Transient

Immortal Wake #1

by Zachry Wheeler

* B.R.A.G. Medallion Honoree
* Readers' Favorite® 5-Star Selection

In a dark and distant future, death is obsolete.

Jonas is a transient: a human spy living as an eternal. His mission is simple: always learn, never get caught.

In the year 2578, an immortal regime controls the planet. Endless war has pushed humanity to the brink of extinction. Desperate to survive, the remaining factions deploy teenage spies, hoping to defeat the enemy from within.

After years in the lion's den, Jonas has grown to admire the eternal civilization. He is learning to love what he blindly hated, blurring the mission and himself.

But a reckoning is coming. The fates of billions hang in the balance. When the axe falls, Jonas must choose between his family and his species.

Genres: Science Fiction, Fantasy, Dystopia, Vampires, Amazon, Fiction, Urban Fantasy

169 pages, Kindle Edition

First published November 1, 2016

About the author

Zachry Wheeler is an award-winning science fiction author. His many interests include photon hunting, full-contact chess, and vertical wit. He lives on Earth with his wife and cats. Learn more at ZachryWheeler.com, where you can join his email list and receive a FREE limited edition eBook.

Reviews

[S.E. Sasaki · Rating 5 out of 5]

Having in the past read Bram Stoker’s Dracula, Octavia Butler’s Fledgling, and Anne Rice’s entire vampire series, I was pleasantly surprised to encounter the ‘eternals’ of Zachary Wheeler’s novel, Transient. Wheeler presents the human versus vampire conflict in a new light. In the beginning of the novel, one is left wondering what a ‘transient’ is, as the protagonist - Jonas - goes about his ‘night’ miles underground. Jonas has a deep secret which he guards carefully from all of his friends. He is lives a double life, always living in fear of being discovered. When he is given a chilling ultimatum, he is forced to question everything he was taught as a child growing up and to analyze his beliefs and motives for his actions. One is left wondering, until the very last page, what road he is going to choose.

Although the story deals with an Earth inhabited by ‘vampires’, I would not call this a horror novel. It is a story about differences and ultimately the theme is not so much one of good versus evil - as we see in so many vampire novels - but about what it truly means to be human.

This is an engaging novel that will make you think. Highly recommended.

[S. Thomas · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wheeler went someplace new in the world of vampire fiction! Transient reverses the roles of vampires and humans. Jonas blends into the world of the Eternals despite the fact that he’s still mortal. When the time comes for the last remnants of humanity to strike back and save their planet, where will his loyalty lie? With the Eternals in their Utopian society or with his people and their faith?

Not only was Wheeler’s world building creative, but article exerts from the various handbooks used by the citizens of this Earth after the rule of humanity keep the reader up to speed without bogging down the story itself with info dumps. I liked this strategy. Wheeler also cleverly used the breaks to build suspense.

I ran into a Facebook post in a group I love called Scifi Roundtable and it linked to a free ebook of Transient on Amazon. I love free books and the pressure of a hefty TBR pile, but this one is worth full price. Go buy, I won’t be offended if you don’t finish my review. You can touch base with me again for another recommendation at LARC-SciFi(dot)com after you’ve enjoyed Wheeler’s world.

Also thanks to Wheeler and all authors who do not use DRM. I listened to the .mobi of this book through Bluetooth on the app eReader Prestigio, but the GPS lady won’t read DRM activated titles. Yeah, I get it nay-sayers, you don’t want people stealing your stuff. People that pirate something can still leave reviews for one, and for two, you aren’t going to get paid from that market whether they read your book or someone else’s. My books are DRM free, so I’m not just ranting theory here.

I like a book that doesn’t need good characters versus evil characters. I found myself sympathizing with either side of the conflict at different parts of the story.

I’d like a sequel.

[A.E. Lowan · Rating 5 out of 5]

Transient by Zachry Wheeler follows the story of Jonas, a human spy embedded in the eternal-held city of Seattle. Eternals, blood-drinkers who in another age might have called themselves vampires, have taken control of the world and pushed humans to the brink of extinction. After years of war, the eternals have created a stable, nearly utopian society, subsisting on the blood of animals and sparking an age of egalitarian social and technological advancement. An age that the few humans who have survived will do anything to bring to an end. The humans have embedded spies, transients, among the eternals who use drugs to hide themselves and slow their aging. These transients study the eternals they hide among and search for a weakness to destroy them all. A weakness they may have found.

I enjoyed Transient very much. The story is told largely through journal entries from the main character as well as deep inside Jonas’s own conflicted mind. Jonas was three-dimensional and complicated, struggling with the anti-eternal programming of his youth and the reality of living and loving within the eternal society. Wheeler’s journal entries cover various parts of the history between the eternals and the humans they have replaced – everything from the war between them and the lawless years after the war began to the dating and social habits of the modern eternal. These journal “recons” were a delight to read and gave a great deal of depth to the setting in Transient.

I am very excited to see what comes next for Zachry Wheeler and recommend Transient to all lovers of urban fantasy, YA dystopias, and preternatural suspense.

[Eric Craig · Rating 5 out of 5]

I read the paperback version of this novel, and am extremely glad to now have it in my collection.

This is a very solid effort at building a plausible and nuanced world where Vampires (Eternals) are the dominant flavor of humanity on earth. The concept makes sense in many ways, and is surprisingly rational in its approach. There is a lot of exceptionally good world building in the early stages of the book, and as the story moves into gear it drives quickly forward through some very thoughtful philosophical questions.

This story is most assuredly dystopian/utopian science fiction, and not a vampire romance or fantasy.

At several points in the story Zachry Wheeler shows a depth of truth behind his characters that made the entire novel well worth the read. I do highly recommend this novel to anyone that likes to think, and not just experience a story.

Transient gives you a lot to chew on as you are carried to a bit of a surprising ending.

I eagerly look forward to reading more of his work in the future

[Geoff Habiger · Rating 5 out of 5]

I rate Transient at 4.5 stars (rounding up to 5).

In Transient we are introduced to Jonas, a human living among vampires (now given the sanitized label of eternals) in the far future. Jonas lives among the eternals as a spy, helping the remaining humans to survive and hopefully find a way to defeat their mortal enemy. It's not easy for Jonas and the other transients as they must take drugs to hide their presence among the undead and must partake in all the rituals of eternal society - including drinking blood. But the eternals have made it easy, mass-producing the process of drinking blood for survival in private feeding rooms.

The world-building that Zachary does for Transient is just amazing. Set in a Seattle of the far-future, with a race of people who cannot go out in daylight or they will die, he has created a fun and exciting world to explore with underground "skyscrapers" and a solar-powered economy (a bit ironic for vampires). In fact, the world of the eternals is pretty much a utopia where everybody works (less than 30 hours a week), gets universal health care (not that eternals are prone to disease or illness), get lots of time off, have a great economy, and have ended wars, want, or need. There is no poverty and everybody gets along. It's a perfect utopia, except that the remaining humans cling to the notion that the eternals are the spawn of the devil, an abomination unto God, and therefore must be destroyed. This leads to the major conflict for Jonas as he has started to disobey the rules laid down for transients - like don't fall in love. As Jonas struggles with his inner conflict he is given a new assignment by his human handlers - a way that will kill off all of the eternals. Is Jonas up to committing mass genocide to save the human race?

I thoroughly enjoyed this book and highly recommend it to others. It provides a fun and unique twist on the vampire story with a compelling character in Jonas. My one quibble (and it's a minor one) is that Jonas' story is told in the first person, so the people around Jonas, from his eternal friends, to his human handlers and family, get only a cursory treatment. They are not necessarily backdrop, but they do not come across as fully realized either. Maybe that's just the hazard of telling the story in the first person, but with such a wonderfully created world I wanted to know more about the people who live in it, and having an eternal POV would have been nice. But don't let my quibble deter you from picking up this book, it is well worth the read and I hope that Zachary is working on another book featuring Jonas and this world.

[Victor Acquista · Rating 5 out of 5]

Kudos to author Zachry Wheeler for his thoughtful and provocative take on vampires (“eternals” as they prefer to be called). The protagonist, Jonas, is a “transient”—a human sent to infiltrate and gather intelligence on the dominant society living on our planet. After the defeat of humanity and near total genocide, the remnants scratch out a primitive existence while eternal culture and society flourishes.
Less an action-oriented book and more a philosophical and cultural foray, Transient highlights important observations and criticisms about our current society. No spoilers here, but Jonas faces a serious moral dilemma in carrying out the mission he has trained for his entire life.
The writing is clean and crisp. Although detail and back story sometimes drag, the sum effect is outstanding. Wheeler has created something intriguing and memorable in his debut novel. I look forward to more books by this talented author.

[Ducky · Rating 5 out of 5]

Want a book that will make you think? This is it.

Vampire stories have flooded the market in the last 10 years or so. Some are excellent re-imaginings of the classic myths. Others are thinly disguised romances with fangs and blood; the typical "good" girl/boy attracted to the "bad girl/boy and many are not at all well written. With all that clamoring for attention, Transient slips in there and says, "What if?"

What if, the "vampire" stories aren't based in mythology at all, but in science fiction? What if, it is all caused by a virus? What if, after thousands of years, the virus finally spread to enough people that the vampires could win a war against the humans? What if?

I encourage anyone, who enjoys a different take on old stories, to buy and read this book.

[Mary · Rating 4 out of 5]

It is not very often that you find a new writer with the storytelling skills that Zachry Wheeler has displayed in this book. The book would have been better if he had taken more time to add details at the end. I think that if done correctly this book will make a vary popular movie. I look forward to seeing the movie.

[Joyce Hertzoff · Rating 5 out of 5]

Interesting concept, well-developed

Jonas is a transient, a kind of spy for the remnants of humanity on the eternals who control the world. We watch his views change from his childhood indoctrination. The use of journal entries to tell parts of the story works well.

[S.K. Wee · Rating 5 out of 5]

An interesting tale about a dystopian future set in the city of Seattle. Jonas is a human charged with infiltrating the vampire society of Seattle. At the beginning of the story, Jonas witnesses the brutal slaying of his lover and mentor, Mara. She trained Jonas on the duties of a transient, a spy living in plain sight among the enemy. Through the daily life of Jonas, along with numerous journal entries, we learn how the vampires evolved into an organized society known as Eternals. Everyone is treated as an equal and all their needs are met. They are content to follow the rigid rules set by the overseeing government agency known as NExUS.
The world building was well-thought out and sets the stage for an amazing story with Jonas becoming more and more sympathetic to the enemy as he builds friendships among those he is employed to spy on. Highly Recommended!

[David Congdon · Rating 4 out of 5]

I was pleasantly surprised by this book. I am not much into vampires but this was not about their scary side but their new-humanity.

[Zachry Wheeler · Rating 5 out of 5]

The Immortal Wake is a tech noir series about a dark and distant future where death is obsolete.

Transient is my debut novel, which took ten years to write from concept to publication. It was a labor of love that I never intended to publish, but some timely encouragement convinced me otherwise. Shortly after release, the novel got optioned for a feature film and landed in development for a time. The sudden and unexpected attention launched my author career and the book has ridden a wave of interest ever since. It has even graced the Amazon Bestseller list on several occasions.

Needless to say, it’s been a wild ride.

I cannot thank my readers enough for gifting me the opportunity to continue writing these stories. This novel turned into the Immortal Wake series, which would not exist without your love and support. The saga continues with Thursday Midnight and concludes with The Mortal Vestige. I can only hope that the books are as rewarding to read as they were to write.

[Roxanne · Rating 5 out of 5]

I haven't read a book in this genre in a very long time, and I have to say that Transient was a treat from start to finish. The reader is dropped in the middle of action right at the start, and then gets to sit back and watch an intricate world slowly unfold. I particularly enjoyed the meditations on society and life: how outlooks might change on an individual and societal level when life is essentially 'eternal' (but is it, really, even then?) paralleled with reflections on our own insignificant lifespan in the cosmic passage of time. There were some lines and passages that made me have to pause and reflect - and that doesn't happen often. This particular line (and the conversation to which it refers) probably encapsulates it all for me: "Elizabeth's words simmered inside his head as millions of years passed before his eyes."

Zachry Wheeler's writing is crisp and his imagery is vivid. He develops the world through a more scientific (and sci-fi) lens, with a delightful cast of characters who engage in everything from light-hearted banter to existential, philosophical musings (often over a few good rounds of frosty pints). This was a fun and thought-provoking novel, and I can't wait for the sequel!

[Sam Kates · Rating 4 out of 5]

A new slant on the vampire tale that kept me thoroughly entertained.

[Bandit · Rating 3 out of 5]

Ok, so here’s the inherent problem with vampires and also why they are the weakest/least scary of all genre monsters…what’s to fear? How terrifying if the offer of eternal life, superior healing, advance strength? They are usually not even that scary to look at…for the most part, in most interpretations, they are relatively tame, easy to deal or reason with individuals with dietary restrictions and occasional penchant for goth gear. The scariest thing they can do is to offer negligible senescence. Seriously? Cause that actually sounds kind of awesome. Zombies, for instance, can turn you into a drooling, mindless, aesthetically unappealing, brain eating machine with an expiration date (sincerest apologies to all the sentient zombies out there, was going with the traditional/prevalent scenario). That’s scary. Comparing to that vampirism is essentially just a small to medium change in lifestyle, like going off the grid or (shudder to think) gluten free. And so traditionally I stay away from vampire stories, but this one sounded promising, not in the least due to a proper movie deal in place. That actually is perfectly reasonable, because this book reads just like a movie. It’s cinematically vivid, you almost want to cast it as you go. This is all probably a good thing, because as a book it has challenges, specifically the writing, more specifically weird things like character descriptions (most notably her green eyes convulsed atop of her willowy frame….what? ), some pretty terrible use of adjectives in general, some dialogue straight out of the CW tv show, that sort of thing. Weirdly enough, juxtaposed with first class world building. Seriously, if this was a collaboration effort and another author wrote characters leaving Wheeler to just deal with the plot outlines and such, this would have been terrific. Actually I can’t think of the last time I’ve encountered such clunky writing in such an otherwise decent book. World building, yes...this is certainly one of the superior entries into the vampire oeuvre. It’s ambitious, clever, exceptionally well planned out and presented, it’s logical, fascinating…it’s freaking technicolor. Wheeler’s vampires go by Eternals (arrogantly enough) and live in the Eternal Age, EA from about 2136 our time, ever since they took over the world. And not just took over, enhanced it dramatically in every possible way, they literally made the world great again, put that on a tshirt and wear it. The world is now reasonably populated, completely sustainable, faultlessly operated by an international conglomerate, its citizens want for nothing, are taken care of and protected on the level presently barely seen outside of maybe Scandinavia, there are no wars, no poverty, no privation. Life is actually easy and enjoyable. For majority of the population, at least. There are still some remaining populations of stubborn mortals, who have turned to fundamentalism and fanaticism, living out their lives outside of the habitable zones, training and sending spies into the world at large, planning to destroy it. These spies are transients, like our protagonist, only this one due to either Stockholm Syndrome or actual seeing of the light as it were, is no longer sure of his mission 5 years into it. So it’s a great plot driver…the will he or won’t he, the choice between desire and duty, nature and nurture, all those great dramatic ploys. And he is a genuinely compelling character, despite his young years, all of the characters here are actually genuinely compelling (despite occasionally odd description and bland lines), between that and the Eternalverse it’s what makes for such an engaging read. Just about enough to overlook the inexplicable use of another language interspersed into casual speech and only a word or two at a time, from a very limited vocabulary and spelled out if horrid phonetics. Why, one might ask? Well, the logical explanation seems to be that since the world is now managed by a multinational company, some of the linguistics are starting to get mixed in…but no, it’s only one (and by far not the easiest) of languages. Why not Spanish? Not a word of freaking Spanish? Anyway, small potatoes. Large potatoes are where it’s at, world of the future, vampires, the next phase of evolution. Join or destroy? That seems to always be the question, isn’t it? Mankind is narrow minded like that. But will our intrepid leading man be? Frankly, I’m not sure about the ending, seems like there was some sort of logic reversal, possibly just a moral that didn’t work for me. Some sort of misplaced idealism that really only works for the young and naïve. So it was pretty unexpected and actually worked as a twist, didn’t love it, but it’s always nice to be surprised by a book. Plus it worked really well cinematically. Very enjoyable and fun read, despite some linguistic choices. Something fresh for a largely played out genre, something different for vampire fans. Now someone go make a movie of it already.

[Graham Downs · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book was awesome! It reminded me so much of True Blood that it made me half want to watch that series all over again.

It concerns vampires in the distant future, except that term has fallen out of favour of late, and most people use "eternals" instead. But these are real vampires, not the sparkly, hunky, romantic vampires we've been so exposed to since the release of Twilight.

The story takes a while to get into. It opens pretty much in the middle of the action, and backstory is given in bits and pieces throughout, so it keeps you interested and curious; I only figured out what was really going on about 25% in.

Editing-wise, it's near-perfect. There are a few WTF moments which disrupted my immersion, but those are few and far between, and shouldn't be nearly bad enough to detract from your enjoyment.

There really isn't much more to say about it without regurgitating the plot, so I'll just reiterate what a fantastic story it is. If you like real, blood-sucking vampires, you should love this book.

[Jeanne Pocius Dorismond · Rating 5 out of 5]

Interesting Mix of Escatology and Vampires

This book was not what I expected. Before you read it, be forewarned: there are numerous Russian words and expressions sprinkled throughout, which I found seriously detracted from the flow of the story. Even the great Stephen King's books fail when peppered with dialect--far better, in my opinion, to mention a dialect and then allow the reader to imagine it. Other than that nuisance, it is a good book, with an interesting new take on the apocalypse: this time it is not zombies that decimate humanity, but vampires, herein called "eternals". There is a delightful character (spoiler alert!) named Elizabeth, who brings the whole tale to another level. I can imagine a prequel following her long life back through the centuries. Anyway, read the book, Russian slang aside, it is a good story that deserves to be read. A. Good job!

[Cassandra · Rating 4 out of 5]

I had the pleasure of meeting Zachry at a Con in Toronto. He was very down to earth. The premise of this book hooked me and I read it right away. I loved how he built the world, and you can tell in his writing he thought things through thoroughly. There was no "How would this aspect work?". Zachry had already thought of it and worked it into the narrative. I would have loved for it to be longer so it could have more relationship building amongst the characters. The ending blew me away.

[marilyn coffey · Rating 4 out of 5]

The enemy

Jonas was a spy. He lived with the enemy. He worked with then. He talked to them. Laugh with them. They became friends. Then he got the message. It was time to destroy them. Can he do it?

[Debbie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fun read. Good characters. Interesting thoughts on mortality vs immortality.

[Rebecca Moninghoff · Rating 5 out of 5]

Not the typical 'vampire' book.

This is a great twist to an old theme. The main character, Jonas, is human hiding in an 'eternal' world. I highly recommend Transient.

[Macjest · Rating 2 out of 5]

Kind of disappointed with this one. The concept was interesting. What if externals aka vampires take over the world? What if humans are an endangered species because they’ve been hunted and exterminated? Humans are trying to retaliate by placing transients among externals. Even there was a lot of history the book was very confusing. I had to go back and reread a section because things weren’t very clear. I would like to have seen this better developed and edited.

[KerryRay · Rating 5 out of 5]

A great story

I got this book based on other reviews and thought I’ll start reading a few pages and see how it goes. And then I could not put it down. I enjoyed the ‘factual’ sections dotted in between the rest of the story to explain certain aspects of the story line. I can highly recommend the book and look forward to reading the other books.

[Mark Lucas-Taylor · Rating 5 out of 5]

Eternal

Eternal, what a hubristic word.
In a world changed irrevocably by the emergence of the Geitz virus two vastly different societies have emerged each apparently devoted to the total eradication and extermination of the other species.
Transient focuses mainly on Jonas, a member of one living in and gathering information on the other and his ultimate realisation that he is in fact a member of neither.
A relatively minor character, Elizabeth, a truly remarkable and original person, proves to be intrinsically pivotal to the outcome.
This is a story about differences both actual and perceived, about what is morally right and about what is morally true and how they are not necessarily even the same? What is it to be human?

[Franklin Whitfield · Rating 5 out of 5]

Zachary Wheeler writes about humanity’s un-magnificent monolithic obsessions with “control,” using the eternal/human foil to explore the frailties of both worlds. The read was a complete and most enjoyable surprise! Jonas is an understandable human who struggles with his conflict in making the right decision - if not the best decision! Can he survive?
I look forward to finding out…
Well done, Mr. Wheeler!

[tiffany griffiths · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wow! Don't miss this series!

I never read "vampire books" but this one had me hooked from page one and I look forward to buying the next very soon to continue the tale.
The characters are written so well it makes you feel you know each one and the ideas behind the tale are so we'll thought out it will leave you a bit nervous for the future... Enjoy!

[Dan · Rating 5 out of 5]

Engrossing read

Jonas(H), Anna(h), Mara(minor h), Doren. Jonas is in impossible situation between forces that are both in the right & in the wrong. Humans vs Eternals (aka vampires), incl's scientific explanation for existence of the Eternals. Both sides fighting for their very existence. H is deep cover spy for humans.

[Lindsay · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really enjoyed the world building on this one. Super detailed, and it made it believable. It’s a great approach to vampires, and safe to say I’ve never read anything quite like it.

[Authr · Rating 2 out of 5]

I picked this book up at Bubonicon in 2017, where the author described it to me as "A vampire dystopia where the vampires are different; they only even use the word 'vampire' once." I am, I should note, not a fan of vampires, and never really have been. I was willing to give the book a shot, as it was sold to me under the premise of being an exploration of what it means to live forever - basically the only part of vampire lore that interests me.

Suffice it to say, I feel mislead. This is a book where vampires are very much like your standard vampire, they've just taken to drinking prepackaged blood, as they've exterminated much of the human race.

The plot deals with a young human man living in an underground vampire city, raised from childhood to infiltrate vampire settlements in order to gather intel in order for the last few dregs of human society to launch an attack against vampirekind.

So it's basically a retread of 'I Am Legend', plunked into a trendy dystopian setting, without the introspection or commentary on society.

The main conflict is driven by the main character receiving orders from his commanders to release a poison that will effectively wipe out all vampires, but he's bonded with the vampires he's been in contact with and doesn't want to commit genocide. This should be a fairly weighty decision, full of internal strife - the vampires did indeed almost destroy humanity, but revenge becomes complicated once you've made friends with the enemy.

The problem is that I never really bought that the main character HAD made friends with the enemy. He only really hangs out with two other vampires; one who treats him like a kid brother, and a woman he has a crush on. That's about the extent of their personalities. We are introduced to these characters just before our protagonist learns what he has to do, and there's no time to get to know his friends or his relationship to them before he has to leave to report back to his commanders. Had the story started at the beginning of his infiltration, covering the years of his life he spent in hiding, watching him having to deceive people who end up caring about him, then the story would've had some emotional weight and the choice would've felt more difficult. As it is, the story is just flat. I can see what the author was going for, but he didn't dedicate the time and character development needed to get there.

[Lex Allen · Rating 5 out of 5]

Transient by Zachry Wheeler is set in a dark and distant future, where death is obsolete. Jonas is a transient — a human spy living as among immortals. His mission is simple: always learn, never get caught. In the year 2578, the planet is controlled by immortals and humanity struggles to survive in the mountains and forests, far away from the high-tech cities. Jonas has spent years in the lion’s den and he’s grown to admire the immortal civilization; he’s learned to love what he previously and blindly hated. A reckoning is coming. The fates of billions hang in the balance and when the axe falls, Jonas must choose between his species and the immortals he’s come to know as family.

I’m an absolute fan of authors, writing any genre, who can create an entirely new environment and characterization from previously well-known characters—in this case, vampires who embody the noblest, equitable, and familial environment ever envisioned, but never attained, by humanity. Excerpts from historical articles and recon notes assimilated by Jason over his years as a transient artfully fill in the blanks of his world and his purpose. Wheeler adeptly uses this plot tactic to add verisimilitude in building this strange new world without massive data dumps and simultaneously providing some breaks in the action. Transient is an exceptionally well-written, thought-provoking novel that ultimately carries a humanist message, contrasting feigned morality with perceived evil.

The conclusion is, as usual in a series, a bit of a cliff-hangar. It’s not a steep cliff, just enough to leave the reader hungry for the next book, and an answer to the question, “did Jason follow orders or not?” Fortunately for me, and I’m sure many readers to come, books two and three (“Thursday Midnight” and “The Mortal Vestige”) are readily available.