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Derek Haines
About
An author of fiction, historical fiction, essays and poetry, Derek Haines writes his books from a view of what fascinates him and not from a formula based on one theme or genre. Starting with poetry before moving into essays and fiction novels, his writing is varied but is always written in a style and voice that communicates with, and engages his readers.
Most of all, the stories told by Derek Haines are about people, their feelings, regrets, hopes and struggles with life. Ordinary people, but with extraordinary qualities that makes their story worth telling. With splashes of sometimes black humour or simple satire, his stories can develop from the simplistic to the complex and back again leaving the reader to decide if it is time to laugh or cry. Or both.
Born in Australia, but now living in Switzerland with his wife and a black cocker spaniel, his stories cross a wide geographical range but often draw from elements of his life and experiences in the two countries he calls home. From the rugged, dry and hot desert country of Australia and its crowded cities to the cafés of Europe and the peaks of the Swiss Alps. The hustle and bustle of Sydney to the quiet life of the Swiss countryside.
When not writing, he is usually doing what he equally enjoys. Teaching English.
What Readers Say About Derek Haines
‘Derek has a great sense of comic timing in this book and captures character extremely well. The twists and turns of the plot kept me reading right up to the last page.’
Vincent - Amazon Reader
‘Derek’s attention to plotting and characterisation soon had me hooked and I truly wanted to know what happened to Feb and his sisters,…’
Nettie - Words and Pictures
‘This time, Derek Haines goes more Dostojewski, than Adams, more boulevard of broken dreams, than the creation Of Sun and Moon by Michelangelo.’
Natalie - Amazon Reader
‘Derek Haines strength is developing his characters, and he does an extraordinary job describing three distasteful men who deal with their circumstances in the only way they knew how. While doing so, he does offer his readers a different perspective…..’
Mary - MRC-Bookreviewer
‘This novel definitely held my interest. Lots of twists and turns. Filled with interesting characters. Reading this book was time well spent.’
George - Amazon Reader
‘Derek Haines manages to deftly skewer political manoeuvring and/or family dysfunction/backstabbing, while telling an exciting story about a hapless underachiever who's forced to suddenly grow up and take responsibility….’
Debbi -The Book Grrl
‘Douglas Adams has reincarnated and is living in Switzerland with wife and dog. Of course he has a new name these days. It’s Derek Haines.’
Jack - Amazon Reader
‘Derek Haines has definitely raised the bar with this story. I highly recommend this book. Go buy it! Read it! You'll love it.’
Steve - Amazon Reader
‘As an adult and inspiring writer, I was greatly impressed with the ending. Derek’s words in his last paragraph, his last two sentences, could not have been written more perfectly to end this entertaining story.’
Mary - MRC-Bookreviewer
‘Derek Haines plays with some crazy ideas in his head and lets his vivid imagination go wild.’
Vivo -Amazon Reader
‘Derek Haines has now definitively become one of the favorite persons to inhabit my Adamsy-pythonesque little universe.’
Natalie - Amazon Reader
‘There are touches of George Orwell and Iain Banks in Derek Haines' writing and at times this book reminded me of films such as Logan's Run and more recently, The Island. A thoroughly recommended read.’
Tracy - Amazon Reader
The Sons of Godwine: Part Two of The Last Great Saxon Earls
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<p>Emerging from the long shadow cast by his formidable father, Harold Godwineson showed himself to be a worthy successor to the Earldom of Wessex. In the following twelve years, he became the King's most trusted advisor, practically taking the reins of government into his own hands. And on Edward the Confessor's death, Harold Godwineson mounted the throne—the first king of England not of royal blood. Yet Harold was only a man, and his rise in fortune was not blameless. Like any person aspiring to power, he made choices he wasn't particularly proud of. Unfortunately, those closest to him sometimes paid the price of his fame.<br /><br />This is a story of Godwine's family as told from the viewpoint of Harold and his younger brothers. Queen Editha, known for her Vita Ædwardi Regis, originally commissioned a work to memorialize the deeds of her family, but after the Conquest historians tell us she abandoned this project and concentrated on her husband, the less dangerous subject. In THE SONS OF GODWINE and FATAL RIVALRY, I am telling the story as it might have survived had she collected and passed on the memoirs of her tragic brothers.<br /><br />This book is part two of The Last Great Saxon Earls series. Book one, GODWINE KINGMAKER, depicted the rise and fall of the first Earl of Wessex who came to power under Canute and rose to preeminence at the beginning of Edward the Confessor's reign. Unfortunately, Godwine's misguided efforts to champion his eldest son Swegn recoiled on the whole family, contributing to their outlawry and Queen Editha's disgrace. Their exile only lasted one year and they returned victorious to London, though it was obvious that Harold's career was just beginning as his father's journey was coming to an end.<br /><br />Harold's siblings were all overshadowed by their famous brother; in their memoirs we see remarks tinged sometimes with admiration, sometimes with skepticism, and in Tostig's case, with jealousy. We see a Harold who is ambitious, self-assured, sometimes egocentric, imperfect, yet heroic. His own story is all about Harold, but his brothers see things a little differently. Throughout, their observations are purely subjective, and witnessing events through their eyes gives us an insider’s perspective.<br /><br />Harold was his mother's favorite, confident enough to rise above petty sibling rivalry but Tostig, next in line, was not so lucky. Harold would have been surprised by Tostig's vindictiveness, if he had ever given his brother a second thought. And that was the problem. Tostig's love/hate relationship with Harold would eventually destroy everything they worked for, leaving the country open to foreign conquest. This subplot comes to a crisis in book three of the series, FATAL RIVALRY.</p>