Customer Reviews

Hal Spacejock

5 star:		(19)
4 star:		(14)
3 star:		(3)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(3)

 

 

The cover blurb compares Hal Spacejock to Red Dwarf, so I went in expecting that same level of silliness and humor. (Rather, that level of humour -- Australian spelling, after all.) And silliness it delivers. Hal Spacejock, incompetent pilot on the cargo ship Black Gull, lands a job transporting robot parts from point A to point B. On his side is the old robot Clunk. Against him is, well, pretty much everyone else, from warships to desperate thieves to debt collectors to dockmasters who object to Hal's habit of accidentally setting their planets on fire.

The book moves along at a nice pace, and there are some entertaining bits. The "How much for that robot in the window?" exchange made me laugh. A lot of Haynes' computer and robot tech parallels today's PC-related troubles, such as Clunk the roboth having to clean up the code for the Navigational Computer. Then there's the accounting rationale behind disposing of perfectly good robots for tax and warranty reasons. All of this is discussed with a sharp eye for the absurd. (There were moments when I thought I was reading about my own office.)

What lost me from time to time was when the balance switched too far to the silly side of things, at the cost of plausibility. Hal felt too incompetent to have survived this long. It's funny that he can't land his own spaceship, and that he doesn't know what any of the buttons on the console actually do, but it leaves the reader wondering how he managed to get the ship at all, and how he got to where he is without getting himself killed.

Once or twice, complications felt like they were thrown in for the sake of another gag, as opposed to being natural consequences of the story. It's a very tricky thing to balance humor and suspension of disbelief. To some extent, it's probably a matter of personal taste.

Whether or not you'll like the book is going to depend a lot on your sense of humor. For me, it was an amusing read, but it didn't quite hit the mark. Given the success Haynes has had with the series so far (I would love to have some of his great reviews for my own work), Given the success Haynes has had with the series so far (I would love to have some of his great reviews for my own work), I'd say it's definitely worth checking out chapter one at the author's website to see if it's your brand of space humor.

The incompetent-but-lucky man with his capable-but-frequently-eyerolling companion who repeatedly (and thanklessly) saves his butt seems to be a staple in humorous science fiction. Hal Spacejock and his robot sidekick, Clunk, are no exception. I won't say that this story has anything new and novel to offer, but it sure is a good time. I especially enjoyed the random side scenes, like Hal's altercation with a stubborn automatic door. If you like outlandish SF like Red Dwarf and the Stainless Steel Rat, check out Hal Spacejock.

Simon Haynes' "Hal Spacejock" was a darn good read. More importantly, it was something that I completely enjoyed reading, after a long time. What was interesting for me while reading the book was to note that I was hooked by the time I was barely a quarter of the way through the book. Usually, it takes me a while to be truly invested in a story. For instance, Terry Pratchett is my favourite author but the last few books by PTerry took me at least till the middle of the book before I was really engaged in the story - you know, the point of no return, where you get so hooked in the story that you cannot bear to put the book down.

Am I saying that Simon is better than PTerry? Not really. (Sorry Simon :p) But I'm saying that Simon's style is very easy to read and to get into and that it is very different from that of Terry Pratchett - I enjoy books by both but I find that Simon's is a much more easier page turner for me a lot earlier on :) But I'm not going to compare one author to another, that's really not fair to either since each author has their own unique style and they bring completely different values and qualities to the table.

Basically, I enjoyed the story. It came together well and by the time I completed it, I wanted to get my hands on the sequel, "Hal Spacejock: Second Course" and continue reading. That's all that any author can ask for, right? :)

Concept/World
I loved the rustbucket spaceship, the Black Gull. The description of the food aboard the space station had me in fits.

Story
The story rockets along right from the start. Hal Spacejock leaves a trail of destruction everywhere he goes, with non-stop action all the way through.

Characters
I just loved the characters - Navcom, the spaceship computer with attitude, the brilliant and much put-upon Clunk and, of course, Hal Spacejock himself. Hal is hilariously stupid, doing whatever seems like a good idea at the time with no thought for consequences. He manages to survive far more by luck than judgement, and usually because he's saved at the last moment either by his ship's Navcom or by Clunk, his robot sidekick. The villains are convincingly unpleasant, greedy and ruthless.

Overall
I highlighted parts of this book that made me laugh out loud. By the end of the book I had 29 of them. The only other books I've read that made me laugh this much are Terry Pratchett's. This story does contain swearing so isn't suitable for younger readers. Simon Haynes is also writing a series for younger readers, though,"Hal Junior". I enjoyed Hal Spacejock so much that I bought a copy of that to review as well. I have also bought the next in the series to read just for fun. I'm a big fan of Red Dwarf so I'm not sure I'd agree with the blurb on the cover that says Hal Spacejock is better than Red Dwarf, but it's certainly up there alongside it.

Well, not exactly a space opera. More like a zany space adventure with a lot of tripping. There are places where it aaaalmost goes over the top with craziness, but overall this is one of those beach reads when you're looking for something light and funny that moves along. Enjoyed it.

Han Solo meets Hitchhikers Guide! This is some funny stuff. It really is laugh out loud funny. I just came off a binge in the Star Wars universe so I couldn't help but see similarities and enjoyed every one of them!

I have dabbled myself with writing and actually came across Simon's site, the author, due to a software application he made for writers I had seen good reviews in other locations. I certainly wasn't looking for something to read as I have a HUGE backlog of other books just waiting for me to have some spare time to pick up. However, I ended up with a copy of Hal and it was a joy to read. Its a quick read, not too intellectual, which too much sci-fi tries to do these days, and just the right mix of humor, excitement, and adventure.

The interaction between characters is a roller coaster of good times for all. I read 3-4 books a month and rarely do I put one down and immediately start seeking out more of the same. I like to jump genres to keep my mind fresh, right now all I want is more of Hal and Clunk!

If you enjoy a world of quirky characters and side splitting humor. Here is your new base of operations! You will not regret it!

Can't believe I have had this in my reading pile for over five years. I picked in up in Oz back in June 2006 and it kind of buried itself in my pile of books.
It's not bad and the author does show potential. It took a while to get going, initially I was slightly underwhelmed but by the end I discovered I had grown more fond of Hal and Clunk then I was expecting.

It's slapstick space humour with a daft cago pilot and a sidekick robot that is slightly less daft. Here they try to transport a dodgy cargo in a ship that is barely spaceworthy and mayhem is the order of the day.

So it grows on you and it does have some very nice moments. Not Douglas Adams yet though.

is what this book is about. Hal is incompetent, but a likeable guy (well, except to most women). Clunk is a robot, that tries his best to keep Hal out of trouble (but mostly does not succeed). And, of course, trouble happens about every page.

This book is funny, easy to read, and a good story. It has not yet reached the classic status of Asimov's Robot stories (which were more serious in nature), but can approach Douglas Adams' Hitchhiker series.

I thoroughly enjoyed the first book in the series. It is a fast-moving, fun and funny book that really keeps things moving along. Occasionally there's a little too much work pulling the plot together, the setup seems rather formulaic (maybe intentionally?), some odds and ends like that, but I highly recommend this to anyone whose a fan of the odd bit of fantasy or sci-fi satire.

It feels a bit like if Pratchett did sci-fi with more straightforward plotline, you'd get something like this (that by the way is a compliment!).

One thing that sets it apart from some of the other trifles out there is that you really do feel that Hal and Clunk have actually changed and grown by the end ... so many of these types of novels wind up with the characters being exactly the same at the end, and this is really a nice surprise. Something like 'character development' actually making it's way into a fun book like this? Crazy!

For a SF genre, I'm usually happy if the science is pretty good, and if the characters never act bizarrely. This first book in the Hal Spacejock series passes both tests.

Hal might act in a semi-competent, mostly-good-guy way most of the time, but he doesn't fit well in a world of cut-throat bureaucrats, and he has to take on a less savory job. His general impatience with rules leads to a long series of amusing catastrophes, aided by his robot Clank.

The robots in this book are programmed to advertise, make a profit, and force compliance. Computers are doing that even today, so this look at the future with a bit of AI making things worse isn't much of a stretch.

The series of misadventures revolving around the shipment of robot parts ends satisfyingly. Recommended.