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A review by trevert
Project Hail Mary by Andy Weir
5.0
It's pretty simple - If you liked The Martian, you'll like this. It's similar in its "One man alone must accomplish titanic tasks through science" but this time around there's more interaction for our hero and a more science fiction style than Martian's rigid near-futurism. The setup is simple - Alien microbes are eating the sun and as the sun dims even the tiniest fraction, it's going to devastate life on earth so humans unite to send a ship, the Hail Mary, to another star system that's somehow unaffected by the microbes. Thanks to various calamities, our lead ends up alone on this mission, with the fate of the entire planet hanging on whether he can solve science puzzles or not.
There's a LOT of hard science in this and that was really my only demerit, as sometimes my eyes would start to glaze over after the most recent 20 minute digression into atomic structures, but overall I loved it. Weir does a super job of writing sci fi that somehow manages to center on entertaining, believable, LIKABLE characters that you just want to spend time with, and just like in The Martian, the book is held together by the hero's wit, humor, and determination in the face of overwhelming odds.
Bodaciously entertaining feel-good sci fi. It's a rare thing. 5/5 from me.
There's a LOT of hard science in this and that was really my only demerit, as sometimes my eyes would start to glaze over after the most recent 20 minute digression into atomic structures, but overall I loved it. Weir does a super job of writing sci fi that somehow manages to center on entertaining, believable, LIKABLE characters that you just want to spend time with, and just like in The Martian, the book is held together by the hero's wit, humor, and determination in the face of overwhelming odds.
Bodaciously entertaining feel-good sci fi. It's a rare thing. 5/5 from me.