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  • The Secret Signal (Hal Junior Book 1)

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Simon Haynes
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The Secret Signal (Hal Junior Book 1)

by Simon Haynes (Author) Format: Kindle Edition
4.4 out of 5 stars (119)

Hal Junior lives aboard a space station, where his teacher is a robot with literal eyes in the back of its head—and with Hal around, it needs them!

Today is extra special: a supply ship has arrived, and Hal's class is heading aboard for a tour. But teacher mysteriously vanishes and Hal immediately stumbles across a dangerous secret.
Hal's a notorious prankster, and nobody listens to his wild stories of kidnappings and invasions. So it's up to him to uncover the truth! The supply ship's AI proves a surprisingly useful ally, but is it helping him... or using him?
When the danger reaches the entire space station, Hal will need more than clever tricks to save everyone.

Zero gravity, an outsized spacesuit, and a homemade space cannon. What could possibly go wrong?

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  1. Reading age
    9 - 12 years
  2. Book 1 of 4
    Hal Junior
  3. Print length
    194 pages
  4. Language
    English
  5. Accessibility
    Learn more
  6. Publication date
    Oct. 2 2011
  7. Page Flip
    Enabled
  8. Word Wise
    Enabled
  9. Enhanced typesetting
    Enabled
  10. ISBN-13
    978-1877034015
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Shop this series

 See full series
There are 4 books in this series.

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Under regulatory requirements, teens need a parent or guardian to buy or borrow titles. Ask your parent or guardian to acquire these titles for this account from their device. These books will appear in your Kindle library once they do.

Product details

  • ASIN ‏ : ‎ B005L632RG
  • Publisher ‏ : ‎ Bowman Press
  • Accessibility ‏ : ‎ Learn more
  • Publication date ‏ : ‎ Oct. 2 2011
  • Edition ‏ : ‎ 1st
  • Language ‏ : ‎ English
  • File size ‏ : ‎ 3.2 MB
  • Screen Reader ‏ : ‎ Supported
  • Enhanced typesetting ‏ : ‎ Enabled
  • X-Ray ‏ : ‎ Not Enabled
  • Word Wise ‏ : ‎ Enabled
  • Print length ‏ : ‎ 194 pages
  • ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-1877034015
  • Page Flip ‏ : ‎ Enabled
  • Book 1 of 4 ‏ : ‎ Hal Junior
  • Reading age ‏ : ‎ 9 - 12 years
  • Customer Reviews:
    4.4 out of 5 stars (119)

About the author

Follow authors to get new release updates, plus improved recommendations.
Simon Haynes

Simon Haynes

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What am I working on now?

October 2026

------------------

I'm currently writing Harriet Walsh 5: Tango Victor. I expect to release this in December 2026.

Hal Spacejock 11: The Crooked Cargo is complete and available for pre-order.

Mysteries in Metal 3: A Conundrum in Gold is complete and availabe for pre-order.

BIO

-----

During a writing career spanning more than two decades, I've been indie published, traditionally published, indie published, traditionally published ... you get the idea.

By day I'm an author. By night I'm also an author. In between, I'm the programmer responsible for yWriter, which is used by thousands - if not hundreds of thousands - of authors around the world.

I love dry humour, and most of my stories and novels were written to make people laugh. Some of them move people to tears, but if they don't like the occasional terrible pun they're reading the wrong author.

Four of my works were finalists for Australia's most prestigious speculative fiction prize, the Aurealis Awards, winning once.

I do NOT use AI my books or for my covers. Every word is written by ME, and the covers are created by a human. (Also me, as it happens.)

I love plotting and writing my books, and I absolutely refuse to take any shortcuts or publish AI slop.

Customer reviews

4.4 out of 5 stars
119 global ratings

Customers say

Customers find this book enjoyable and good overall. They consider it great for the intended age range and perfect for avid 7-12-year-old readers. Readers describe the book as fun and note that it provides much deserved laughs.
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16 customers mention content, 16 positive, 0 negative
Customers find the book engaging and well-received. They describe it as good and perfect, with readers enjoying the content. The book appeals to children and receives solid ratings from those who have read it.
6 customers mention age-appropriate, 6 positive, 0 negative
The book is well-suited for children in the 7-12-year-old age range and appeals to picky readers. It works well for avid readers in this age group and is also suitable for adults.
6 customers mention entertaining, 6 positive, 0 negative
Customers find the book entertaining, describing it as fun with much deserved laughs. The story provides great fun for younger readers and adds a new dimension of humour. Readers note that the story zips along with lots of laughs and find it silly.

Top reviews from Canada

There are 0 reviews from Canada

Top reviews from other countries

  • chochouse
    5 out of 5 stars
    very enjoyable read.
    Reviewed in the United Kingdom on February 8, 2012
    Format: Kindle Edition
    Verified Purchase
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    I have been reading the Hal Spacejock series and i am loving them all.

    Having finished Hal 4 i noticed that this was on free download so i thought i would give it a look, nothing to lose.

    I am way way older than the intended reading age but i can say that i enjoyed it for what it was a great story told well.

    I could pick holes in parts of the story for lack of detail but for the age range i thought it was great.

    I only wish that this sort of book was available for me to read when i was younger.

    This is the great thing about the kindle you can read what ever you like and nobody can critisise you for it.

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  • S. J. MacDonald
    5 out of 5 stars
    Starships and Aliens Review
    Reviewed in the United States on October 1, 2011
    Format: Kindle Edition
    Verified Purchase
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    Concept/World

    The story is set on a space station which felt realistic and industrial.

    Story

    The story zips along with lots of laughs, mysteries and adventure. It's like Dennis the Menace in space, great fun!

    Characters

    Hal Junior is great as the hero. I howled with laughter at his chemistry homework. Stinky Binn is good as the nerdy genius sidekick. The villains are suitably cartoony. I enjoyed the Teacher robot, too.

    Presentation

    I liked the cartoon cover of this book and loved the illustrations. They worked well even on kindle and added a new dimension of humour to the story. It's just the right length for younger readers.

    Overall

    I bought a kindle copy of this book because I'd enjoyed the "Hal Spacejock" story so much. I liked The Secret Signal so much that I've bought a paperpack version of it too for our class library. I had to buy it on the Amazon US site and pay shipping to the UK, but I know that the kids in my class will just love this. It doesn't come any more highly recommended than that!

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  • ron
    5 out of 5 stars
    Great Read
    Reviewed in the United Kingdom on December 27, 2012
    Format: Kindle Edition
    Verified Purchase
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    As another one of your reviewers has said this book was written for the younger market but as i am a little older i can tell you i really enjoyed this book. Continues in the Spacejock tradition. May his son grow up to be jusyt like his father.

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  • Annie H.
    4 out of 5 stars
    Silly and whimsical - the kids will love this
    Reviewed in the United States on April 29, 2012
    Format: Kindle Edition
    Verified Purchase
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    This is a book that kids will love. Young Hal (named after the character from the YA seies?) gets into all sorts of strife, and saves the space station and his mother's research. This book has a lot of silliness, the occasional fart joke and mischief, the obligatory crawling through tunnels and a good dose of disobedience. In addition, it does a fairly decent job of portraying aspects of life in space that are not too wildly unrealistic. OK, barring the reversible artificial gravity. But it's fun.

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  • HazelMill
    5 out of 5 stars
    Truly a fun and laugh out loud-filled space romp
    Reviewed in the United States on March 12, 2016
    Format: Kindle Edition
    Verified Purchase
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    To start with, it's perfect for your avid 7-12-year-old reader who likes space adventures. It was even highly entertaining and had me laughing out loud at several points and I'm in my late 30s. It was also fast paced but a little predictable, but not terribly so. This last point is simply the age difference, but I didn't mind and I honestly wish he wrote more of these books for free as I'd read them.

    Other reviewers have probably given you the plot synopsis so I won't go into that, but simply that it kept me highly entertained for several hours as I tried not to rip through the book too fast since it is a kids book.

    Should you buy this for your young kid? Yes! Is there anything you should be concerned about language wise? Some of the phraseology is definitely British but other than that, no. Is there anything really objectionable? Only that the main character is a little goofy and absent minded and would rather be imagining he's some interstellar spaceman, but what boy his age (8-12) doesn't? Will you be shelling out more cash on the next book? Oh yes, but you'll be delighted to hear your little one laughing their heads off from all the inanity that ensues in the story. Why are you still reading my review? Get it and give your little spacekid some much deserved laughs.

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