Review: Project Hail Mary

Andy Weir hit the jackpot with his first self-published novel, The Martian. It eventually got picked up and distributed to a mainstream audience, and he sold the rights for a movie version starring Matt Damon.

That meant the pressure was on with Weir’s follow-up, and it didn’t fair nearly as well. Sophomore slump, I guess.

But that must’ve really lit a fire under the guy. His third effort, titled Project Hail Mary, is out now and it’s dynamite. It’s easily one of my favorite books of the past few years.

The story has much in common with Weir’s first smash hit: It’s about a man alone in space (or is he?), having to solve complex science problems in order to succeed. But in The Martian, Mark Watney’s version of success was keeping himself alive long enough to be rescued; in Project Hail Mary, success for Ryland Grace will mean saving the entire human race.

And yes, there is a LOT of science in this science fiction. Some people dig that, some don’t. But one of Weir’s remarkable talents is taking hard science and making it not only understandable, but really interesting. And the guy does a shitload of research, but as the son of a particle physicist, should we be surprised?

Any review of this book could be rife with spoilers, which I most certainly do not want to do. What I can tell you is that Weir has found the winning formula for blending science, humor, and thrilling drama into a story that is captivating.

If I was hard-pressed to find any fault with the book, I’d maybe say there were just a few too many hair-raising, skin-of-his-teeth disasters for our hero, Grace, to overcome. But that’s almost nit-picking. It’s a fast, enjoyable read.

Although let me throw in one other point. I didn’t read the book, but rather listened to the audio version. And I have to say, I’m convinced it’s the best way to absorb this story. Maybe not with all books, but there are elements of Project Hail Mary that are tailor-made for audio. You’ll understand that better when you listen. Again, no spoilers.

Here’s a link to the audio version.

Here’s a link to the ebook version, and this is print.

Full disclosure: Those are affiliate links. You won’t pay a penny more than you otherwise would, but your humble correspondent will make a couple of pennies to help pay for my site.

Enjoy!