• Transient Echoes

  • The Variant Saga, Book 2
  • By: J. N. Chaney
  • Narrated by: Steve Barnes
  • Length: 8 hrs and 29 mins
  • 4.6 out of 5 stars (158 ratings)

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Transient Echoes  By  cover art

Transient Echoes

By: J. N. Chaney
Narrated by: Steve Barnes
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Publisher's summary

It has been three years since the day of the Second Jolt. Thanks to the efforts of a select few, the world is finally moving on. As the Variant air begins to thin, humanity finds itself on the cusp of a new age of exploration, but at what cost?

After closing the rift - the source of all Variant - the hybrid child known as Terry has been transported to a distant world, far away from the only home he's ever known. Completely isolated, and haunted by voices from his past, he wanders through the ruins of an ancient civilization long forgotten.

Back on Earth, a young woman named Mei works tirelessly to uncover the secrets of the rift. Against orders, she searches for the truth, making an unprecedented gamble. Will her obsession bring the answers she so desperately seeks or will it cause even more destruction?

©2016 Jeffrey Chaney (P)2016 Jeffrey Chaney

What listeners say about Transient Echoes

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  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

the story was cleverly constructed

In the Amber Project we left Terry in a new world after he closed the rift, which will be called the Second Jolt. This story starts three years later, in the year 2350. There are two parallel stories in this book. On one hand, Terry is scouting around the new place were he got trapped and where the variant came from, and on the other hand, his friends John and Mei are investigating what could have happened to Terry, and whether he may still be alive. Mei leads an investigation team on the place where the Jolts took place, to check why there is an increasing radiation in this area and to investigate a new power source. The increasing radiation will be the main issue that will prevent them to get to the exact place where the Jolts originated, and where Terry got lost.

The style of this book is completely different to the first one, keeping the story fresh. It is more slowly paced and we are presented with two parallel stories. Chaney knows how to keep us interested though, since in both stories there are mysteries to be revealed, and we accompany the characters in their way to finding the truth. I think this is one of the aspects that I enjoyed most of this book: investigating and discovering things along with the characters, making hypothesis now and then. When an author gets this from their readers, I think it is a complete success. Chaney really knows how slowly unfold the truth and keep us interested until the very end.

Another strong point is how the characters are built. We are not given a zillion details about them but they are alive, they feel human, and one can easily connect with them.

I was surprised about this book being narrated by someone else than the first book, and it took me a while to get used to Steve Barnes' husky voice (in a way I felt that somebody was whispering in my ear), but his speech is clear and he successfully transmitted the characters' emotions.

This is a transition book, and there is still a lot to know about the world where Terry now lives. Transition books are hard to build, since you need to keep your readers interested while going from A to B. The two parallel stories helped to create this bridge, and the story was cleverly constructed.

Something that made me doubt a bit is that days seem to have the same duration on Earth and on the planet where Terry lives. As I have said, there is still a lot to be revealed about this new world, and I do hope we will get the answers to our questions. Building a transition book is difficult, but a good ending is even more difficult. Let's see what Chaney comes up with. I am impatient.

Audiobook was provided for review by the author.

Please find this complete review and many others at my review blog

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11 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Exciting sequel

This second audiobook in the Variant Saga continues the story of John, Mei and Terry. It picks up a few years after the second jolt and tells us the parallel stories of two different worlds. Terry is alone and fighting to survive in the harsh, strange world the explosion transported him to; new discoveries shock him and lead him on a poignant journey of discovery. Back at home, Mei is haunted by thoughts of Terry and, with John's help, she secretly works to find out what happened to him, leading to some unexpected finds and a glimmer of hope. I did find this narrator's whispery voice a little distracting at first but it grew on me in the end. This is a well written story that is just as entertaining and captivating as the first book. The parallel storylines compliment each other well and draw nearer together as the book progresses, leaving you dying for the two of them to converge. It is exciting, has plenty of action and his characters continue to grow in depth and appeal. In the end you are once again left dying for the next book to be out. I received this audiobook from the author at no cost in exchange for an honest review.

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5 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    4 out of 5 stars

Transient Echoes

Any additional comments?

It is a great story and follow up for the first book. Absolutely loved it, the only complaint I have is that now I have to wait for book 3 to satisfy the need I have to find out what happens!

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4 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

A Must Read!

This book has continued the saga from Amber Project. Again, the character development is amazing. Writing two different storylines in two different worlds is difficult to manage but JN Chaney manages it with skill. I can't wait to see what comes next!

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3 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

GREAT!

I really enjoy the journey that was taken on this book. Excellently written, beautifully orated, this book takes you to a new time.

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2 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    3 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Great Story, indifferent narration

Would you recommend this audiobook to a friend? If so, why?

Yes, the story is great. It picks up where Amber Project leaves off, in a stunning cliffhanger.

Did Steve Barnes do a good job differentiating all the characters? How?

I thought the narration was okay, but not great. It was just a little too unchanging to be a good dramatic reading.

Was there a moment in the book that particularly moved you?

When Terry lost his alien family--heartbreak!

Any additional comments?

I received this audio book for free in exchange for an honest review.

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  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

great continuation of a beautifully written series

Any additional comments?

Although I really didn't have many complaints about book 1, the character development in book 2 made this installment significantly more enjoyable for me. In some ways, Transient Echoes is more focused than its predecessor. Where book 1 spread over Terry's entire childhood, book 2 spans only several months... perhaps in this way it was easier to live the story with the characters.

There was a short time where I was disappointed that this book provided no glimpse into what life was like underground or what was happening politically... but I pretty quickly got over that, as the novel feels so well-balanced as it is.

I listened to this book via audio (whereas I read book 1) and, overall, I did enjoy the narration. The narrator did a great job with the alien language, and it was an overall easy listen. The one thing that irked me about the narration-author collaboration was that the "audio files" were read as if a transcript was being read... I found it quite distracting. Maybe it would have been too hard to follow, but I would have preferred a more descriptive title to the audio file with a more audio play type performance for these tidbits.

I received this audiobook from the author.

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2 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars

Transient Echoes

The saga continues! Mr. Chaney does an excellent job of describing new worlds. The fight scenes are great! The eeriness of Terry's wanderings through his past are reminiscent of many horror books I have read. Another great book in the series...I hate to have to wait to see what happens next!

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  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    3 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Slow but Worth it

Was slow reading throughout the book. BUT a good transition to book #3. The book itself truly is good enough that I put up with the narrator. I really hated how he used a 'whispery' voice. Almost didn't read the book because of it.I did enjoy the character developments. The story was somewhat predictable. Looking forward to the next book!

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  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

Absolutely Brilliant!

Audible made this an incredible experience. The narrator did a superb job making the story come alive and he didn't do any of the annoying voices, but rather had a fast, soothing way of talking. I highly recommend the audio version.

This story starts a few years after the first story left off and unlike the first book, this one is only told in alternating points of view from Terry and Mei. Chaney did an excellent job at giving this one a completely different feel while seamlessly continuing the same tale. There is non stop action that will have your heart racing, a number of surprising twists and turns, plenty of new characters, and an ending that will have you begging for book three!

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