The Liberator

Tarizon #1

by William Manchee, Dan Silverman (Illustrator), Michael Manchee (Editor)

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.

Genres: Science Fiction, Aliens, Fantasy

334 pages, Hardcover

First published September 1, 2008

About the author

William Manchee is an attorney by trade and practices consumer law in Texas with his son Jim. Originally from southern California, he now lives in Plano, Texas. He is the author of 25 novels including the Stan Turner Mysteries, Rich Coleman Novels, and the Tarizon Saga.

Reviews

[Ron · Rating 1 out of 5]

I can’t believe I read more than a dozen pages. I knew by then I wasn’t going to like this book. Why didn’t I cut my losses?

The premise and set up seem plausible. The Goodreads.com description is accurate. The surprise is that the author has written dozens of books. The execution is deficient. Many (earth) historical errors. Lots of explaining. Lots of typos. Lots of “ly” adjectives and adverbs.

This would be a “young” reader book, but the plot features a twenty-something female seducing as sixteen-year-old boy (repeatedly) to get pregnant. He, of course, falls in love with his seductress.

The military training section is ridiculous. No military is going to issue weapons and ammo on the second day. Funny, the smart bullets only worked for the hero, not the bad guys.

Explosive concentrations of methane (which is odorless) in the tunnel would be lethal before the explosion, but the blast should have consumed all the oxygen.

How the loyal opposition could steal “only a few hundred” fighter aircraft undetected is one of many mysteries.

I didn’t code this a Christian fiction because I couldn’t determine if it is. Characters refer to God and Sandhee and even Jesus, but they might as well have been talking about the Force as far as it affected their behavior.

With all that, I was still ready to award two stars until the story stopped. It didn’t end, it stopped. Sort of a cliffhanger to encourage the reader to try the next volume, or the third.

No, thanks. Wasted enough time on this franchise.

(Since this is such a negative review, I’ll only post it here, not on my blog or other social media.)

[Vicki · Rating 5 out of 5]

the first in novelist William Manchee’s exciting Tarizon Trilogy, begins after a series of super volcanic eruptions nearly destroys all life on planet Tarizon. The planet 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 beings. Much to his dismay, Peter learns that many on Tarizon regard him as the Liberator and expect him to lead a revolution to settle the political unrest.

Departing from his typical mystery writing, Manchee explores new territory with The Tarizon Trilogy. He presents a storyline that is a must read for the young adult science fiction audience, as well as older readers who yearn for action-packed thrillers. Through exciting characters, fitting dialog and an engaging storyline, Manchee has created a fascinating story that offers sci-fi fans everything they could want.
Both my teenager and myself read this book and enjoyed it. Great for a family "read" and communication between the generations. would be good for a gift

[BookMarc · Rating 3 out of 5]

If I had not read the synopsis of this novel the front cover would have put me off reading it. I think it’s those spaceships which remind me of a 70s sci-fi influence and took me back to television shows such as ‘Buck Rogers in the 21st Century’, ‘Space: 1999’ and the original version of ‘Battlestar Galactica’. It gave me the impression that I would be reading an outdated novel with very a corny plot. The first chapter of this young adult novel, predominantly aimed at males, done nothing to alleviate my fears.
Ah yes, the first chapter...it sets the foundations for the story of the liberator who is prophesized to restore the planet of Tarizon to a time of peace and liberty. The liberator (no-one knows who he will be…not even the liberator himself) is thought to be arriving on a shuttle from earth and as there’s no way of knowing who he is the loyalists decide to protect one person from that shuttle as they don’t have the resources to protect everyone. The purists want the liberator dead so that the prophecy of him restoring peace and liberty cannot come true and so attack the shuttle’s occupants, who have been abducted from earth, as soon as they disembark. Of course, the loyalists protect the one person who just happens to be the liberator.
What bothered me most about that first chapter was that the whole idea of protecting just one occupant when the prophecy, which is fully believed by the inhabitants of Tarizon, doesn’t specify who he will be is very flimsy. Sure, not protecting females because the liberator will be male would be more logical but just picking one male and hoping for the best had me groaning in despair as it made the plot of who the liberator was very predictable. After all, they weren’t going to save the wrong person and have the book abruptly end.
This is where going above and beyond the call of duty paid dividends. I actually won the third installment of the Tarizon trilogy but the publisher sent me the two previous installments also and if it had not been for that fact, and I had been reading this copy from a library or browsing it in a store, I would probably have given up on this book after the first chapter. As they had been so gracious though I decided to persevere and I’m glad I did as the novel got a whole lot better.
I grew to like the main character of Peter fairly quickly. He’s your typical seventeen year old guy, complete with a healthy interest in sex (he ends up fornicating with a woman much older and I couldn’t help but think she would have been considered a predator on earth and charged with statutory rape but on Tarizon seventeen year old males rejoice!) and his decision making and mindset throughout the book do represent that of a seventeen year old. He is, of course, the liberator and the story takes him on a journey full of action, adventure and danger which plays out well and kept me entertained throughout. The one thing that did spoil the story for me was the occasional extra pieces of information that weren’t really pertinent to the story. For instance, there is a part of the story where Peter is flying back in his space craft which has been damaged in a battle. Instead of just landing the story takes us on a couple of page diversion where he mentions the damage to the control tower, has to fly by them to make sure he is safe to land and then eventually lands. It was extra information that wasn’t really needed in what is already a fairly hefty novel for the young adult genre (334 pages) and it just slowed the story down for no reason whatsoever.
The ending was pretty much what I expected and was left open for the second book in the trilogy. Of course, it was left open in a way that has me wanting to read the second novel in order to find out what happens next and in the hope that certain evil characters get their comeuppance.

[Rita · Rating 2 out of 5]

I didn't particularly liked how the book started, seemed like a lot of information was just dumped at the reader, made me think of a sequel. Is this a sequel?
Well that's the feeling I got, but if you just keep reading, things do get better and soon enough you are completely immersed in the story.
Other thing that I also didn't like were the descriptions of the political structure and government. They seemed too much and even repetitive. It's like the author had to keep asking me if I really understood how it worked. Felt like a classroom at times.
Maybe it was just the way he described certain things that I didn't liked.
Also didn't like that a lot of the things weren't new in another planet. English menus, fake pizza, fake lamb. Its not a dog, but its just like one. It felt like the author didn't know what to do, so he went for the easy way out and just tweaked certain things to serve his propose, it would be a lot cooler if stuff was different. Sometimes it felt like Peter was just traveling abroad.
It also startles me how he thinks everything is normal. He accepts everything with such ease. I get that once he gets used to everything he wouldn't get disturbed about small things, but some crazy stuff happens a and he just doesn't seem to mind.
More than one time I wished I could reach inside the book and shake him to get a reaction.
Not my kind of book.

[Monica · Rating 4 out of 5]

Peter Turner has been abducted to Tarizon and declared the Liberator. It's a lot to take in for a 17 year old in a short period of time, especially if civil war really does break out as foretold.

Once I got past the how, why (as Peter also has to do), and who (same family of characters from the attorney mysteries which threw me at first), he was abducted, and just let myself into the story, this reality and environment really took hold.

Vivid and lush descriptions allow this new world to take shape in the imagination.

The narrative flows well and is fairly action packed with some underlying mysteries.

Diverse and realistic characters fill the pages with their actions and authentic dialogue. Even while told primarily through Peter's point of view, it is possible to watch as multiple characters grow and learn about each other and their environment/reality.

Not all issues are resolved at the end of this book, but that is to be expected as this is part of a saga.

Overall, a thrilling read!

[Jordan · Rating 2 out of 5]

I received my copy of Tarizon Volume I: The Liberator through the Goodreads FirstReads program. I found the other two in the clearance section of Half Price Books and picked them up cheap. This in no way influences my review, aside from the fact that I probably never would have read these books otherwise.

In short, this isn't a terrible book. It has numerous flaws, but it at least manages to be somewhat entertaining. There may have been a day when you had few better offerings in the field of YA literature, especially science fiction, but that is no longer the case. There are loads of better-written stuff out there. I'm not going to tell you not to pick this up, but just know what you are getting into.

While billed as its own standalone work, The Tarizon Trilogy is actually a spinoff from Manchee's Stan Turner mysteries. Stan Turner is a lawyer who, through some turn of events that is somewhat unclear since I haven't tracked down his series, gets roped into working on a secret CIA endeavor--the Tarizon Repopulation Project. Tarizon is a planet in a far-off star system suffering the aftereffects of a series of crippling volcanic eruptions. This natural disaster has done enormous damage to their environment, and the resulting health problems for the population have been severe--including mutation and infertility. Although there are a few other humanoid species on Tarizon that have adapted to different environments, the main population is identical to Terran humans. Facing a population crisis, the Tarizonian government contacted the U.S. government for aid. Fearing mass panic (and wanting sole access to Tarizonian tech), the CIA stipulated that everything be conducted in secrecy. Tarizonians come to the US and get married, have kids here where Mother Nature isn't out to kill them, and then disappear back to Tarizon when the kids are old enough. The Terran spouse left behind? That's just too bad. Not exactly what the Tarizonians had in mind, but the CIA won't have it any other way....

Which is where our protagonist, Peter Turner, comes in. His father, Stan Turner, has just finished a court case tangentially related to the Tarizon project and is headed out to revisit the site where he and Peter had previously seen the Tarizonian ship. (This whole sequence, so far as I can tell, parallels a sequence in one of the Stan Turner mysteries.) Peter swipes the family car and heads out there himself, hoping to find his father and make sure he's safe. Through a sequence of events not elaborated here, Stan has had a narrow escape with death and the villains of that story got their comeuppance, I can only assume, but all that is over and Stan is gone again by the time Peter arrives. Driving home and pondering just how much trouble he's in, Peter comes across the Tarizonian ship leaving and is taken aboard to prevent him telling anyone what he has seen. He is informed that he is headed for Tarizon and will never see Earth again, orders of the CIA. On arriving on Tarizon, he is further informed that many believe him to be the young leader referred to in prophecy as The Liberator, who will save them all from an evil dictator and restore equality to Tarizon. This dictator has yet to actually take power, but everyone seems to know that he is going to try and it is just a matter of time. When he does, he has made no secret of his views--Humans on top, everyone else oppressed and enslaved. If they serve no purpose, wipe them out. Peter isn't sure they've got the right guy, but he won't have much time to worry about it as events force them to move quickly to prepare for the worst....

I ended up giving this two stars. I had been planning to give it one after that lackluster beginning, but as I neared the end I found myself actually being drawn in and entertained. As I mentioned above, I have the other two books in the trilogy already waiting on me. I'm glad, because I want to know what happens but I don't think I would have bought them after reading this one. Borrowed them from the library? Yes, if they had a copy of something so obscure, but not spent money on them.

As entertaining as I found the book, there were a number of significant flaws I found it hard to get past sometimes. The connection to Manchee's previous works was overblown and handled pretty clumsily, in my opinion. Information is thrown at you in the beginning as if you should already know who Stan and his family are. The sequence where Peter is abducted is clearly meant to run at the same time as the climax of one of the Stan Turner mysteries, but little information on that is given. Again, the author implies you have already read it. Well, I haven't, and I honestly have no plans to. The sequence while Peter is remembering/dreaming while in hibernation on his way to Tarizon was a little better, aside from the fact that dreams just don't work that way. Dreams don't show us memories unaltered, especially not just ones that conveniently fill in backstory. When memories and dreams collide there is always distortion and exaggeration. Like I said, better than just awkwardly throwing the information at us though.

In my considered opinion, the above issues could have been made moot and the story strengthened by loosening the ties to Stan Turner. Not cutting them altogether--the worldbuilding was decent, and would support most of the story just fine--but we've established that there are a bunch of human kids being taken to Tarizon against their will. Did the protagonist have to be Stan Turner's son? By making that tie, we're not only locked into summarizing/retconning the relevant information from the other series (which, as I stated above, was done poorly) but the protagonist is now the son of a man who knows what's going on and could probably do something about it if he chose. Not to mention making readers who haven't read the previous series confused. A far simpler way to go would be to have a random son of a Tarizonian father or mother taken from Earth without being told what's going on. How this is explained and why he is seventeen instead of seven as is usual when being taken can go anywhere--his father was a fugitive, they were waiting for younger siblings to mature, whatever works. Somehow kill off his family (there's already attempts on his life, providing a convenient crossfire) and voila, almost the same situation with none of the awkward explanations. Or even the exact same scenario--a normal, non-Tarizonian boy gets abducted after seeing the spaceship--without the Stan Turner connection. Even that would have been better than forcing connections where they don't need to appear.

The Liberator is a mix of original and cliched material, and it is very difficult to extricate the two. That isn't always a bad thing--a lot of things become cliche for a reason--but there are times you yearn for a little more effort on the author's part. Much of the worldbuilding is fairly original. A few of the different races are maybe a bit cliche--humans on top, oppressing the mutants and seafolk?--but others are fairly original (the Nanomites, even the rhutz are something mostly new). The idea of a world on the brink of collapse after disaster, requiring our aid? That's new. The government hiding it from us? That's not. That's basically the entire premise of The X-Files. But so far as that goes, there are worse things to imitate....

The dialogue throughout the book is pretty stilted and unnatural-sounding. I've little room to talk, I'm pretty much rubbish at writing dialogue myself, but you expect a certain level of quality from a book that has been published.

The characters....I would love to tell you that Manchee really shined in this area. It would make my enjoyment easier to understand. But he didn't. Nearly all the players are two-dimensional stock characters such as would show up in a particularly action-driven Hollywood explosion-fest. We have our hero, a young man who is incredibly smart and charismatic but just never found the motivation to try very hard at anything until he is whisked away to another world and told he is to be their savior. Oh, and he discovers once he's there that he's telepathic. Sound familiar? Then we have our villain, the Vice Chancellor. He's the second in command for the Tarizon government, and it is an open secret that he is planning to assassinate the Chancellor and take over. His first order of business? Enslave or exterminate anyone not purely human, and then take Earth by force. He's not all that nuanced, and so not all that interesting as a villain. He wants to be Palpatine, but falls short even of Voldemort (Someday I will write more extensively on the flaws in that villain's characterization....maybe in a few years when I reread those books.) There's the love interest, with little opinion on anything political until Peter shows up. There's the usual cast of sidekicks, but at least you can tell them apart, which is more than can be said for their counterparts in some series. The various wise leaders who will advise Peter on his journey to become the Liberator. The villain's minions, with stereotypical fear of their boss. Like I said, I really wanted this to be something Manchee did well--it would have gone a long way towards redeeming the book for me--but it fell flat.

Minor quibble: there are a bunch of editing mistakes in my copy of The Liberator, and I have the paperback, so this is at least the second edition. Most of them are either homonyms or typos that got spellchecked into something unintended. You can always figure out what is supposed to go there by context clues, but it is indicative of the production values at work here.

Finally, there's an awful lot of sexual content for a YA series. Yes, I realize the whole thing with needing to repopulate the planet does require some of this to occur, but to focus on it this much? This, to me, feels like one of those awkward mid-80s/90s films like Gremlins or Small Soldiers that can't quite find its audience--a premise meant to appeal to younger viewers, but content that means only older ones can see it. Here, a series meant for kids or young teens, but too much sex to be appropriate for them to read.

[Jordan Brantley · Rating 1 out of 5]

Bookworm Speaks!

Tarizon: The Liberator

by William Manchee

****
Acquired: Dallas Public Library Book Sale
Series: Tarizon Trilogy (Book 1)
Hardcover: 370 pages
Publisher: Top Publications, Ltd.; 1 edition (November 1, 2009)
Language: English
Subject: Children’s Books, Science Fiction and Fantasy

****
The Story: 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.

The Review: Where to begin?

Getting through this book was a challenge, but Bookworm makes it a point of personal pride to state that they have finished every book they have started reading. The most glaring flaw in this whole book is the lack of creativity. The inhabitants of planet Tarizon look almost exactly like humans and can even breed with them. This feels extremely lazy on the part of the author and just feels like it was a way to squeeze in a romantic subplot into the story. The world-building, a critical part of any science-fiction and fantasy tale, felt rather half-heartedly done. According to the author’s biography, they have spent the majority of their writing career creating mystery novels. This book itself, is apparently meant to be a spinoff of a popular series of the authors.

Perhaps it would have been better if they had stuck with writing mysteries, or at least co-wrote the work with a science-fiction writer.

Bookworm never got the impression that this was part of a larger series. In

This book is not aided by what feels like very shoehorned in Christian morality. On top of that, there is also disturbing amount of American jingoism. The main character is a patriot and a good Christian and that is pretty much the extent of his character. This was a running problem throughout the whole novel. The characters are extremely weak with barely more than two dimensions, if any at all. The romantic interest that tickles the fancy of the main character is barely worth mentioning. What makes it even worse, when it does surface, it can get very uncomfortable due to the fact that the main character is seventeen years old.

Science Fiction is infamous among the literary circles for its persistent use of plot dumps. These are passages where story concepts are explained, either to the audience or to the particular point-of-view character, through the use of large blocks of text where the story is more or less paused. Some writers try to let the story explain things to the reader. Other writers say they are a necessity, given the high concepts that tend to be utilized in science fiction. Some readers enjoy them. What is agreed upon, is that using too many plot dumps can seriously harm a story. This story? It was harmed. It seems as though most of the text consists of things just being explained. The story just seemed to be talking at the main character instead of showing him the world around him. It gets really boring for the reader and may tempt them to just skimming entire passages.

The Final Verdict: There is no easy way to say this, so Bookworm is just going to say it: This book was terrible. It could have had potential but it ultimately was an onslaught of cliched writing, boring exposition, and flat characterization. The only reason Bookworm would considered reading the sequels would be to complete the set and add to his library.

The Rating: One Flying Saucer out of Five


****
thecultureworm.blogspot.com

[Julie Barrett · Rating 4 out of 5]

Tarizon: The Liberator by William Manchee
This book follows the life of Pete, Stan's son who now lives in another solar system. People are brought to the area to repopulate the planet.
Some are brought to Earth and then after some time they are transferred back to the planet.
Boot camp and quite the introduction to population control are thrust at him from when he first gets there. He also meets the boy who had died in the crash and they talk for just a second.
Like the idea of joining the military and going through training...There's a lot of abbreviations that you soon become familiar with.
Like how the events take place and the story moves forward as they discover other things about their telepathic abilities as they also try to find their other friends and hope to rescue them.
The goal is to prepare for the civil war which is coming to the planet as some are slaves and they don't like it. There are a lot of politics also that come into play.
Like how ti ends, a bit sad but it will continue in another book so all is not lost.
Received this review copy from the author and this is my honest opinion.

[Janelle · Rating 4 out of 5]

The Liberator blends young adult, sci-fi and fantasy in a really interesting way. When the story begins on Earth, it has a very sci-fi feel and is slightly reminiscent of the Spielberg miniseries Taken, but once Peter reaches Tarizon it transforms into something more fantasy-driven and somehow lighter.

It starts off being what I traditionally think of as sci-fi: cold, artificial, and usually involving grey men, alien abductions, or all-seeing Big Brother technology. Then it transforms into something reminiscent of the fantasy epics I used to read as a kid, where a pre-teen would lead an army of mages, telepathic snow leopards and soldiers in a war against a shadowy nation of vampires, sorcerers and witches. Except y'know, it's Loyalists versus Purists, and seafolken, rhutz, mutants and nanomites.

Usually when I read books that blend genres like this it's a solid mix throughout the entire text. It seems as if different genres feature more at different stages throughout The Liberator: typical sci-fi at the start, then fantasy and young adult for the rest. The sci-fi is still there, but plays a supporting role to the fantasy themes. Think of it like this - it could easily be straight fantasy if Tarizon were another dimension rather than another planet, and Peter had fallen down the rabbit hole rather than been abducted.

It's certainly interesting to see how the genres and tone change, though it may be disappointing to some. I initially thought I was in for something like Spielberg's Taken and wound up with something more like Avatar. I can definitely see people being disappointed and being like "What?! This isn't what I signed up for!" I felt a bit like that, but I do like where the story ended up.

One of the aspects I liked the most about the book was that the Tarizonians seem so human. They're technically considered an alien race, but are basically just humans with telepathy and telekinesis. Perhaps the reason why I like this so much is that we're constantly speculating about life on other planets, and envisage aliens to be like ET or grey men.

I think it would be a shock to discover extraterrestrial lifeforms that are actually just like us. We expect life on other planets to be mutated and reflect their environment, so I think it would be both amusing and humbling to discover that 'nope, they're just like us. We're not so special after all'.

The Tarizonians being essentially human contributes to an easy-to-follow mythology, and keeps the book light and easy to read. But it's not completely devoid of mythology, because you have the seafolken, mutants, rhutz, droguls and nanomites.

I didn't feel I had to consciously suspend my disbelief to embrace these creatures though - their mythology is simplistic enough that I didn't have to sit there agonising over what they are, how they got there, and how they can do what they do. I often enjoy wondering these things, but it can be obnoxious when I feel like I need an author to wrote a whole 'nother damn book just to explain it.

I also think the Atlantis subtext going on is also quite interesting. So many sci-fi and dystopian texts concern humans turning the Earth to shit, so it's great to see the tables turned for once. It's probably the Tall Poppy syndrome in me (and a little bit of sadism) but it's fascinating to watch this seemingly perfect advanced race be cut down like that, and Earth/humans actually being their saviour!

There's not too much I can say about the plot and character development at this point, as it's just one book in a trilogy. It's been nice to see Peter progress and come into his own as the Liberator, but I feel I'll be able to comment more after reading the rest of the series.

I do have to say that I REALLY don't like Lucinda though - I find her to be annoying and dumb, and I think she's a traitor. I'll go as far as to say that I'll be surprised if she's not, since she did go out of her way to be Peter's guide. I hate it when Peter pines for her, because the only appeal I can see is that she's apparently attractive. I find her innocence to be quite fake, and I think Lorin would be a much better fit, even though she's ~in love with her mate.

And speaking of mates, I have to say that I love how Central Authority picks a mate for each Tarizonian based on compatibility. I'm not saying I'd be into it, but it eliminates the need for awkward first dates and breakups ;]

And I'm unsure of the spelling of his name since I have this in audiobook format, but I thought it was overly predictable that Ehvon was a Purist. The author tried to dispel this notion, but at the back of my mind I was still like 'Nope buddy, you're a traitor. I know it.' I wish he hadn't been traitorous, because I felt like it was a bit weak and the author could have done better to fool the reader.

Overall, The Liberator was a fun and easy sci-fi/fantasy/YA read. I can't make too many judgements yet as I need to read the rest of the series to form a cohesive opinion, but I like it so far. It's an entertaining read at the very least, and I'm interested to see where it goes.


Disclaimer: I received this through the Goodreads First Reads program, but it doesn't affect my ability to give an honest review. I've received books through this program before and torn the authors a new asshole. :P

[Kalpit · Rating 4 out of 5]

Interesting concept and well set plot...

The Liberator is composed of all the elements varying from, spaceships, aliens, mutants, military intrigue, wars, conflicts, assassinations, advance technologies, heroes, villains and a pondering high school student Peter Turner traveling to a planet of Tarizon and surrounded by vicious aliens.
Fast paced and high action thriller pack, Just about everything a science fiction novel can offer.

Though I was not immediately pulled into the story, but the things changed drastically once I passed 30~40 pages mark.
From then until the end, the story kept me hooked up to the book.
The story kicks in with Peter, a high school grade teenager who's drawn into the world of Tarizon out of the galaxy, captured and controlled by aliens.
Peter's character was built up interestingly enough to be liked from very beginning. He's been assigned to be the "LIBERATOR" who'll free the world of Tarizon from slavery and injustice.
So we get our little seventeen year old hero huh?
Interesting to draw young readers into this book.

Vicious and crippling series of volcanic eruptions with loud cacophony quivering and destroying the once beautiful planet of Traizon has staked to the lives of Tarizon Civilians and reaped them to death.
There's been enormous damage to the natural environment and Eco-system of the planet.
It was compelling to see, aliens living among the US residents and the US government cooperating with the aliens of Tarizon by trading its residents in exchange of advance and superior technologies from aliens, in order to re-populate the planet of Tarizon.
Much of a fresh concept over regular Sci-Fi's that immediately drew me in as few page passed. (Wins a point)

Then comes our hero, Peter Turner, who's abducted and courageously adapts to the new planet of Tarizon and it's residents.
People see him as the Liberator, who'll take care of saving the Tarizon inhabitants and resolving the civil war disputes between the Loyalists and Purists. Much of Good vs Evil, Heroes vs Villains. (Which I love)

Well written military and political disputes.
It appears like a charade, either sides of politicians and people in dispute and fighting over their own personal triumphs.
A group of aliens wanting to repopulate the planet with equality (aliens and humans) while the politicians wanting to eliminate humans and incorporate the sole survivors as mutants.
This was one of the striking part that kept me turning pages just as fast as my eyes and brain could decode.

There's some of romance involved between Peter and a woman on Tarizon, but I'm not much of romance, so I won't highlight much on that.
I felt the introduction of romance was more of rabid in this Sc-Fi Novel.

It was exciting to see Peter adapting to the language, customs, food, terrain and people of Tarizon.

Without giving much away and avoiding the spoilers as best as I can,
I suggest anyone wanting to read this Sci-Fi novel must proudly pick up an copy, though there are editing issues involved.
It could be edited way better than it is.

With plenty much of action, thrills, danger, politics, romance, and excitement, The Liberator, first book in Tarizon Trilogy is certainly a book that you can read sprawling in your bed and enjoy frantic actions scenes and exciting story.

Pros:-
+ Interesting concept

+ Well set plot

+ A good story featuring Loyalists and Purists

+ A good start to the Trilogy

+ Great action, adventure, thrills, politics, danger and excitement

Cons:-

- Rabid and unnecessary romance

- small print size ( if you prefer print medium)

- Poor Editing

- Moderate detailing

[Barb · Rating 3 out of 5]

I received this as a Goodreads First Reads giveaway and had no prior experience with the author. The problem with this became apparent as the first chapter of the book draws heavily on events and characters from Manchee's previous series about the protagonist's father, Stan Turner, an attorney involved with a top secret CIA operation to hide alien presence on Earth. Confusing? Very.

The plot line is rather unique and it kept my interest. The action comes fast and steady with very few low points. Unfortunately, the author often relies on dreams to give us background information, or else has one of the characters rambles off in an "information dump," explaining at length about some person or event in a manner that no one in normal conversation would ever speak. There are far better methods of conveying information other than having everything spelled out for the reader, implying we must be taught in order to enjoy the book.

I also found most of the characters 2 dimensional and very hard to relate to. Our protagonist, Peter, is a 17-year old boy who is kidnapped from his home planet by aliens who tell him he will never return to his life and family on Earth. Within a day, Peter is just fine with staying on Tarizon as long as he can have sex with the 20-year old woman (who is married, or mated according to Tarizon tradition) who is assigned to help him adapt to his new surroundings. Apparently, no problem here.

Manchee also has a bit of trouble imagining a world completely different from Earth. Although he does create an interesting species in the Nanomites, tiny hive-like dwellers that build structures from crystals, his Seafolken (guess what they are!), the mutants, and the rhutz, telepathic dog substitutes, are hardly unique. The "humanoid" overlords of the planet are extremely human, using Earth humans to provide them with the progeny they so desperately require. Peter is also able to order pizza and Chinese food delivered to his cool new pad.

Although I believe this was intended as a YA novel, the overall tone (other than the sexual relationship between Peter and Lucinda) is rather juvenile. Overall, I read through this quickly but don't believe I'll be searching out the rest of the trilogy any time soon.

[Jami16 · Rating 5 out of 5]

Tarizon: The Liberator is an interesting book that one could read a lot into. Taken as it seems to be intended as a science fiction book aimed at teens and young adults it is quite an interesting story and the fact that the hero is seventeen years old when the story opens will definitely appeal to the younger crowd. Peter Turner stumbles onto the knowledge that aliens live among us in the US, but even more disturbing than that discovery alone is that the US government is well aware of this and is cooperating with the aliens from planet Tarizon. A series of volcanic eruptions threatens life as well as the ecosystem on Tarizon. The aliens trade their superior technology to the US for some of its citizens to help repopulate their planet. Young Turner is abducted and not only has to adapt to life on this new planet but that many of the people see him as the liberator of their planet which besides dealing with all of the problems in the aftermath of the volcanoes has a civil war going on between the Loyalists and the Purists. This book combines many of the basic elements in conflict with man vs. nature and man vs. man, as there are brave heroes and evil villains in this story. The courage shown by the young Peter Turner makes even the most cynical reader root for him. On another level, as a more mature reader there are things in this book that screamed the current situation in the US, except that our aliens aren’t from another planet but are part of a civil war that is threatening to break out if not in arms but in the political arena. Barack Obama is being portrayed as the young hero, the great liberator and savior of not only the oppressed, but the planet as well. This is the savoir the Loyalists(liberals), are hanging their hats on and as in the book could face the threat of assassination. This book may very well have been written long before it was even a thought that Obama would become the president-elect of the US, but those similarities struck me from the outset. Whether the political parallels are intended or not this book is an excellent read with a well told story and interesting, compelling characters.

[Jeff · Rating 5 out of 5]

William Manchee’s book, “Tarizon: The Liberator,” will definitely appeal to young fans of science fiction but also is a well told story of good versus evil, with a likeable, young hero that will appeal to most readers, particularly the teen to twenty-something set. While this book starts with the premise that there are aliens from another planet living among us they are not so different to put off the casual reader. They look human with the only difference that they have gills. Their planet, Tarizon used to be a beautiful place but was nearly destroyed following a series of volcanic eruptions. This premise is very believable. As the inhabitants of Tarizon try to cope they become embroiled in political unrest, resulting in a civil war between the Loyalists, the group believing in restoring rights for all life forms, including a growing mutant population and the Purists who want to rid Tarizon of the mutants and all non-human, intelligent life. This a theory easy to relate to as throughout time there have been civilizations on earth through genocide and ethnic cleansing that have basically tried to do the same thing. Basically, the beings from Tarizon need earthlings and in this book, US citizens to help repopulate their planet. They make a deal with the US government to give them advanced technology in exchange for healthy humans to aid in the repopulation. The story’s seventeen year old hero, Peter Turner discovers the basics of this plot and is exiled to Tarizon where he is thought by many to be the prophesized liberator. How he adapts to another planet, customs and language while escaping assassination is a compelling story. Peter stands up for and works for what he believes is right and that always makes a good

[Blue · Rating 3 out of 5]

Tarizon: The Liberator is a fast-paced adventure that involves abductions, aliens, mutants, political turmoil, civil war, assassinations, and much more. The plot is developed well, though through most of the book, I kept wondering how this earthling, Peter, a high school student on Earth, abducted abruptly from his home to another planet, did everything that he managed to do. But then again, I suppose that's why he is the long-awaited Liberator, and though we might all doubt his abilities, he will over and over again prove us wrong. In general, the storyline as well as the characters were too much about the military and politics without the necessary philosophical depth.

The young adult aspect of the book was interesting, though for some it may be problematic. Peter "mates" with a young woman on Tarizon. She is, as a result, pregnant. So Peter, on Earth, is a teenage dad, on Tarizon this is OK, so publishers will not be peeved. Except many of the other value systems that apply to Peter on Earth seem to be intact. In fact, I suspected some sort of Christian-theme here. There are frequent references to God of Earth and Sandee, the Tarizon equivalent of Jesus. There is a conversation towards the end about how God and Sandee might be the same, as the suspected alien/human settlers of both Tarizon and Earth are the same. Peter claims this would explain "many things" in our history on Earth. Really? At this point, I expected Peter to break into Jesus-talk, but he didn't, so maybe I was wrong about the weird religious-theme vibe I was getting?

The language of the book certainly does need more editing. The conversations do not need to be grammatically correct, of course, but the narration does (at least for me.)

[Nancy Steinle gummel · Rating 5 out of 5]

The Liberator by William Manchee is part of a series of books about Tarizon, a planet similar to Earth. In fact the Tarzonians have been coming to earth for 50 years.They marry Earthlings, have children and return to Tarizon when the children are safe to travel. The government arranges for an accident so the grieving spouse is in the dark. Tarizon has a prophecy that a liberator will come when Tarzons two moons peak and he will befriend a rhuz. Peter fits the bill. He was forcibly taken from Earth because he learned that his father was aiding the Tarizonians. Tarizon renamed Peter calling him Leek. Peter impregnated his guide Lucinda. He enrolled in the military. He is aided by Chancellor Garcia and his daughter Loren. Peter makes friends with Tam, Sy and Red.Tam gets sent to recruit drop out camp. Leek makes plans to rescue him. Leek escapes the camp wrecks a lot of fight craft so they can't be followed. He rescues Tam. They head to Lb1. Loren arranges for Lucinda to meet Peter. The next day they leave to attack Vidals base. Loren, the General and Lucinda are in an escape craft that is manned by traitors. They are taken to another base. They were heading to one of the Loyalist continents so Garcia could be sworn into office. Leek rescues them except they moved Lucinda. They want to parade her around showing her as a traitor before publicly hanging her. Peter vows revenge.

[Erin · Rating 4 out of 5]

Peter Turner was abducted by aliens when searching for his father. After being taken to Tarizon, the home planet of the aliens, he learns that the people believe he is “The Liberator”. The Liberator is the one who will abolish slavery and bring down the evil Videl Lai. Peter believes they have the wrong person until he begins to see signs that he is actually special and possess incredible abilities. While working for the Loyalists to take down Videl Lai, he has to know who he can trust and who is trying to infiltrate their side.

This book is full of action. Peter at first is convinced that these aliens have no idea what they are talking about in referencing him as the Liberator. Peter is learning to adjust to life on Tarizon. The author had me completely caught up in this new world. I love how Peter was able to quickly learn their language through their unique process of activating more of your brain. I also loved reading about how the Nanomites are responsible for the beautiful buildings in the cities. I love the rhutz and how Rhin is so protective of Peter. This book was such a fun adventure, and I wonder what will happen to Lucinda. I also wonder how Peter will fulfill the prophecy.

I received a copy of this book for free through Goodreads First Reads.

[Susan · Rating 5 out of 5]

I have to admit to not reading a whole lot of science fiction books, but I just absolutely love Manchee's books featuring Tarizon. I had read a couple of his Stan Turner mysteries that featured this storyline and was thrilled to read a story from Stan's son Peter's point of view. This book picks up with Peter's kidnapping, and I enjoyed getting to experience Tarizon and this new world through Peter's eyes as he experienced it and had to figure out this new world for himself. The book is full of plenty of action and suspense as Peter is thrust into the middle of a civil war, but the book also shows the importance of friendship as Peter is introduced to the different races of Tarizon. The book captures your attention from the very beginning and never lets go. Overall The Liberator was an enjoyable read that I can not recommend enough.

Received a copy of Tarizon: The Liberator from the author in exchange for an honest review.

[Sharon M. · Rating 5 out of 5]

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.
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.”

[Deborah · Rating 4 out of 5]

I recieved "Tarizon: The Liberator" as an MP3. I have not had the opportunity to have experienced hearing a book on an MP3 before. Despite my lack of knowledge and how to move to an area I had not heard before when returning to the story after a break; I did manage to hear this young-adult sci-fi story. I enjoy sci-fi and young adult books so this was a great combiation.

A teenager, Peter Turner, knows something he should not know. The aliens must either kill him, or exile him to Tarizon; where it is believed he maybe the answer to a prophecy that is to save Tarizon.

In Volume 1, there is plenty of action, danger, and excitement. A compeling coming of age story of a young man, his joumey to a new world, accepting his role as "The Liberator", and fighting three headed mutants.

What a great adventure for all.

[Eric Breunig · Rating 4 out of 5]

I won the set of this trilogy, read the first and second, the third I am halfway through. The first is very good. It has several pieces of a hero setup. The first chapter is a little rushed(They only spend a little time on Earth), but once the "hero" gets to Tarizon, things pick up rather quick, meeting several new characters to get invested in rather quick.

The one thing I would suggest is to ignore the artwork for the "cover" as it put me off reading it a little while. It's almost like someone didn't read the books, but instead got a few sentence explanation....doesn't do the story justice.

There is plenty of action throughout, a bit of "sex" for the guys to pay attention to, and some various aspects of sci-fi to bring up the imagination. The concept of a world unable to really bear children, using earth to get mates, to have children, etc was pretty interesting.

[Luc · Rating 5 out of 5]

I received the book in exchange of a honest review for the author. The Liberator is one of the most breathtakingly fantastic science-fiction books I have ever read. Peter Turner was the son of Stan Turner - the lawyer working for the CIA to stand the trials for the government to cover its stealthy connection with Tarizonians ( I believe that The Stan Turner Mysteries will give you a useful background of what happened to Stan; sadly, I still have not read it yet).Unfortunately Peter was exiled to Tarizon for lifetime because he had known the existence of the Tarizon aliens. The Tarizon, however, was about to happen a civil war. In the back of the book, there is a poem to give you a hint who will be the main character in this trilogy.
The story is well crafted that I would recommend everyone to pick up a copy and read it

[Brent Soderstrum · Rating 4 out of 5]

I am not a big Sci-Fi fan but Manchee tells a great Sci-Fi tale. If you have read his Stan Turner mysteries you will see some connection in that Peter Turner plays a huge role in this book-he is the Liberator. Peter is captured and taken back to Tarizon. He fulfills the Prophecy which indicates he will save the people of Tarizon.

He starts off his adventures on Tarizon by impregnating his guide-Luci. He falls for Luci but the problem is that Luci already has a mate who was selected for her by the computer.

Peter begins his military training and hooks up with three other young men. They go through this adventure together. Twists and turns galore. Actually looking forward to reading the next volume and I don't say that very often about Sci-Fi books.

Some editing errors so if this gets your underwear in a bundle don't read the book.

[DENISA HOWE · Rating 4 out of 5]

The Liberator is not my favorite book of Manchee’s but, it is a worthy read. The Second Chair and Dessert Storm were my favorite to date. This book, I feel is more for the YA era and filled with that which they would grab hold of and wish for a movie to be made of. This is the first book of a trilogy and the story does indeed need to continue.
The world in this reading is a bit different from the world we live in. It offers a lot in what it contains. There are aliens, Peter who is one you will feel in awe of, struggles, encounters and a lot of action. Each page you turn continues your interest. The new alien world is full of surprises and the introduction brings Peter much to think about. The struggle within himself to follow what is just and put it into action allows you to feel as if you a part of it all.

[Robert Davis · Rating 1 out of 5]

Military intrigue, conspiracies, the CIA, spaceships, alien abductions and a prophecy promising a teenage savior, and this is just the beginning. Tarizon: The Liberator is the first of a YA+ science fiction trilogy.

This is something of a crossover continuation. William Manchee first introduced the alien world of Tarizon in his Stan Turner mysteries, "Cactus Island" and "Act Normal."

High school student, Peter Turner, is abducted by aliens to another planet. When he arrives on Tarizon he discovers his arrival has been highly anticipated. A prophecy has foretold that he would lead a revolt against a ruthless dictator who has enslaved all of the non-human life forms on the planet. Book I: The Liberator explores Peters struggle to embrace his destiny.

[James]

My wife won volumes 1-3 and I'm currently reading vol. 2 "civil war".

The first note I would like to make is there are editing errors in these books. It's not hard to miss them. But, past that, in total not many cons.

This book is a good start for a series. The writing style is easy to read but not too simple and definitely caters to a young adult demographic. The plot is kind of a basic sci-fi/future/militaristic story that has been done in many different versions before, but it stands on it's own enough that you don't get over bored with simplicity. Overall, I would recommend this to anyone, though not the most detailed of sci-fi (Aasimov, Herbert) there is enough character and plot development for most readers to keep the book open and look forward to the next in the trilogy.

[Chris Yorgason · Rating 3 out of 5]

I received this book free through the Goodreads First Read giveaways. On the whole it was a pretty good book. A little language at the end, which was a surprise. As other reviewers have pointed out, the editing was atrocious. I don't really fault the author for that, but he needs a new editor. The story is about a young teenager who is abducted from earth to live on another planet (also populated by humans). He ultimately becomes known as the Liberator and helps his new planet fight for freedom. All in all a good story. The biggest draw back to me was the almost constant focus on sex rather than on real relationships. The story is not graphic, but the theme runs throughout the book.

[Lasaki Redbird · Rating 4 out of 5]

i won this book in first reads by goodreads.
to be honest, i am not a very big fan of sci-fi. when i saw the summary of the book, i was like okay, whats the harm in giving it a go? it looked pretty interesting. and to my fortune,it was a good book.

it has everything one would look for if one is a big fan of adventure, drama (not literally), fights,heroes, aliens and yea ofcourse, advanced technology. i enjoyed the read, and it wasnt a short read. it is probably one of the long books i read so far in this year.

i would suggest the sci-fi fans to go for it, and give it a go, it wont disappoint you. as for my case, i liked it, but as a not so much fan of sci-fi, i dont love it, but its so far a very very good book in its genre.

[Cince · Rating 3 out of 5]

The Liberator by William Manchee is a good story about a teenager who learns about man's involvement with an alien planet and gets whisked away from family, friends, home and Earth in order to preserve the secret about alien existence. While the story is good, much of it a bit hard to buy. Peter, the boy taken from Earth, is way too calm about his abduction and appears to adapt remarkably easy to life on an entirely different planet, with different types of peoples and customs. I may not be male, but I find it really hard to believe that really soon after Peter's arrival on the new planet, he is sleeping with his "guide," and in less than a year, Peter is almost like admirality in rank it seems.

[April · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very interesting story. Peter is an average 17 year old on Earth, suddenly he is taken to Tarizon, a plant out of the galaxy, and told that he is the "Liberator" who will free Tarizon from slavery!
I liked how the story is told from Peter's point of view and I was able to follow his adventures as he learned and accepted the Liberator prophecy.
At first I wasn't sure if I was going to be able to keep track of all the names, places and what was going on in the story, as there is quite a lot, but as I got more into the story I found it easy to follow.
I received the Trilogy from Goodreads, first reads and so the second book is next.
Really enjoyable book.

[Travis · Rating 4 out of 5]

I got this book as a free give away and I would have to say I liked it. It should be known though that there are some errors in the book that really should be correct. The really started to appear at the end of the book. Not sure how well of an editing job took place. But the basis of the story is great. I will seek out the next book in the series and go read it. The one major complaint I have about the book is the love story between Peter and his mate. From that aspect it was kind of reading about Bella and her vampire. Thankfully this was kept to a minimum, I see it as being used a filler at times.