Variant

By: Robison Wells

Narrated by: Michael Goldstrom

Length: 8 hrs

Publisher's summary

Benson Fisher thought that a scholarship to Maxfield Academy would be the ticket out of his dead-end life.

He was wrong.

Now he’s trapped in a school that’s surrounded by a razor-wire fence. A school where video cameras monitor his every move. Where there are no adults. Where the kids have split into groups in order to survive.

Where breaking the rules equals death.

But when Benson stumbles upon the school’s real secret, he realizes that playing by the rules could spell a fate worse than death, and that escape - his only real hope for survival - may be impossible.

©2011 Robison Wells (P)2011 HarperCollinsPublishers

School's in...Forever!

If you could sum up Variant in three words, what would they be?

Institutionalized (I just wanted a Pepsi) Mindfu$$ing...Stepfordites.

What did you like best about this story?

Yet another story directed for young audiences, that I, an adult took a chance on, and I am glad I did. It appears that many of these stories today, apart from the Gone with the werewolf teenie romances, are smartly written with the thrills and surprises I like also including the Hunger Games, Maze Runner, Lockdown, etc.

Best book ever

I love get the book and read it.it is 10 out of 10. Everyone I know loves it and you should love it too.

Great s

Loved It, very good book and very big plot twist, going to start and read Feedback now, this is an amazing series

Twists that I never saw coming.

As someone who attended a boarding school I found this story even more creepy. There's some really great twists in this story that put it in the definite sci-fi category. The author came up with a great idea, made you care about at least some of the characters, and hunger, along with the main character, to find out what the heck is really going on. It's a very quick read but didn't feel really rushed. The style is clean and makes sense for the narrator's thought process.

cant wait for the sequel

If you could sum up Variant in three words, what would they be?

unexpected unusual unique

What other book might you compare Variant to and why?

unsure if it was ever a book but it reminded me of an old sifi movie logans run

Variant

This book is such a thrilling, amazing, and funny book full of plot twists. If you only read one book on audible I urge you to read this one😄

my childhood

i loved this book as a teenager. amazing storyline. you can tell it’s for young adults, but i still enjoy it as an adult. thank you for putting this story up audible :)

variant kept my interest

What made the experience of listening to Variant the most enjoyable?

Compelling story

Who was your favorite character and why?

Benson.

Which character – as performed by Michael Goldstrom – was your favorite?

I enjoyed Benson and Becky.

Any additional comments?

It was a good story and held my interest. I also enjoyed the reader of the book. I hope there are more boos in this series as I felt the ending was a little up in the air.

Decent, if Unoriginal

Variant is an easy, undemanding read featuring a slow burn mystery and a plot that, if not unique, flows. It is the first in a series and, although abruptly ends with a 'big reveal', has enough surprises to keep the reader following the story. A lack of sappy romance lifts the book but savvy readers will soon realize this twist has been done many times.

Plot: Benson has been shuffled between foster care parents, mostly cold and abusive individuals who just want an extra unpaid hand around the house/work. So when he finds and wins a scholarship at a prestigious boarding school, he jumps at the opportunity. But once he's inside, he finds a micro society run by the students and monitored from afar by the adults. There's no escape from school and he must find his way among gangs, violence, and rules that, if broken, mean you disappear forever.

Benson is a relatable character and the author does a good job of bringing many interesting personalities into the mix. I felt the plot had been thought through and definitely enjoyed the mystery and the tension as Benson has to quickly adapt to the prison in which he is thrown.

As with all of these type of teen books, I really have to suspend disbelief that the people running the prison are stupid enough to let events happen as they do. As well, the final mystery reveal was extremely disappointing - we've seen this plot before (specifically, a 1970s movie with the exact same twist, but with a community of adults). In fact, the ending was so unoriginal that it took all interest away from me wanting to continue the series further.

Note: I listened to the Audible version and the narrator did a decent job.

Variant (Variant #1) by Robison Wells

PJV Quickie: Sticky on the believability factor but high on the entertainment scale, VARIANT by Robison Wells had me engrossed from the beginning. But, I’ll admit I was cross comparing it to a few other Young Adult Dystopian novels as I read.

Review:

Benson Fisher, the main character of Variant is your typical lost boy. He is a product of foster care, doesn’t fit in at any school he goes to and is resigned to the fact that his life is messed up before it has even begun. Until he gets a scholarship to Maxfield Academy. Which, is surprising since his grades aren’t that good and he lied on the application. But, who cares about that. He’s about to go to a great school.

He is all excited, until he is dropped off at the front gates and his ride high-tails it out of there without a backwards glance. Maxfield Academy isn’t a school, it is a prison, with no guards but the children within the walls. There is no way out and the people within can’t be trusted. There are rules on top of rules to be followed and if you break those rules…you are never seen again.

Sounds exciting right? It is. The book keeps going and going, it sucks you in from the beginning and has excellent pacing in the beginning. I enjoyed Benson and the way Robison Wells developed his character, in the beginning. He was likable, even in a very tumultuous plot. The story was filled with suspense and hidden compartments which kept the book interesting. But, what I keep mentioning is…in the beginning. Then it gets to a point where Benson just turns into a very dumb character, his actions are dumb, selfish and illogical. Because of his actions the plot progresses, but it is obvious that his actions were written to carry the plot instead of a logical character reaction.

Then you are hit with the big surprise of the plot, which I won’t reveal because of spoilers, but with the reveal, the main character again reacts differently then I would have expected. Everything does seem to converge in the end — but then that is it, the end. Most of the plot is still unresolved with the ending of this book, so while exciting, it left me with a feeling that I put a book down in the middle and then lost the book…or forgot about it. Which isn’t that favorable a feeling for me.

Recommendations:

I would recommend this more for younger boys, instead of the usual Young Adult fans. In fact I would probably put this in categories of Middle Grade instead of YA, just because of the similarities in crafting. The male lead and the sketchy plot will probably leave the usual young adult dystopian fans lacking. They might also find the strong resemblance to THE MAZE RUNNER also a bit on the distasteful side. Fans of Middle Grade, male leads, ages 11 – 15 should enjoy.
Similar Young Adult Dystopian Novels & 3 Star Ratings:

The Maze Runner (Maze Runner, #1) by James Dashner
The Knife of Never Letting Go (Chaos Walking, #1) by Patrick Ness