the book and regularly appears throughout and his strong presence works well in the storyline.
Overall I found Hourglass to be well written and interesting. The story deals with the closeted celebrity trope and while it's not a favorite of mine the author did a nice job with it. I did find that the action towards the end felt a bit too pat but since it moved the story forward in the end it worked out well. The cast of characters is engaging, the sex is hot and the emotional intensity between the lovers was nice to read. I've enjoyed reading Jane Davitt's books in the past and was quite happy with this one as well. Recommended.
Hourglass is a very interesting story with three pretty distinct threads running through it. The story starts with Ben, a superpower in Hollywood but just a doting Dad when it comes to his daughter Samantha. When Samantha sees the videos for an old TV show and becomes hooked on it she convinces her Dad to make a movie based on the show. Now the hard part will be to get the original cast including the stars, Ash and Lee, back together. In the years since the show ended Ash has become a well known actor and Lee has disappeared from the business.
As the story unfolds we get glimpses of the show, of Ben and Samantha and also Ash and Lee, past and present. Once the men are convinced to do the movie they see each other for the first in years and despite the pain of their last meeting the deep attraction and love between them flares to life. But this time Lee is not willing to hide his orientation for a career he's really not interested in and Ash has to think about what he really wants in his future and what he's willing to do for it. Ash and Lee can't deny their love for long and quickly become lovers once more. Things are going well until a spontaneous kiss, seen by the wrong person, threatens to bring an end to things.
The near tragedy brings all the players in the story closer together and finally Ash and Lee's love comes full circle. I really liked how their relationship is shown against the backdrop of the show that brought them together. Both men are interesting and well drawn characters although Ash was a bit difficult to like at the beginning. He came across as someone more interested in his career than in love and his ability to easily justify the pain he caused was a bit off putting. That said I enjoyed his journey from movie star to loving partner and I was quite happy by the end of the story.
As I said in the beginning this story isn't solely about Ash and Lee. There is a good cast of secondary characters and Ben and Samantha especially are well written and fun. In fact I'd consider Ben a lead character despite not have a romantic pairing. He opens and closes the book and regularly appears throughout and his strong presence works well in the storyline.
Overall I found Hourglass to be well written and interesting. The story deals with the closeted celebrity trope and while it's not a favorite of mine the author did a nice job with it. I did find that the action towards the end felt a bit too pat but since it moved the story forward in the end it worked out well. The cast of characters is engaging, the sex is hot and the emotional intensity between the lovers was nice to read. I've enjoyed reading Jane Davitt's books in the past and was quite happy with this one as well. Recommended.
July 30, 2011
Very good m/m romance about a Hollywood producer whose 11-year old daughter falls in love with his tv series Hourglass, which only lasted two seasons, ten years ago. Under pressure, he agrees to make a follow-up movie, then has to get the estranged stars to agree to be in it... and hope that they'll get over hating each other and recapture some of their previous chemistry.
September 11, 2011
Have you ever picked up a book, started reading it and gone WTF? Hourglass did that for me.
I bought it purely because I love Jane Davitt's writing (possibly the ones she writes by herself more than the ones with Alexa). I didn't read the blurb first and found Ben - the guy whose POV the first chapter is written in - frankly obnoxious. Then Samantha his daughter arrived on the scene....
Now, I'm not one to stop reading because of unlikeable characters and have even rated books higher if the author can sell me a story where the main protagonists are less than perfect (Bad Company), but when I first picked up "Hourglass", it didn't grab me.
Maybe I wasn't in the mood.
I left it in my Mobipocket reader library along with all my other unread stories. Over the next few weeks, other purchases came and went as I read through them quickly, but still Hourglass remained. The weird thing was that my reader for some reason uses one cover as a default, so out of, say, thirty books, half may have one illustration. Every time I opened my reader the multiple images of an hourglass grabbed my attention. It was almost as if the book was yelling at me to read the damn thing.
Finally, I succumbed and am bloody glad I did.
There are only a couple of writers whose work resonates with me as being "original". Other readers may not see them that way, but something in their books or their characters jumps out as "different" and enjoyable, mainly because of that difference. Syd McGinley's Dr Fell and Jay Lygon "Chaos Magic" books fall firmly into that category. Interestingly they are also published by Torquere Press.
At this point of writing, I'm half way through Hourglass and dreading that Kate Mc's review of (Brilliant first half, shame about the rest) remark is correct.
So far so good. Now that I have the hang of what is going on, I'm enjoying the structure. The characters and their romance is one level, but the underlying circumstances with the real life parallels to shows like Torchwood and the little digs at the movie industry and the workers in it are worth reading for their own sake.
Ben is growing on me and even the presence of the daughter is not an eye-rolling diversion.
In fact, seeing the couple from Ben's POV adds another dimension to the story. The cynical onlooker. A device that Take My Picture could have used (see my review).
Reading on......
Part of the "problem" people have with the book is the amount of "telling" versus "showing" there is, particularly bits from Ben's POV where we gets lines like this:
Perhaps that's why I'm enjoying the book so much. There is freedom for me to fill in the gaps.
Which reminds me of one of my current peeves. There is a growing fashion in romance writing for everything to be shown (and I'm not just talking graphic sex scenes, but that's one symptom of it). I think it's great if we get a good balance between the two forms of writing. Used intelligently, in the appropriate place, and then read patiently, a good tell can be just, if not more rewarding.
Anyway reading on......
By now, Ben's really growing on me.
Two-thirds of the way through now. Still OK, still making sense. Logical relationship progression. Not too fast, not too slow.
Fucking each other once, no matter whether the earth moved or not, is not going to magically atone for ten years of having their lives fucked up. Some criticisms have been levelled at the tired old trope of the big misunderstanding being used, but that was only one aspect of their problem. They admit themselves that they weren't ready for a relationship at that stage, society was less accepting of celebrities being gay and an element of professional jealousy prevailed.
I think another reason I'm enjoying Hourglass is that the author treats her readers as people with intelligence. A rare occurrence. Take this bit for example:
Reading on.... Ooh, something unexpected happens. This must be the spoiler that Kate deleted. Hm, not too sure what I think of this development. I can see where the author is coming from, though, making a pretty heavy statement about the right of celebrities to live their lives in peace, without papparazi or the public thinking they own them, just because they see them regularly on their little rectangular boxes in their living rooms.
Reading on....
Dramatic, but hey, the whole incident parallels the television series they starred in which almost demanded something of this magnitude. In a way, their real life resembles a movie script (more of that later).
Also, I may have commented somewhere that reading half a good book and putting it down because the rest is no good is more rewarding than reading the whole of one mediocre book. Whle this may be true, the sentiment doesn't apply in this case.
There's nothing "wrong" with the last half of Hourglass. For starters, if you did stop, you'd miss the snarky scene between Ash and Ben at the swimming pool.
Lately I've noticed that too many authors just churn out book after book, filled with repetitive chunks of their own writing or are derivative of other people's work, complete with plots you could fill in after reading the first chapter, so it's good to discover that Jane has in a number of instances deliberately skipped the clichéd turn of events, eg people recognising someone when the obvious plot move would be not to.
And as for the show vs tell debate... the point is that that the author has some great "shown" scenes in the book. But they're kept for the important sections.
At no stage did I think these two guys were chicks with dicks. At no time did their angsting, or their dialogue feel anything but right for the character.
I like it when one hero can say to the other:
Sure, Lee's statement above about Ash was a spot on and accurate assessment of his faults. But that didn't stop him loving him, or as he so succinctly puts it later:
There was a word or two here and there I would have tweaked to an alternative that might fit better. But, hey, that's me, over-refining the text until it's almost too slick to be real.
And the sex?
Despite what Lee says above, the foreplay for the last, very satisfying sex scene was the best part of it. All "shown" beautifully, dahlings.
I loved the laugh-out-loud bits of dialogue (and there are lots of those). This is a feel good, smiley book if you let it be.
Now for the final zinger. “Why did the author start and finish the book through the eyes of Ben?” My best explanation is that this makes the love story between Ash and Lee feel like just that, a story boxed up and presented to the reader by Ben, the producer. Although we quickly switch into feeling it is their story, we get pulled back out often enough to give the impression that we’re watching this love affair unfurl on television - complete with interruptions - while segments of the TV series, magazine articles, horoscopes, action told from another point of view are slotted in, much like television commercials.
Whether or not you think, as a reader, this is a good thing or not remains to be seen. At least in this case those “breaks in the viewing” are relevant and act almost like a Greek chorus, commenting indirectly on what’s just happened or about to happen. Removed but pertinent.
To sum up. If you’re reading m/m romances to get a quick sexual titillation, then maybe this isn’t for you. (The sex/romance is there. I can point out the page numbers if you like!) If you’re looking for your standard boy meets boy, they have a bit of conflict but get together in the end, well that’s also there but that’s not all that’s there. If you’re looking for a story about two men in love presented in a way that suits that love, then that’s there in spades.
If you’re sick of the same old, same old and despair of the standard of m/m romances, then give “Hourglass” a burl, but first lose the expectations, lose the preconceptions about how m/m romances should be written. Love the characters for who they are, enjoy watching them connect and discover that there is a relationship beyond the sex. Savor the carefully crafted touches that make this book stand out far above the crowd.
It could have been written as a straight gay romance, but by “wrapping” up a simple love story and presenting it in a box, interleaved with sheets of “tissue paper” Jane has given me, at least, an unforgettable ride of a read.
Or, in this case, in the words of Samantha who by now I liked nearly as much as her Dad:
5.5 stars rounding down to 5.
I bought it purely because I love Jane Davitt's writing (possibly the ones she writes by herself more than the ones with Alexa). I didn't read the blurb first and found Ben - the guy whose POV the first chapter is written in - frankly obnoxious. Then Samantha his daughter arrived on the scene....
Now, I'm not one to stop reading because of unlikeable characters and have even rated books higher if the author can sell me a story where the main protagonists are less than perfect (Bad Company), but when I first picked up "Hourglass", it didn't grab me.
Maybe I wasn't in the mood.
I left it in my Mobipocket reader library along with all my other unread stories. Over the next few weeks, other purchases came and went as I read through them quickly, but still Hourglass remained. The weird thing was that my reader for some reason uses one cover as a default, so out of, say, thirty books, half may have one illustration. Every time I opened my reader the multiple images of an hourglass grabbed my attention. It was almost as if the book was yelling at me to read the damn thing.
Finally, I succumbed and am bloody glad I did.
There are only a couple of writers whose work resonates with me as being "original". Other readers may not see them that way, but something in their books or their characters jumps out as "different" and enjoyable, mainly because of that difference. Syd McGinley's Dr Fell and Jay Lygon "Chaos Magic" books fall firmly into that category. Interestingly they are also published by Torquere Press.
At this point of writing, I'm half way through Hourglass and dreading that Kate Mc's review of (Brilliant first half, shame about the rest) remark is correct.
So far so good. Now that I have the hang of what is going on, I'm enjoying the structure. The characters and their romance is one level, but the underlying circumstances with the real life parallels to shows like Torchwood and the little digs at the movie industry and the workers in it are worth reading for their own sake.
Ben is growing on me and even the presence of the daughter is not an eye-rolling diversion.
In fact, seeing the couple from Ben's POV adds another dimension to the story. The cynical onlooker. A device that Take My Picture could have used (see my review).
Reading on......
Part of the "problem" people have with the book is the amount of "telling" versus "showing" there is, particularly bits from Ben's POV where we gets lines like this:
The read-through a week earlier had been a disaster. Morden and Simons had sat as far apart as was humanly possible at a round table and said their lines to each other with an icy politeness that robbed them of meaning, or a bored mumble. Sure, no one expected a cold reading to be Oscar-material, but the tension had been palpable. The only time they'd behaved like professionals was when the script called for them to talk to someone else. For those scenes, they'd taken their heads out of their asses and actually given him something resembling a glimmer of hope that this movie would be halfway watchable.Now, in most m/m romances you would get this scene "shown", but then it would have to be in one of the character's heads, so it would have been uneven as neither would ever admit to themselves they were being pig-headed. So, by telling it from Ben's perspective, we are able to picture the scene ourselves simply because we already know the characters so well. Sure, we're not spoon-fed with it by seeing it in detail, but I can still picture everything that happens.
Perhaps that's why I'm enjoying the book so much. There is freedom for me to fill in the gaps.
Which reminds me of one of my current peeves. There is a growing fashion in romance writing for everything to be shown (and I'm not just talking graphic sex scenes, but that's one symptom of it). I think it's great if we get a good balance between the two forms of writing. Used intelligently, in the appropriate place, and then read patiently, a good tell can be just, if not more rewarding.
Anyway reading on......
By now, Ben's really growing on me.
"Son, the writers put a palomino in that scene," Ben said with his friendliest, scariest smile. "If you want to be the one to tell them that you couldn't get them what they wanted, if you want to be the one to destroy their artistic vision, just trample it to the ground, then go right ahead. They're in that little room beside the men's john."Pity he's straight! I might even be tempted to the dark side of m/f reading, if it was a short about him and his ex-wife, Maddy!
"The broom cupboard?"
"Is that what they're calling the writers' room these days?" Ben inquired innocently. "Like the green room or something?"
"No, I think it's actually a --"
"Go away," Ben said softly, with emphasis, tiring of the game.
Two-thirds of the way through now. Still OK, still making sense. Logical relationship progression. Not too fast, not too slow.
Fucking each other once, no matter whether the earth moved or not, is not going to magically atone for ten years of having their lives fucked up. Some criticisms have been levelled at the tired old trope of the big misunderstanding being used, but that was only one aspect of their problem. They admit themselves that they weren't ready for a relationship at that stage, society was less accepting of celebrities being gay and an element of professional jealousy prevailed.
I think another reason I'm enjoying Hourglass is that the author treats her readers as people with intelligence. A rare occurrence. Take this bit for example:
If this was a movie, the script would call for him to splash water on his face, stare at his reflection in the mirror, maybe punch a wall. Ash didn't want to do any of those things, which just went to show how artificial scripts were. He sat on the toilet, with the seat down, and stared at the floor, a spotless white tile, subtly patterned with swirls and with an iridescent gleam.I can really relate to that.
Reading on.... Ooh, something unexpected happens. This must be the spoiler that Kate deleted. Hm, not too sure what I think of this development. I can see where the author is coming from, though, making a pretty heavy statement about the right of celebrities to live their lives in peace, without papparazi or the public thinking they own them, just because they see them regularly on their little rectangular boxes in their living rooms.
Reading on....
Dramatic, but hey, the whole incident parallels the television series they starred in which almost demanded something of this magnitude. In a way, their real life resembles a movie script (more of that later).
Also, I may have commented somewhere that reading half a good book and putting it down because the rest is no good is more rewarding than reading the whole of one mediocre book. Whle this may be true, the sentiment doesn't apply in this case.
There's nothing "wrong" with the last half of Hourglass. For starters, if you did stop, you'd miss the snarky scene between Ash and Ben at the swimming pool.
Lately I've noticed that too many authors just churn out book after book, filled with repetitive chunks of their own writing or are derivative of other people's work, complete with plots you could fill in after reading the first chapter, so it's good to discover that Jane has in a number of instances deliberately skipped the clichéd turn of events, eg people recognising someone when the obvious plot move would be not to.
And as for the show vs tell debate... the point is that that the author has some great "shown" scenes in the book. But they're kept for the important sections.
At no stage did I think these two guys were chicks with dicks. At no time did their angsting, or their dialogue feel anything but right for the character.
I like it when one hero can say to the other:
"You're just one tangled mess of hang-ups and issues, you know that?"and the remark is uttered affectionately, naturally. The sort of dialogue two men would have.
Sure, Lee's statement above about Ash was a spot on and accurate assessment of his faults. But that didn't stop him loving him, or as he so succinctly puts it later:
Let me know when you've stopped emoting and I'll finish the foreplay and get to your favorite bit."
There was a word or two here and there I would have tweaked to an alternative that might fit better. But, hey, that's me, over-refining the text until it's almost too slick to be real.
And the sex?
Despite what Lee says above, the foreplay for the last, very satisfying sex scene was the best part of it. All "shown" beautifully, dahlings.
I loved the laugh-out-loud bits of dialogue (and there are lots of those). This is a feel good, smiley book if you let it be.
Lee laughed. That was Ash all over. If he was issued a halo in heaven, he'd probably ask if it made his ears look big. "You make bed head look good, trust me."Even the ending of the original television series is sigh-worthy.
Now for the final zinger. “Why did the author start and finish the book through the eyes of Ben?” My best explanation is that this makes the love story between Ash and Lee feel like just that, a story boxed up and presented to the reader by Ben, the producer. Although we quickly switch into feeling it is their story, we get pulled back out often enough to give the impression that we’re watching this love affair unfurl on television - complete with interruptions - while segments of the TV series, magazine articles, horoscopes, action told from another point of view are slotted in, much like television commercials.
Whether or not you think, as a reader, this is a good thing or not remains to be seen. At least in this case those “breaks in the viewing” are relevant and act almost like a Greek chorus, commenting indirectly on what’s just happened or about to happen. Removed but pertinent.
To sum up. If you’re reading m/m romances to get a quick sexual titillation, then maybe this isn’t for you. (The sex/romance is there. I can point out the page numbers if you like!) If you’re looking for your standard boy meets boy, they have a bit of conflict but get together in the end, well that’s also there but that’s not all that’s there. If you’re looking for a story about two men in love presented in a way that suits that love, then that’s there in spades.
If you’re sick of the same old, same old and despair of the standard of m/m romances, then give “Hourglass” a burl, but first lose the expectations, lose the preconceptions about how m/m romances should be written. Love the characters for who they are, enjoy watching them connect and discover that there is a relationship beyond the sex. Savor the carefully crafted touches that make this book stand out far above the crowd.
It could have been written as a straight gay romance, but by “wrapping” up a simple love story and presenting it in a box, interleaved with sheets of “tissue paper” Jane has given me, at least, an unforgettable ride of a read.
Or, in this case, in the words of Samantha who by now I liked nearly as much as her Dad:
"That was just perfect," she declared.
5.5 stars rounding down to 5.
April 13, 2011
I'd been really delighted with the previous outing I'd read from Davitt (Bound and Determined, cowritten with Alexa Snow) and I was quite looking forward to Hourglass, but instead, it was an incredible disappointment and an incredibly difficult read for so short a book. I'm a little amazed, because Davitt is a talented author and I honestly didn't expect something that read so much like (bad) fanfic with the serial numbers only lightly filed off. I'm not even sure where to start.
First of all, the pacing on the book is completely wonky. The book opens with a peripheral character (and one who I personally found really off-putting and unlikeable) and it's 22 pages before we even get to meet one of our main characters. We're on (iirc) page 77 before the two prospective lovers are even in the same space. For a book that ran only 191 page on my Nook, that's far too long to wait to get to meet our characters or to have them occupy the same space and too much time spent on a character that doesn't really matter.
The premise of the book is that the two protagonists, Ash and Lee, previously starred on a less-than-successful genre TV show that is getting a brief second life as a straight to DVD movie. Ash & Lee previously had a (down low) relationship that ended badly and the movie will be the first time they've seen each other in over a decade. I've read--and liked--enough fanfic with a similar premise to feel the idea is a solid one, rife with possibility, but I don't understand the choices Davitt made with the story and how she told it.
Which is actually another of my complaints: so much of the book is told, rather than shown. Much of the interaction and conflict that Lee and Ash have is rooted in their mutual (and mutually heartbreaking) past and is told less in flashback form than a more coldly told, "so and so remembered". This is true, as well, of large portions of the current action and, for me, it makes it much harder to emotionally connect with the characters or to care much about what happens to them or whether it all works out. I think telling stories have their place...but not in romance where, above all, I want to FEEL things.
Along with the pacing issues and the telling issues, the book's climax really slammed up against my fragile and fading suspension of disbelief.
And then, in keeping with the strange pacing that plagued the story, it's one of those stories that seems to end 10 times before it actually does, as if Davitt couldn't make up her mind where to place the final cut off. And though it does bring the story full circle for her to end as she began, with the noxious character of Ben and his daughter, it was the least satisfying or interesting of the places where it seemed she could have ended it.
Bound and Determined was so excellent I'm determined to give Davitt another chance, but Hourglass is just time I can't get back.
First of all, the pacing on the book is completely wonky. The book opens with a peripheral character (and one who I personally found really off-putting and unlikeable) and it's 22 pages before we even get to meet one of our main characters. We're on (iirc) page 77 before the two prospective lovers are even in the same space. For a book that ran only 191 page on my Nook, that's far too long to wait to get to meet our characters or to have them occupy the same space and too much time spent on a character that doesn't really matter.
The premise of the book is that the two protagonists, Ash and Lee, previously starred on a less-than-successful genre TV show that is getting a brief second life as a straight to DVD movie. Ash & Lee previously had a (down low) relationship that ended badly and the movie will be the first time they've seen each other in over a decade. I've read--and liked--enough fanfic with a similar premise to feel the idea is a solid one, rife with possibility, but I don't understand the choices Davitt made with the story and how she told it.
Which is actually another of my complaints: so much of the book is told, rather than shown. Much of the interaction and conflict that Lee and Ash have is rooted in their mutual (and mutually heartbreaking) past and is told less in flashback form than a more coldly told, "so and so remembered". This is true, as well, of large portions of the current action and, for me, it makes it much harder to emotionally connect with the characters or to care much about what happens to them or whether it all works out. I think telling stories have their place...but not in romance where, above all, I want to FEEL things.
Along with the pacing issues and the telling issues, the book's climax really slammed up against my fragile and fading suspension of disbelief.
And then, in keeping with the strange pacing that plagued the story, it's one of those stories that seems to end 10 times before it actually does, as if Davitt couldn't make up her mind where to place the final cut off. And though it does bring the story full circle for her to end as she began, with the noxious character of Ben and his daughter, it was the least satisfying or interesting of the places where it seemed she could have ended it.
Bound and Determined was so excellent I'm determined to give Davitt another chance, but Hourglass is just time I can't get back.
December 28, 2010
After first read-through, I'm a bit divided on how I feel about this story. On the one hand, I enjoyed it from beginning to end, but on the other I felt a little regret that the two lead characters didn't shine as much as the side characters.
I really like Jane Davitt's writing voice and this book is no exception. Although stories about actors/celebrities and the media are not usually my cup of tea, I still bought "Hourglass" on the strength of loving Jane's previous work. I'm glad I took the risk because I ended up enjoying this background more than I thought I would because of her sharp and amusing take on the vagaries of cult tv shows and their fans. That part was heaps of fun.
The only thing that didn't totally work for me were the two main protags, Lee and Ash. It's not that there was anything wrong with them. I enjoyed watching them work through the bitterness and resentment of past mistakes and what happens when career clashes with personal relationships. I find it a fascinating theme and found it interesting here. My main problem was that I felt the side characters Ben Adler and his daughter Samantha significantly overshadowed Lee and Ash in the personality department. Although both Ash and Lee were adequately fleshed out (I wish we'd seen more of Ash's vanity played out rather than Lee just reflecting on it), they just didn't chew the scenery like Ben did. Ben's caustic, selfish, ruthless but sometimes reluctantly soft-hearted characterisation was very amusing, and unfortunately Lee & Ash seemed to pale a bit in comparison.
Still, I did enjoy this a lot, so is on my "read again" pile.
I really like Jane Davitt's writing voice and this book is no exception. Although stories about actors/celebrities and the media are not usually my cup of tea, I still bought "Hourglass" on the strength of loving Jane's previous work. I'm glad I took the risk because I ended up enjoying this background more than I thought I would because of her sharp and amusing take on the vagaries of cult tv shows and their fans. That part was heaps of fun.
The only thing that didn't totally work for me were the two main protags, Lee and Ash. It's not that there was anything wrong with them. I enjoyed watching them work through the bitterness and resentment of past mistakes and what happens when career clashes with personal relationships. I find it a fascinating theme and found it interesting here. My main problem was that I felt the side characters Ben Adler and his daughter Samantha significantly overshadowed Lee and Ash in the personality department. Although both Ash and Lee were adequately fleshed out (I wish we'd seen more of Ash's vanity played out rather than Lee just reflecting on it), they just didn't chew the scenery like Ben did. Ben's caustic, selfish, ruthless but sometimes reluctantly soft-hearted characterisation was very amusing, and unfortunately Lee & Ash seemed to pale a bit in comparison.
Still, I did enjoy this a lot, so is on my "read again" pile.
March 9, 2011
This is a book to turn to when you're looking for something different. Yes, it has the actors/movie-making stuff, but the set-up is unique, and the characters of Ben - the producer/director - along with his daughter give the story life and complexity beyond the norm. The book is well-written, the characters are well-drawn and a few surprises along the way keep you wanting more. I also enjoyed the bits of t.v/movie script that begin each chapter.
July 9, 2011
A beautiful story about interrupted love.
When ten years ago Ash and Lee co-starred in Hourglass, a B-list sci-fi TV series, they became lovers. The show, directed by the famous Ben Adler, ran for 2 seasons. At the end of the 2nd season, however, Ash accepted an offer to star in a movie that took him to Vancouver. When Lee asked to go with him, Ash refused to take him because he was afraid that people would find out about him being gay. It broke Lee's heart completely. They were separated, and Hourglass was cancelled.
Fast forward to today. Ben Adler's 12-yr old daughter, Samantha, watched all episodes of Hourglass on his father's video collection (they were never released the VHS or the DVD edition to the public). She loved them, and begged her father to make the show into a movie with original cast. Ben couldn't refuse his daughter, so he put together everything to make it happened. After all, the show still had some followers, judging from the amount of fanfics he saw on the internet. But it's not that easy since Ash has gone on to become an Oscar winner, while Lee had quit the showbiz completely 10 years ago.
When Ben finally managed to find and convinced Ash and Lee to be in the movie, he held a press conference. The two leading actors, however, had not met each other yet. Ben planned a dramatic come back for Lee in that press conference. He was not prepared, however, that Lee would punch Ash's face when the two met. Unlike most m/m stories about separated lovers, here the two MCs do not hit the bed the minute they are reunited. Big part of the book is the dynamic of the two in getting together back. Even though they still care for each other, Ash is not ready to come out, and Lee is afraid he'd be broken heart again.
Now and then, we get a glimpse of some scenes from the original TV show. It's about a Rob and Steve. Rob was 'cursed' to have any of his wishes granted, with a price. For every granted wish, his life is shortened by one day.
This is such a nice story. The dynamics and tensions in the relationships between the two MCs are done very nicely. In a sense, I agree that perhaps the separation has been good for them, as it matured them. The supporting characters, especially Samantha, are great. It only made me wonder a bit about how an Oscar winner is afraid of coming out today, but that's minor.
When ten years ago Ash and Lee co-starred in Hourglass, a B-list sci-fi TV series, they became lovers. The show, directed by the famous Ben Adler, ran for 2 seasons. At the end of the 2nd season, however, Ash accepted an offer to star in a movie that took him to Vancouver. When Lee asked to go with him, Ash refused to take him because he was afraid that people would find out about him being gay. It broke Lee's heart completely. They were separated, and Hourglass was cancelled.
Fast forward to today. Ben Adler's 12-yr old daughter, Samantha, watched all episodes of Hourglass on his father's video collection (they were never released the VHS or the DVD edition to the public). She loved them, and begged her father to make the show into a movie with original cast. Ben couldn't refuse his daughter, so he put together everything to make it happened. After all, the show still had some followers, judging from the amount of fanfics he saw on the internet. But it's not that easy since Ash has gone on to become an Oscar winner, while Lee had quit the showbiz completely 10 years ago.
When Ben finally managed to find and convinced Ash and Lee to be in the movie, he held a press conference. The two leading actors, however, had not met each other yet. Ben planned a dramatic come back for Lee in that press conference. He was not prepared, however, that Lee would punch Ash's face when the two met. Unlike most m/m stories about separated lovers, here the two MCs do not hit the bed the minute they are reunited. Big part of the book is the dynamic of the two in getting together back. Even though they still care for each other, Ash is not ready to come out, and Lee is afraid he'd be broken heart again.
Now and then, we get a glimpse of some scenes from the original TV show. It's about a Rob and Steve. Rob was 'cursed' to have any of his wishes granted, with a price. For every granted wish, his life is shortened by one day.
This is such a nice story. The dynamics and tensions in the relationships between the two MCs are done very nicely. In a sense, I agree that perhaps the separation has been good for them, as it matured them. The supporting characters, especially Samantha, are great. It only made me wonder a bit about how an Oscar winner is afraid of coming out today, but that's minor.
March 3, 2011
From beginning to end, Hourglass is an engrossing read. I love 'coming out' stories, and this hits that trope perfectly. Former lovers and television co-stars Ash and Lee struggle toward reconciliation after being apart for ten years because Ash had feared that revealing he was gay would kill his career. These men might have been separated for a decade but that doesn’t mean they forgot about one another for one moment. Their journey back to each other is filled with epic fights, misunderstandings, hot make-up sex and, ultimately, forgiveness and love.
Jane Davitt is able to build complex yet flawed characters that the reader can identify with. I especially enjoyed the secondary character of Ben, who is the catalyst for bringing Ash and Lee together again and seemed completely believable as a hard-nosed, slightly alcoholic producer who would stop at nothing to make his little girl’s dream come true – and make a buck in the process.
While the tone of this novel is quite different from the author’s other stand-alone works, meaning it did not have the heavy angst of Wild Raspberries, I enjoyed it immensely because the characters of Ash and Lee resonated long after I finished the novel. I highly recommend Hourglass. I have read it twice; once for this review, and the second time just because I just wanted to enjoy Lee and Ash all over again.
Anyone who enjoys a steamy romance, characters getting a second chance at love, and bickering sexy actors who cannot keep their hands off one another will like this book!
Rated 4 Delightful Divas by Lasha !
Dark Divas Reviews
Jane Davitt is able to build complex yet flawed characters that the reader can identify with. I especially enjoyed the secondary character of Ben, who is the catalyst for bringing Ash and Lee together again and seemed completely believable as a hard-nosed, slightly alcoholic producer who would stop at nothing to make his little girl’s dream come true – and make a buck in the process.
While the tone of this novel is quite different from the author’s other stand-alone works, meaning it did not have the heavy angst of Wild Raspberries, I enjoyed it immensely because the characters of Ash and Lee resonated long after I finished the novel. I highly recommend Hourglass. I have read it twice; once for this review, and the second time just because I just wanted to enjoy Lee and Ash all over again.
Anyone who enjoys a steamy romance, characters getting a second chance at love, and bickering sexy actors who cannot keep their hands off one another will like this book!
Rated 4 Delightful Divas by Lasha !
Dark Divas Reviews
October 21, 2014
Ack, trying to write a review on a book I read a couple weeks ago during the peak of a deadline at work and trying to remember what I thought about it aint easy. I am becoming a fan of this author, one of the friends in my GR circle made a comment I completely agree with (wish I could remember who said it) that there is nothing better than discovering an author who ‘does it’ for you. Just the way they write connects with you, and I think this author does. Having said that, this is not my favorite of hers, but I liked it well enough. Took me a longer to finish than normal, but only because of work (and being too tired to read after a LOOONG day), not due it being a boring story. I liked the premise of it, and all told it delivered, but I wouldn’t say it was a stand-out story. I liked Ben with his daughter, but I didn’t necessarily like Ben himself. And while I enjoyed the romance between Lee and Ash, I don’t know that I got really invested in it. The two have chemistry; they pick up pretty quickly where they left off. But Ash has a very quick turn around and chance of heart for being the one who left Lee in the first place. He is quick to want to tell Lee he loves him, but it was too soon after being reunited and Lee still having hurt feelings. I also thought it the two were very indiscreet for trying to stay in the closet! I liked Lee a lot, felt he was a down to earth guy, love that he punches Ash right as soon as they see one another. Ash is a bit too good to be a true for a Hollywood type. I would have expected more attitude and he might have been more fun with it. Overall a good story and I’m happy with the ending. I absolutely intend to read more by this author!
June 10, 2016
Another great read by Jane Davitt. I think what I like about this book is that the characters are so real. They live their lives, make mistakes, but keep on going. Life goes on, but that doesn't mean they don't have regrets.
This story is about getting a second chance. For Ben, to make his daughter happy, he is willing to make this movie, to bring back to life on the screen one of the toughest periods in this life.
For Ash, who walked away to further his own career, it's a chance to try and make amends... as well as because it will look good to work on a project for charity.
For Lee, it was a chance to earn money... to enable him to complete the restoration on his grandfather's home. And deep down, to see Ash again.
Things work out though it's tough going, but as often happens, once people forgive and are willing to let bygones BE bygones, new opportunities open up and moving forward is easier with the support of people you care about.
Highly recommended!!
=====================================
1st read - Jul 28, 2012
2nd read - Jun 10, 2016
This story is about getting a second chance. For Ben, to make his daughter happy, he is willing to make this movie, to bring back to life on the screen one of the toughest periods in this life.
For Ash, who walked away to further his own career, it's a chance to try and make amends... as well as because it will look good to work on a project for charity.
For Lee, it was a chance to earn money... to enable him to complete the restoration on his grandfather's home. And deep down, to see Ash again.
Things work out though it's tough going, but as often happens, once people forgive and are willing to let bygones BE bygones, new opportunities open up and moving forward is easier with the support of people you care about.
Highly recommended!!
=====================================
1st read - Jul 28, 2012
2nd read - Jun 10, 2016
September 14, 2011
A story (the romance), within a story (the TV series), within a story (the movie). I can't imagine the skill it takes to do this, hats off to you, Ms. Davitt.
The relationship between the main characters was totally believable, with each of them pointing out the good, the bad and the ugly of the other. It's refreshing and original to see stereotypes broken down, left, right, and center. The secondary characters are vital to the story, at times becoming key to it. Nobody seemed to like Ben in the other reviews, or his daughter. I loved them both!
The electronic book formatting did not make any distinction (i.e. italics, quotation marks, etc.) when excerpts or articles where inserted into the story, not even spacing out the chapters, and that pulled me out of the story a couple of times. Other than that, it was as close to perfect as it can get.
The relationship between the main characters was totally believable, with each of them pointing out the good, the bad and the ugly of the other. It's refreshing and original to see stereotypes broken down, left, right, and center. The secondary characters are vital to the story, at times becoming key to it. Nobody seemed to like Ben in the other reviews, or his daughter. I loved them both!
The electronic book formatting did not make any distinction (i.e. italics, quotation marks, etc.) when excerpts or articles where inserted into the story, not even spacing out the chapters, and that pulled me out of the story a couple of times. Other than that, it was as close to perfect as it can get.
July 12, 2012
It was wow. Not what I was expecting despite knowing it was by Jane Davitt. Her books are always deep feeling even if they plot and the characters never seem to go deep into themselves. Maybe that is why. It was a good read, and definitely something that is in my favorites on my kindle and will be a re-read for a sad day.
August 30, 2012
I like Davitt's narrative voice, and I'm sloooowly working my way through her back catalog.
Unfortunately, I read this long enough ago that I don't really remember which details I liked or didn't. I did like the parallel TV plot/Real Life plot conceit. And I'll be reading more of Davitt's books. :-)
Unfortunately, I read this long enough ago that I don't really remember which details I liked or didn't. I did like the parallel TV plot/Real Life plot conceit. And I'll be reading more of Davitt's books. :-)
September 24, 2011
It's a problem when you love more the secondary personages (Ben and Sam) than the MC.
The ending, with the homophobic guy was too unrealistic for me.
The ending, with the homophobic guy was too unrealistic for me.
June 26, 2012
el comienzo me gusto mucho, pero en mi opinion muy rapido le perdono Lee a ASh ...soy un poco rencorosa parece jaja
pero entretenido igual
pero entretenido igual
July 25, 2016
Re-read. Love it. But I'm left wanting more from the characters. In the last words of the character, Samantha, "I need to know what happens next!"
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