As a kid, my interest in science fiction was sparked by monster movies and comic books. God-like lizards and Gods of Thunder all held me in their sway back then. In the long run, however, it was the books published in the original Ace Double format that ultimately shaped my reading preferences.

The Ace Double gave you “two complete novels” for thirty-five cents. You read the first story and then flipped the book over and read the second one. Genius! I’m sure the company published many reputable books in this format, but it was their slightly salacious science fiction backlist that really rang my bell. Not only did I enjoy the novels, but the covers were outstanding as well. I even dug the wonky spines.

These fond memories came rushing back to me recently when I was handed an ARC (Advance Reading Copy) of the first two Haikasoru titles. It was our marketing manager at Simon & Schuster UK who suggested that we bundle both books in a single volume Ace Double style. Needless to say, I think the ARC looks terrific. We’ll be passing them out like candy for the remainder download supersu for pc of the month. Grab one for yourself if you happen to be in the Haikasoru orbit. Maybe some day Nick and Masumi will consider publishing a “real” book in this format. A boy can dream. Long live the Haikasoru Double!