A review by dovedapple
Project Hail Mary by Andy Weir

adventurous emotional funny hopeful inspiring fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? No
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.75

first book of the year! love me some sci-fi and Andy Weir always delivers

Project Hail Mary is an enthralling space mission crossed with the skyrim drunk quest that delivers on adventure, intrigue, humor, and all around a good time. the cast are distinct with each character having their own unique voice
especially an unexpected act 2 appearance

the narrative is well paced and doesn’t throw you around with wild plot twists, whatever turns there are slot satisfyingly into place

awoken on the ship Hail Mary an amnesiac, we watch Ryland Grace* unravel his own memories as we jump back and forth between present time and flashbacks (some quite literally) to his time on earth

as the story progresses these flashbacks help us understand the situation that brought him here and we find out more about earth prior to the mission

to be honest i really don’t how how much of the measures taken is accurate to how earth would respond in an extinction level crisis but i’ll be damned if it isn’t fun to read. i guess if we had someone like Stratt running things anything would be possible

supremely enjoyed the science fiction aspect of the sci-fi novel with regards to organisms (iykyk) and their designs. the scientific jargon is easy to understand as grace breaks it down for us in his witty fashion (Weir only knows how to write one kind of protagonist and i think that’s very sexy of him) 

ok i have to talk about the alien in the room. both being the only survivors of their ship, Grace and rocky, a being from the planet Erid, find a way to communicate and work together to achieve their common goal: saving their planets from astrophage.
i LOVE how Weir designed Rocky, the language and culture of his species. so impressed with how his existence makes sense adjacent to humans and his discussions with Grace as they try to figure each other out are super fun to read.

i just really enjoyed the way their characters play off each other as they gradually grow closer, their camaraderie the kind you can only get when you’re stuck in space together and literally save each other’s lives.
having this bond which eventually spurs Grace to waive his ticket back to earth and instead save his friend? that shit making me tear up man


all in all i deeply enjoyed this book it had everything i could need from a good sci-fi: great cast dynamics, wacky space hijinks and a Wolf 359 mention

lost 0.25 stars for that scene in the first chapter; if you’ve read it you know which one

*hail mary full of grace. very clever

Expand filter menu Content Warnings