LET
THE ADVENTURE BEGIN!
When a teenager discovers his father is working on a secret government project with aliens from the planet Tarizon, the project is compromised and Peter Turner must accept exile or be killed.
Tarizon is recovering from a series of super volcanic eruptions that nearly destroyed all life on the planet. It is slowly recovering ecologically but the political situation is volatile. The fight is between the Purists who want to rid Tarizon of a growing mutant population and eliminate all non-human intelligent life-forms, and the Loyalists who want to restore the Supreme Mandate that guarantees freedom and basic rights for all humans and other sentient beings.
Videl Lai has become Chancellor in a tainted election. Once in power, he renounces Tarizon's constitution, The Supreme Mandate, and orders the extermination of all non-human life forms.
The Loyalist party anticipating Videl's rise to power, has been planning a civil war to restore rule under the Supreme Mandate and stop the genocide. But the Loyalist Party is weak and there is little hope it will be able to defeat Videl Lai and his formidable army. The only hope seems to be a prophecy that foretells of the arrival of a Liberator from Earth who would lead a revolt to rid Tarizon of a ruthless dictator.
Peter, much to his shock and dismay, soon learns that many on Tarizon believe that he is this Liberator and is expected to lead the revolution against Videl Lai and free the Nanomites, Mutants and Seafolken from bondage.
... Tarizon: The Liberator is a blistering read (I
really can't recall the last time I burned through three hundred
pages in just a couple hours' time) and will keep the attention
nicely. There's plenty of action to be had here and several
nifty plot points, including the use of provoked downtrodden
wildlife (the Tarizonian powers-that-be seem to care about as much
for their flora and fauna as they do for their people) as a weapon.
It's very clever, and highly engaging. ... getting a copy of Tarizon:
The Liberator is a worthwhile move.
Better young adult fiction eclipses old-hat conflicts of domestic disobedience and school strife. It forces heroes into agonizing choices, then spins out consequences with a wider range of outcomes than the last generation grew up expecting. One doesn’t have to be eighteen years old to have a lasting impact on others’ lives for good or ill, or to choose a permanent trajectory. That reality may not be fair, but savvy teen readers quickly discard idealistic fantasies.
Protagonist among these books wrestle with exploitation, imprisonment, and abandonment issues we wish teens would never have to face. They must commit to a side during wartime, without an obvious default position, and struggle to embrace their destinies. The teen years are composed of a seemingly endless series of exclusive choices, few of which are adequately addressed by small-minded public service announcements.
Legends Yet Unsettled
William Manchee’s Tarizon: The Liberator (Book One of the Tarizon Trilogy) (Top Publications, 978-1-929976-48-5) follows a civil war between a malevolent totalitarian world government and a fairly benevolent totalitarian world government on a planet with a large minority of Earth émigrés. A Skywalker-ish figure thought to be the long prophesied savior is initially reluctant to take up his role protecting mutants, the gilled Seafolken, and a microscopic species of builders called Nanomites from the Purists’ genocidal plans. Tarizon is a planet nearly wiped out by ecological disaster, aggressively repopulating for survival. That means copulation is encouraged, but committed love isn’t possible—a policy among the Liberator’s allies which he challenges, even while fighting for his life.
The young adult science fiction audience will go for William Manchee’s Tarizon: The Liberator, the first book in his new trilogy. It reminds me of the Star Wars series, Among the Hidden (Margaret Peterson Haddix), Dancing With An Alien (Mary Logue), and Ender’s Shadow (Orson Scott Card).
This book has everything a sci-fi fan could want: an alien world, mutants, conflict and civil war, spaceships, super-technology and chapters full of action! There is even romance for young Peter.
The reader is pulled into the story, learning along with Peter the language, customs, food, technology and warfare practices of this alien culture. The vivid descriptions of the planet will feel as if readers are there assisting the earthling as he struggles with doing what he believes is morally right. There is a message here, which is oft repeated, a message of tolerance and hope.
"Tarizon: The Liberator" was great, appealing for all ages over thirteen and an exciting read even for adults. Parents should know that twelve should be the absolute minimum that reads this book do to some graphic sexual envisioning on the main character’s part. What really appeals in the marketing sense is that I think parents will let their kids read this book at about the time the kids want to read this book. With some sexual situations and a good deal of comedy violence, I can just imagine this as a movie. The writing was very interesting, really making it seem like this is actually
happening - that it’s not just a story. That is by far my favorite thing of this book. I very rarely see a book that can draw me in this much. I have seen better books overall, but hardly any with as many attributes as "Tarizon: The Liberator" by William Manchee to make people believe in its characters and hope that something happens; not just reading to see what happensTARIZON: THE LIBERATOR targets the young adult science fiction audience, but older readers will enjoy the action-packed exciting thriller with a deep message of at least tolerance for all while preferable consensus. The vivid descriptions of the planet will feel as if fans are there assisting the earthling as he struggles with doing what he believes is morally right and taking part in the action and battles. William Manchee has created a fascinating world in trouble that anchors this exhilarating powerful morality tale.
Writer
Manchee once again has proven his growing prowess as a writer.
From the formidable body of works comprising his Stan Turner
series; Manchee has turned in a very different direction with his
exciting Tarizon trilogy. Characters
are fresh, exciting, filled with vivacity.
Dialog is fitting, often gritty, hard hitting potent.
Storyline is attention-grabbing, engaging and out of the
ordinary. Settings are
nicely detailed, reader is drawn into the action, and interest is
compelling from beginning to end. Plot
twists, subterfuge, stratagem, and chicanery abound, heroes are
heroic, and villains are down right vicious.
Manchee
has shown past proficiency for writing mysteries, he is proving
adroit in this fantasy/sci fi genre as well.
CACTUS
ISLAND
A Stan Turner Mystery *
Vol. 7
Trade Paperback * 382 Pages * $14.95 * ISBN 978-1-929976-36-4
Hardback * 364 Pages
ISBN * $24.95 * 978-1-929976-38-0
Audio CD * 8 CDs * $29.00 * ISBN 978-1-929976-47-8
Stan is called out to Possum Kingdom Lake in central Texas where two boy scouts have driven off a cliff in a jeep. The driver, Steven Caldwell, survives unscathed but the passenger dies. It appears to be just another tragic auto accident until the sheriff discovers Steven and the victim were in love with the same girl. When Steven is charged with murder he asks Stan to defend him, but Stan is reluctant to do so because Steven claims he ran off the road when he saw a spacecraft hovering overhead. In order to prove Steven's innocence he'd have to prove that aliens had visited Possum Kingdom Lake!
ACT
NORMALIn this 8th episode of the series Stan Turner is recruited by the CIA to defend a young woman accused of murdering an alien. The alien, however, isn't from Mexico but from a planet called Tarizon. Part of Stan's task in defending the young woman is to keep secret the government's ultra top secret treaty with Tarizon. Under the treaty children are allowed to be adducted and sent to Tarizon in exchange for advanced technology.
In the meantime Paula struggles to prove her client innocent of the quadruple arson/murder of a prominent scientist, Chester Brown, and his family. Her investigation leads her into a world of high stakes government defense contracting where companies hire mercenaries and ex-military personnel to protect or further their interest.