Hal Spacejock Omnibus Three by Simon Haynes

Hal Spacejock Omnibus Three: Hal Spacejock books 7-9, plus Albion by Simon Haynes
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

The third omnibus/collection of Hal Spacejock novels by Simon Haynes delivered everything I expected with three wonderfully and painfully funny adventures where Hal more often than not is the architect of his own pain. Clunk and pretty everyone who comes into Hal's vicinity often have to pay the price in ever more outlandish situations and yet you can't help but love Hal as a character who is at heart a decent guy. This collection comprises three full length stories and the short "Albion".

Hal Spacejock 7: Big Bang
Hal and Clunk take on a job clearing out a house that is due to be submerged as water levels rise after the construction of a dam. A simple job, fly in fill the cargo bay with stuff and fly away so when I tell you that soon after Hal gets lost and gets involved in an Intergalactic war and Clunk kinda falls in love, just another day for the crew of the Volante.

Hal Spacejock 8: Double Trouble
Somewhere in vast galaxy there is someone who looks just like you, naturally Hal comes across his double who is being hunted by a ruthless gangster, has dealings with various intelligence operatives and yep you guessed it Hal has to deal with it all while and making sacrifices that well are just not his normal modus operandi.

Hal Spacejock 9: Max Damage
A daring rescue mission puts Hal and Clunk in the middle of a military conflict as the aggressive Mayestran military (already at war with the Henerian forces) encroach on peaceful Yardene territory and Hal just happens to have an Henerian pilot on board. A small contract to collect space rocks seems to be an easy and profitable job but come on you know it's not going to be as easy as that, it never is.

I enjoyed all the stories in this collection and have to admit I got quite emotional during Double Trouble, I wasn't really expecting the rollercoaster of feelings in what on the surface is a humorous scifi adventure but Simon added layers to the characters which pay off big time yet sacrifice none of the aspects which have me returning to these books time and time again.



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Hal Spacejock Omnibus One by Simon Haynes

Hal Spacejock Omnibus One by Simon Haynes
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Hal Spacejock, just the name envisions adventures that defy belief and well this omnibus was a bargain and I never turn my back on a good title, blurb or ebook value for money. The first three novels in the series A Robot Named Clunk, Second Course and Just Desserts are included in this kindle edition and I started reading and just kept reading to the point where I forget it was a trilogy and was delighted when the first story finished and the second was on the next page.
Hal is a put upon small time space freighter captain who is up to his neck in debt and finally has to take a contract which lumbers him with a robot co-pilot, of course a shady job brings all manner of complications into Hal's simple life as he tries to stay ahead of debt collectors, shipping agents, customs personnel and all manner of things inherent in a ship owner who does not know how to navigate and beyond pressing a button labelled "land" or "launch" has no real piloting skills.
These three stories in this omnibus were great fun, Hal is not a great guy for sure but compared to most of the people he has to deal with he comes across as the "good" guy and of course Clunk and the ships AI add greatly to the chemistry of the team.
I've already bought the second omnibus and looking forward to reading the further adventures of this flying disaster zone.

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