Titan

Gaean Trilogy, Book 1

By: John Varley

Narrated by: Allyson Johnson

Length: 10 hrs and 26 mins

Publisher's summary

John Varley's monumental trilogy - Titan, Wizard, and Demon - has achieved cult status, hailed as a modern triumph of the imagination by critics and fans.

It begins with humankind's exploration of a massive satellite orbiting Saturn. It culminates in a shocking discovery: the satellite is a giant alien being. Her name is Gaea. Her awesome interior is mind-boggling - because it is a mind. A mind that calls out to explorers...and transforms all who enter.

Download more titles in John Varley's Gaea series, including book 2, Wizard, and book 3, Demon.

©1979 John Varley (P)2008 Audible

great story, mediocre reader

Amazing, thought provoking story, but the reader struggles with characterizing the voices. It could have been much better.

Interesting story but..

The story is a bit slow in places but it's because the author is setting up the rest of the story. There is more sex than I expected but I feel like it's an interesting exploration of sexuality and gender.

That said the production is awful. this is mostly because it starts out with loud music over top of the narrator's voice. It then stops in the middle of the book and reintroduces it like it's starting at the beginning with more music. it's quite jarring and really takes away from the story. the narrator herself isn't bad and it's a shame that those mistakes are there.

Excellent performance

I've long been a fan of Varley's work and was thrilled to find they'd found a good *female* narrator for the Gaea trilogy. She handles the different "voices" of the different characters quite well, though after awhile the plainsong dialog of the Titanide language got on my nerves. I'm not sure how she could have given a vocal flavor otherwise, and it's densest in the first book before the Titanides learn English. So, that's really the only quite minor drawback.

The whole trilogy is excellently-written and this is quite a worthy performance.

What a great story!

This review covers the entire trilogy. In the past 20 years, I read the entire trilogy 3 times. I was so delighted when I discovered that Audible had recorded an unabridged version of all three books. I had never heard of the narrator before, but it only took me about a minute of listening to realize that no one else could have done a better job. Ms. Johnson read this book as if she positively loved it! I don't know if she did or not, but her tone of voice was so expressive, even when reading simple narration as opposed to conversation, that I had to think she was enjoying the reading of the books as much as I was enjoying the listening. I'm not going to provide any "spoiler alerts", but I do think that some things got a little bit over the top in Demon (Book 3). But I enjoyed a world in which there was a God that could actually be approached and who made some extremely interesting creatures. For the most part, the book was well-paced and the main characters and most of the minor ones were well-defined. I was sorry to see the series end. But it did end at an appropriate point. I know a book is good when I am glad to be in a traffic jam so that I can listen to more of it. And this book made me want to drive in rush hour all the time. I am definitely going to look for more books narrated by Ms. Johnson!

Longtime Reader / First Time Audio Version

I've been a fan of the Gaean Trilogy for a long, long time, for this re-read I decided to try the Audible version. Aside from the annoying music, Allyson Johnson's performance was superb.

my all time Favorite list Alyson Johnson is great

Always been 1 of my favorite series and writer and allyson Johnsons narration is about the best -- ive physically read and listened to this series many times and narrator does a fantastic job

Opening Salvo in an Amazingly Inventive Trilogy

After having read the print version of TITAN at least four times this story is to me very familiar. There was a time when we read Science Fiction for the world building alone, or at least I did anyway. Books like Niven’s RINGWORLD, Clarke’s RENDESVOUS WITH RAMA, are in the same category as TITAN. The difference is that TITAN has aged better; and what is more, it is the opening salvo in the amazingly inventive GAEAN TRILOGY. This first novel can be considered a prolog to the series which takes on a very different, and wonderful, character, and a more ominous tone, with the second book, WIZARD. This was my introduction to John Varley and the sense of wonder that it engendered in me as a youth still lingers. And while I am a very different reader these days, I can still recapture that wide-eyed glint I got the first time I read TITAN. If you have not experienced this novel I envy you, for you are about to relive a part of your childhood, or maybe partake in an experience from which you were deprived as a youngster.

Allyson Johnson's narration took me a few hours to warm to. Once I decided that her voice fit the character Gaby quite well, I was able to learn to like her, but it took some doing. I think that she made some questionable vocal choices for some characters. Johnson manages to find excellent voice characterizations for both Cirocco and Gaby. My chief complaint, and what proved to be the greatest obstacle in letting her voice into my head, is her choice to portray the supposedly lyrical musical voices of the mighty Titanides in a wispy monotone.

Surprisingly Terrific

Where does Titan rank among all the audiobooks you’ve listened to so far?

I would put it near the top of my second tier. I thought it was really good and I plan on reading the rest of the series.. I purchased it based on recommendation from an audible listener I follow (Michael) and I agree with his overall assessment. Initially I thought it was a bit juvenile but as the story went on I found myself contextualizing it in the era it was written and found it to be charming and entertaining. Not heavy handed or dark, but well plotted, clever and a lot of fun.

This is my first reading of Varley and overall II thought it was great. You just have to realize that this is classic, Sci Fi from the 1970's and though I wouldn't cal it dated it is emblematic of that classic period in Sci FI. Good stuff.

Who was your favorite character and why?

Sciraco is probably the template for many strong female leads. I grew to like her and she really drives the whole story.

Have you listened to any of Allyson Johnson’s other performances before? How does this one compare?

She was stunning in Hyperion, and she is equally good here. the material is less heavy, almost light hearted and she does a great job.

If you were to make a film of this book, what would the tag line be?

Read the book instead!!!!!!

Any additional comments?

Great production, Good story, well worth the credit. Escapist Sci Fi at its best.

A GOOD READ from a great book!

Where does Titan rank among all the audiobooks you’ve listened to so far?

Although Titan is rather old in SYFI it is still an excellent read and will probably not go out of style for another 25 years.

Who was your favorite character and why?

The young woman who showed such bravery in the face of adversity.

Which scene was your favorite?

Cimbing the great "Root tree" to the top of the world.

If you were to make a film of this book, what would the tag line be?

Titan

Any additional comments?

Loved it in print 25 years ago. Still a great book.

enjoyable

Where does Titan rank among all the audiobooks you’ve listened to so far?

High on the list

Who was your favorite character and why?

the main character successfully carried you thru

Have you listened to any of Allyson Johnson’s other performances before? How does this one compare?

my first Allyson Johnson book

Any additional comments?

thoroughly enjoyable