Aussiereviews.com and Hal Spacejock 2 & 3

These reviews were posted late last year, and I somehow managed to miss them. (I had the pleasure of meeting the reviewer, Sally Murphy, at the All Saints' Kids' Lit festival in April last year, and I was happy to sign a copy of Hal Spacejock to her - right underneath the promo blurb for the book which my publisher snipped out of her first Hal review!)

Hal Spacejock Second Course reviewed here

"Often sequels to successful first books can be downright disappointing or repetitive, but this sequel is better than the first, with more development of Hal and Clunk as characters and an interesting cast of supporting characters, as well as a plot with twists and turns, and plenty of humour."

Hal Spacejock Just Desserts reviewed here

"Author Simon Haynes has found a formula that works, yet manages to make each new instalment sufficiently different to avoid it becoming predictable."

Simon Haynes is the author of the Hal Spacejock and Hal Junior series (Amazon / Smashwords / other formats)

New Hal 3 review

My publisher just forwarded me a Hal 3 review from the latest Fiction Focus*, and it's a good one! The Hal series has done pretty well in school libraries across Australia and New Zealand, so it's good to see the third book given a nice wrap:

"The satire is great, the plot oddities continue to fascinate and readers are fairly sure that the 'heroes' will somehow get out of every mess they get into. Simon Haynes wants to write fifteen Hal Spacejock books. We are happily waiting."

* Fiction Focus is a selection and buying guide for secondary schools and other institutions serving teenagers.

Simon Haynes is the author of the Hal Spacejock and Hal Junior series (Amazon / Smashwords / other formats)

Launched

The Hal 3 launch was on last night, and we're all recovering nicely. Full details here.

We came, we saw, we launched. Now my focus turns to Hal 4.

Simon Haynes is the author of the Hal Spacejock and Hal Junior series (Amazon / Smashwords / other formats)

Your invitation to a book launch

Dymocks would like to invite you to a Book Launch for Simon Haynes's new book “Hal Spacejock Just Desserts”, book 3 in the Hal Spacejock series.

Simon Haynes is the author of three Hal Spacejock novels, a number of articles on writing and publishing, and several short stories, one of which collected an Aurealis Award in 2001.

“Hal Spacejock Just Desserts”

A mysterious sealed crate, a pair of shady mercenaries with more guns than brain cells and the amnesiac robot which may or may not be on a secret mission ... Only interstellar ignoramus Hal Spacejock and the unflappable Clunk could turn a straightforward cargo delivery into space opera with clowns.

Three simmering planets, two cocky spacemen and one huge mess: Just Desserts, for your pleasure.


Author Signing

DATES: February 9th, 2007 (This Friday)
VENUE: Dymocks Carousel, Cannington
TIME: 7.00pm
TICKET PRICE: Free
RSVP: Please call 08 9356 8888 or email carousel (at) dymocks.com.au

Simon Haynes is the author of the Hal Spacejock and Hal Junior series (Amazon / Smashwords / other formats)

Hal 3 a bestseller

January's bestsellers at Fantastic Planet bookstore

1...Hal Spacejock: Just Desserts...Simon Haynes
2...Peace and War...Joe Haldeman
3...The Arrival...Shaun Tan
4...Galactic North...Alastair Reynolds
5...Pushing Ice...Alastair Reynolds
6...Running from the Deity...Alan Dean Foster
7...Red Phoenix...Kylie Chan
8...Red Spikes...Margo Lanagan
9...Thud!...Terry Pratchett
10..Temeraire...Naomi Novik

So, a big thank-you to all the staff at Fantastic Planet. Nice going ;-)

Simon Haynes is the author of the Hal Spacejock and Hal Junior series (Amazon / Smashwords / other formats)

Hal 3 is out!

It's official - Hal Spacejock Just Desserts, book 3 in the series, hits shops across Australia and New Zealand from this week.




Click for full size


I've also seen sales figures for all three books in the series so far, and Hal's rockin' ;-)

Simon Haynes is the author of the Hal Spacejock and Hal Junior series (Amazon / Smashwords / other formats)