Reviving Chronicle Audiobook App for Plex

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TL;DR: I’ve forked and revived the Chronicle audiobook player for Plex. Major bug fixes, new features, and it’s available now in closed beta on Google Play. Free, no-ads & OSS.
Looking for testers & feedback!

Background

For those who remember Chronicle by mattttvaughn - it was a great audiobook player for Plex on Android. Unfortunately, it did not receive any updates since a few years, leaving many of us with a broken app as Android and Plex evolved.
After waiting and hoping for updates, I decided to fork it and bring it back to life. The result is Chronicle Epilogue - a modernized, actively maintained continuation of the app we all loved.

Bug Fixes & Features

All of these were issues in the original Chronicle that are now fixed:

  • Android Auto support is fully functional again
  • No more crashes when unlocking your phone and the app was running
  • High-bitrate playback fixed
  • Offline playback restored
  • Authentication and connection problems resolved
  • Extended playback speeds of 0.5x to 3.0x
  • Google Play Store availability now in closed beta (see below)

Join the Beta

This is where I need your help! To publish Chronicle Epilogue publicly on Google Play, I need beta testers to register and provide feedback.

How to Join:

  1. Sign up for the beta: https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=local.oss.chronicle
  2. Install, test, and provide feedback!

More information / screenshots: here

EDIT: Feb. 6.: removed link to closed alpha, replaced with open beta link

8 Likes
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I was literally just about to start crafting a prompt to see if I could get it working with Claude code

I told it Chronicles dead, then it came back at me saying no somebody has revived it :joy:

I’m glad I’m not the only one who wanted a good android one haha

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Yes, my thoughts exactly :slight_smile:
Just thought I would also share a short status update on the project:

Since opening the closed beta, there’s been a lot of progress. Based on tester feedback and ongoing refactors, Chronicle Epilogue is in a much better place than the original app ever was.

What’s Happened Since the Last Post
A lot of work has gone into stability, playback, and overall polish:

  • Android Auto improvements
    Major refactors to the Android Auto handler
    Seeking, playback, and navigation bugs fixed
    We’re currently addressing the last remaining issues raised during Google Play publication reviews

  • Playback & stability
    Fixed multiple seeking issues (both in‑app and in the notification/status bar)
    Resolved playback bugs introduced during earlier refactors
    High‑bitrate and long‑form audiobook playback is now stable

Thanks to everyone who has been testing and reporting issues — it’s making a huge difference.

What’s Next (Sneak Peek)

After the initial public release on Google Play, here’s what’s planned:

  • Publication on F‑Droid
  • Support for multiple Plex libraries at the same time
  • Collections / series support
    (Once multiple libraries are supported, audiobooks from the same series can be grouped together)
2 Likes
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Have just given it to a couple of my users that use Android. Keen to see what they think! Nice work bringing this one back!!

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I would love to join but it isn’t available on the South Korean store. Is there anyway you can include us?

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Hi, I cant log in to the app with my Plex account. My Plex account is tied to my Google account and Google said there was some authorization error. Says error 403 disallowed useragent

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Hi @lake_r , the “403 disallowed useragent” is usually caused by the browser/webview that is installed on the device.
The latest release on Google Play has some fixes that might help.
If the issue persists jump on GitHub to open an issue (we can have a look).

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Thanks! Its working now. Keep up the good work! I’ll let you know if I come across anything else.