The Tery

The LaNague Federation #5

by F. Paul Wilson

After the king's thugs murder his parents, a young bearlike "tery" befriends a lonely potter and the two plot to overthrow the evil kingdom

Genres: Science Fiction, Fiction, Fantasy, Horror

246 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1982

About the author

Francis Paul Wilson is an author, born in Jersey City, New Jersey. He writes novels and short stories primarily in the science fiction and horror genres. His debut novel was Healer (1976). Wilson is also a part-time practicing family physician. He made his first sales in 1970 to Analog and continued to write science fiction throughout the seventies. In 1981 he ventured into the horror genre with the international bestseller, The Keep, and helped define the field throughout the rest of the decade. In the 1990s he became a true genre hopper, moving from science fiction to horror to medical thrillers and branching into interactive scripting for Disney Interactive and other multimedia companies. He, along with Matthew J. Costello, created and scripted FTL Newsfeed which ran daily on the Sci-Fi Channel from 1992-1996.

http://us.macmillan.com/author/fpaulw...

Reviews

[Lisa (Harmonybites) · Rating 3 out of 5]

F. Paul Wilson is best known for his horror fiction, particularly his bestselling vampires-among-the-Nazis, The Keep. I rather enjoyed that pot-boiler, but I like his space opera LaNague Federation novels much more. This is listed both on Goodreads and LibraryThing as last in the series, but chronologically that really isn't correct. This is definitely after the first novel, An Enemy of the State, and possibly after Dydeetown, but definitely before Healer and Wheels Within Wheels. It's also as far as I'm concerned the weakest of the novels, the others of which I've rated four stars; The Tery is only rated as high as three stars because I did enjoy seeing Steve Dalt of Healer before joining up with Pard, and for that reason this book is keeping its place on my bookshelves for now rather than being culled. Otherwise I found this science fiction Beauty and the Beast less original and imaginative that the other books in the series, and the title character never really hooked me. It also has the weakest--or anyway least interesting--female character in the series. Adriel is pure damsel-in-distress without anything else (other than her beauty natch) to distinguish her. And you know, if you're trying for a sci-fi version of Beauty and the Beast, in my opinion anyway, the female perspective--how a woman can come to love a beast--is if anything more important, more interesting than how the beast can come to love the beauty--and this novel is scant on that perspective. I do like this series, and would recommend the omnibus LaNague Chronicles containing An Enemy of the State, Wheels Within Wheels and Healer. They're all Prometheus Award winners, which might be an added attraction--or detraction--for some. (The Prometheus Awards are given to libertarian fiction.) More general readers might enjoy Dydeetown which can stand on its own, and where the libertarian themes aren't to the fore. The Tery I'd recommend only to fans of Healer who want more of Steve Dalt.

[Alien · Rating 3 out of 5]

Die Hauptperson des Romans ist ein "Tery", ein bärenähnliches, intelligentes Wesen, dessen Art von den menschlichen Kolonisten als Tier angesehen wird. Nachdem seine Eltern auf Befehl des religiös fanatisierten, feudalen Herrschers getötet wurden, schließt er sich einer Gruppe von Telepathen an, die auch auf der Flucht sind.

Ein eher dünnes Buch (156 Seiten) mit recht viel Handlung und viel Vorgeschichte (vielleicht zu viel).
Es hat Elemente, die auf einfache Unterhaltungskost hindeuten, aber es ist doch ein bisschen mehr dran.
Man hat hier ein intelligentes Tier, dem man sagt, dass es doch ein Mensch sei. Das kaum zu hoffen wagt, dass das wahr ist. Und dann feststellen muss zu was für üblen Dingen die Menschen fähig sind.
Auch das tragische Ende, das ich recht stark fand, hebt es aus der puren Unterhaltung heraus (andere könnten es pathetisch finden).

[Steve · Rating 4 out of 5]

Another book in F Paul Wilson’s The LaNague universe. Bits of it reminded me of the original Planet of The Apes with Charlton Heston, but with a role reversal.

"The Tery" is a story set in a post-apocalyptic world and follows the main character, a man creature named Tery, as he struggles to survive in a harsh and unforgiving environment.

The book was not bad, and is one of F Paul Wilson’s earlier novels. But, I think his Repairman Jack novels are much more enjoyable.

[Merije · Rating 1 out of 5]

This book was a frustrating slog. I kept telling myself it was probably written somewhere in the 70s and that I had to read it in it's time. When I checked and realised it's from the 90s I only kept going on because I have this weird compulsion to see the number of books I read slowly rise. This one is so bad I'm not even taking it to the little outside library, it's straight to the trash.

[hotsake (André Troesch) · Rating 4 out of 5]

Most of this book was a solid 3.5/5 but the ending bumped it up for me. I think that this could've been even better if the characters were given room to be fleshed out a bit more but the story still worked as it was.

[Steve Scanlan · Rating 4 out of 5]

I had only ever read Healer, the rest of the LaNague Federation are all great.

[Drooglord · Rating 4 out of 5]

4.5/5 Stars

[Birgit · Rating 3 out of 5]

2,5 Sterne

[Robert · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is book that is not for the squeamish. It is very well written -- the story is clear and easy to follow. It is set in the distant future on a world where genetic experiments and development ran wild. Rulers and scientists created "humans" with rat tails, or the bodies of, for example, beasts or giant spiders, in great variety, apparently just for grins. And some have "The Talent", the ability to communicate mind-to-mind without talking or writing. A very few are "Finders", able to detect those with "The Talent". "Finders" are valuable to those who want to exterminate those with "The Talent". In all this, "civilization" has returned to approximately the stone age (or maybe iron age, as some have swords). And, naturally I suppose, "racial" tensions are extreme, with some wanting to commit genocide against everyone not like themselves. And, there is one person from another world who is restrained from taking action by the politics and ethics of the federation of worlds he represents. Against this background of pervasive extreme evil the story develops. Is it possible to do anything "right" in this malevolent milieu?

[Pat Cummings · Rating 5 out of 5]

I cannot spoil the story by revealing that Wilson borrows the power of a central Christian image - the Crucifixion - for his tale of world-wide intolerance and bigotry. Wilson himself begins the story with the puzzlement of a Christian missionary faced with that image on an alien planet.

Because of that, this novel reminded me at first of James Blish's A Case of Conscience, which masterfully explored such questions as, "Do aliens have souls?" and "If they do, did the crucifixion at Golgotha save them too?"

But it is a different question about souls that Wilson poses - and answers - in The Tery. And while it doesn't really drive the narrative of the LaNague Federation, it does fit in with other Wilson novels that address similar concepts of human dignity, liberty and self-determination, and is enjoyable on those levels as well.

[Christine Jewett · Rating 3 out of 5]

I found the book generally enjoyable, but "The Tery" felt incomplete - perhaps if it had been a novel, instead of a novella, it would have felt like the correct ending on more than just an intellectual level, but on an emotional level as well. As it was, it seemed to come out of nowhere with certain aspects of the story unresolved.

"Pard" was more satisfying, to the extent that I am curious if there are tales that follow up on it.

[Fred · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love F. Paul Wilson's books, love the Repairman Jack series, but the LaNauge books hold a special place for me, I think I have read Healer about 20 times.

The Tery is a short read, and while some have panned it, I enjoyed it as it fills in a bit more background of Dalt. Think of it more as an addendum rather than a major part.

[Linda · Rating 1 out of 5]

Sorry, I don't care too much for sci-fi books (people with funny names and from strange planets!) I read the first couple of chapters, then returned it to the library. I usually love F. Paul Wilson, especially his "Repairman Jack" series, but this one was not my cup o' tea!

[Brett · Rating 4 out of 5]

F. Paul Wilson

[Marty · Rating 2 out of 5]

doesn't add to the LaNague series especially and not independently very interesting either.

[Ron Judenberg]

to-read