The third story in the Variant saga takes us from 3 perspectives which intertwine at various point to differing degrees, we have John, Mei and their team at the outpost, Terry and Ludo on their mission to locate Talo and Ysa and then the introduction of Lena Sol and the high up’s of Everlasting. My favourite of the 3 though is Ludo and Terry, the pure fantasy element of their story drew me in completely; the anxious page turning of their quest, hoping they don’t get caught and becoming embroiled in what are JN Chaney’s trademark awesome fight sequences. New characters such as Hux and Plead are endearing and a joy to read, I’m hoping that we haven’t seen the last of Hux as Wavemaster, he could easily have a spin off series of his own!
That’s not to say I didn’t enjoy the other paths in the book, the earlier sections relating to the outpost contained (unsurprisingly) a lot of military style speak and audio logs which I struggled with a bit, however when their story crosses over around the others the team come into their own as they have the opportunity of exploring in greater depth the new world around them
Whilst everlasting presents itself as a technologically advanced Utopia it is clear that there are the beginnings of fraying around the edges, sinister mechanical guardians patrol the overbearing city wall, a wall which has ended up shielding the inhabitants from the variant gas which threatens their existence much as it did on Earth before the 2nd Jolt.
Whilst Terry and Ludo’s Journey is clearly dangerous, John and Mei’s is not so clear cut, it hasn't gone unnoticed that they are able to breathe the variant air with ease - a coveted commodity.
Lots is revealed and set in motion in this part of the saga and the final few chapters give you a glimpse of all the wonderful and exciting things to come for the final chapter!
