Chime is, in the end, a reference to the true identity of our main character and narrator, Briony. Born between the midnight chimes, Briony is a Chime Child, a person with a foot in the world of humans and the world of the spirits, a powerful and important being without a birthday or simple identity to claim. Though she spends most of the book convinced she's a wicked witch, Briony is actually quite special, and the title of the book is a clue to her true identity that she struggles throughout the book to recognize and claim for herself.