Project Hail Mary tells a story in two timelines. In the present, Ryland Grace is on a mission in space, but he doesn't remember what that mission is. Having just woken from a coma, Ryland slowly starts to realize that he has to save the earth from something. But from what, how, and where he is, are all things he can't quite remember. The memories do come back to him bit by bit and are offered to the reader as flashbacks, where we explore what Project Hail Mary is.

There's a lot I enjoyed about this book, but also a few issues that kept this from being a 4 or even 5 star read. The plot and execution are interesting; I was highly entertained throughout most of it, which isn't surprising because that's something I think this author does really well. What was surprising to me were the touching moments throughout the book, because I wasn't expecting those. I do have to say that I was much more interested in the present timeline than the flashbacks, and that's one of my issues with the book. I understand that the flashbacks are important to a certain extent so that we, along with Ryland, understand why he's on this mission, but some of the segments were rife with the kind of sexism and stereotyping that really annoy and frustrate me in books. There's an entire section about how only heterosexual men were supposed to go on this mission to prevent any romantic or sexual entanglement. Then there's a different section that's definitely saying something about Russians, and although I can't comment on the content in that case, it still feels like a weird thing to include. It doesn't add anything of value to the book whatsoever.

The other problem I have is Ryland himself. He doesn't feel like a fleshed out character to me since he only operates in two modes: excited/elated or sad. He's excited a lot, clear from the overuse of exclamation points. But other than that he loves science and teaching, we never find out much about him, which is funny since the entire book is from his POV.

I haven't read The Martian but I also have the sneaking suspicion that the tone of Ryland Grace is pretty similar to Mark Watney. I remember the same kind of excitement/optimism from the movie.

The book is also very heavy on the science. I think I understood maybe 30% of everything that was explained. It makes it kind of hard to visualize things sometimes, but I do think the author did a good job in how those parts were written.

The Martian was a phenomenon: page-turning accessible hard sci fi, a Robinson Crusoe for our age. It was also sold to be a movie before publication and in many ways the movie is what everyone remembers because, well like many an accessible crossover hit what makes it accessible also made it a touch disposable. Weir's author's voice is pretty bland, and only really perks up as he lurches from one crisis to another. And whilst a metaphysical dissection of the loneliness and despair of being cast away on another planet is perhaps the opposite of a page turning blockbuster, The Martian only really came to life as Weir delved into the scientific and engineering challenges of survival. So if space Robinson Crusoe is Weir's comfort zone, Project Hail Mary certain sits within it. Because we have yet again an isolated individual stuck on his own in the middle of space: sciencing the shit out of his predicament.

Yet there is something absolutely compelling about the set up. An amnesiac waking up in a room with two dead bodies. It is basically an escape room scenario, a hugely convoluted and convenient one (there is some justification in that he can't escape the room until he has enough wits about him to understand how dangerous fucking about might be). As an amnesiac the book can then parcel out "bits of memory" which are convenient storytelling backstory to justify only knowing so much about the situation. Again like The Martian, Weir has stranded his protagonist in space with just enough resources and memory to survive, but certainly not enough to survive comfortably. Again the problems crop up in a relatively serial manner, perhaps main issue here is that much of the science here is pseudo, made up for the initial plot engine (a micro-organism that is eating the sun!) and much of the solution involves pseudosciencing the shit out of the situation. In the meantime the philosophical implications of the book (limitless power, first contact et al...) are again touched upon lightly if at all.

This is all fine and frankly it is refreshing after my recent warlike space opera reading to have open, generous relations with aliens and a world view where there is no problem that cannot be scienced away. And having a vaguely misanthropic hero saving humanity does solve a number of problems (Weir doesn't have to write realistic human relationships), not to mention the "greater good" motivation of the only other significant human character is questioned but not exactly disproved of. And whilst Weir's novels do tend to rest upon the triumph of the individual over nature, he doesn't disregard science as a team effort - the second character here is much more of an engineer than a scientist and there is some play between that. So whilst it is again pretty disposable stuff, Weir's books of interlocked escape rooms to save the universe do celebrate the triumph of science and rational thinking, and there are even moments here where you can solve-along-a-Weir. If you ever get back on a beach, this is the kind of beach read that will make you feel good about science and the future.

The thing that tickled me the most was realising that the opening: three dead or seemingly dead bodies in a spaceship is pretty much the set-up to Lifeforce, and being reminded of that will make anything which follows feel better - even the most farfetched of internal dialogues where the amnesiac scientist deduces he must be from the USA because of a tendency to think in imperial measurements.

[Netgalley ARC]

Andy Weir is a genius and this book is utterly incredible on so many levels.

Full review to come soon.

Andy Weir is quickly becoming one of my favourite authors of all time and Project Hail Mary definitely did not disappoint!

I already loved The Martian a lot and I enjoyed this one just as much, if not more! Both books are actually pretty similar to another in the way they‘re written, especially because of the very similar personalities of the two protagonists. Mark Watney and Ryland Grace are essentially the same person, really. I personally didn‘t mind that at all; quite the opposite, actually. They‘re both such positive and funny characters that you can‘t help but adore.

I really don‘t want to give too much away so I’m not gonna say much about the plot. But what I can say is that I absolutely loved following Ryland on his journey to saving humanity and all his other shenanigans. There‘s so much more to this story and frankly, I enjoyed every bit of it!

There‘s *a lot* of science talk in here and I can see it being too much for some people. And though i‘m by no means even remotely well-versed in biology and physics, the science was one of my favourite parts of the book! I could honestly see something like this happen to us in the future (which is pretty scary but also very, very cool). Andy definitely did a great job at ~sciencing the sh*t out of this~ (if you know, you know).

Also: ROCKY🥺🥺🥺

I feel like there were some slight pacing issues and I wasn‘t always the biggest fan of the back and forth between timelines as well. The flashbacks were pretty hit or miss for me. But overall this is for sure a new favourite sci-fi and I highly recommend giving it a go!!

The Martian remains to be one of the most entertaining sci-fi I have read to this day and here's Project Hail Mary coming in as a strong contender to dethrone it. The thing I love about Andy Weir's books is that while there is a healthy dose of science-y stuff going on, there is also a dollop of incredulous heroics in space that *just* works out. You KNOW that shit wouldn't work the same way in real life but that doesn't stop you from cheering on the poor hero as he tries to grow potatoes on Mars or in this case, wakes up alone in a space shuttle, millions of miles from Earth, with no memories as to how he got there. What ensues as he slowly starts remembering about his mission, getting help from <redacted>, trying to solve <redacted>, is one of the most entertaining and fun stories I've read this year.
I really can't say anything more at all without spoiling the story, so I'm just gonna end this here. I loved this book, I'll be buying it when it comes out AND I will be listening to this on audio because I just know the audiobook is going to be even better.

Highly recommended!

3.5 stars rounded up

If you have read any of the authors books you know his signature style is to have stories that incorporate a lot of plausible sounding science to backup the storyline.

I have to say this was a huge improvement on my experience with Artemis but not quite as gripping as The Martian. So this one falls in between these two.

I did feel that at times there was a bit of over explanation of sciency stuff just for the sake of it. More so than what was necessary. Like a smart geeky guy telling a story and tripping it up a little with too much science speak but at no point do you want to stop listening and walk away.

I also like how the overall story was revealed in flashbacks.

When Ryland Grace, an elementary school science teacher, wakes up he is on some sort of spaceship with two dead crewmates and no memory of how he got there. Slowly the memories unfold and its more horrific than he anticipated. But the scientist in him is fascinated by the fact that he has literally gone where no man has gone before. Curiosity killed the cat, but will it kill Ryland?

I rounded up to 4 stars as the overall story was a lot of fun.

NB: Wonder if the publication date was deliberately chosen to fall on Star Wars day? If so, well played.

Project Hail Mary is the latest offering from the author of probably the best Sci-Fi book I’ve ever read - The Martian - so I was super-excited to be approved for an ARC (even after the disappointment of Artemis) and leap-frogged it to the front of my TBR. If you read The Martian and thought “loved the plot and the character but I wish it had more science in it” then my friend, this is the book for you! I loved it even though a lot of the maths & physics went straight over my head (I did pass my physics A-Level but that was a very long time ago). Unfortunately I can’t explain why I loved it without revealing a massive spoiler but trust me, it’s what makes this such a brilliant story.

An astronaut wakes up from an extended coma to discover he is alone, because his crew mates have died, and he can’t remember anything, even his name. Gradually piecing together what’s going on through analytical observations of his surroundings and growing flashes of memory, he works out that he’s a scientist turned science teacher, somehow chosen for a mission to travel to a faraway star to try and save the world from a mysterious phenomenon that is causing the sun’s light to dim at a rate which will lead to catastrophic consequences. How can one man alone find a solution all on his own...?

This was a very clever read that in some ways surpasses The Martian. The protagonist has the same geeky humour as Mark Watney - some will find him too similar - and the basic premise - astronaut lost in space with virtually no chance of making it home, using science and canny ingenuity to solve every problem, is the same, but this takes our hero in a totally new and unexpected direction. It was a bit long for me, with technical stuff I couldn’t understand, although the diagrams at the beginning helped me understand one recurring spaceship scenario. I liked the flashbacks to Earth and the gradual reveal of what was going on, and how the world came together to try and solve it. The irony of everyone coming together to try and reverse global warming to combat an even bigger threat was bitterly perverse. This would make a sensational movie if they involved Weir in the screenplay of course. The best bit of all was the ending - just perfect. Overall, I wanted to give it 5 stars but the few niggles mentioned mean I’m settling for 4.5, rounded down for the present tense narration.

Thanks to NetGalley and Random House UK for the ARC which allowed me to give an honest review. Project Hail Mary is published on May the Fourth, International Star Wars day (surely this is not a coincidence?!)

Andy Weir has done it again. He's taken The Martian's framing and created another story where science is used to save the day. But while his protagonist is alone in The Martian, his protagonist Ryland Grace in Project Hail Mary befriends an alien in a thoroughly believable and relatable way (not in a Star Trek way but how it might actually happen, with all the messy and inconvenient physical issues happening as they should for our level of technology).

For me, this was the highlight of the novel, even more than the "sciencing the shit" out of fixing his problems.

As I read through the story I was imagining the expected conclusion .. arriving back on Earth to accolades and glory. This made the actual ending so much better and more satisfying for me. The themes that resonated for me in this book was friendship, integrity and courage.

I have been so excited to try some of Andy Weir's work, and I'm ashamed to admit that largely is because I really loved The Martian, on screen, but didn't want that to be my first book experience with him, since I know what happens now!

Project Hail Mary started off so well; I read it in tandem with my other half and we were both so excited by how funny the main character was - it was genuinely nice to be in the head of a good person, almost childlike in his innocence due to his amnesia. We start by discovering who this guy is, why he's on what appears to be a spacecraft filled with his dead colleagues, and what his unfathomable understanding of space and science has to do with all of this. I should add that the possibility of aliens kicking about was also a huge selling point.

The trouble is, this book is incredibly info-dumpy and for someone not particularly good at absorbing information about physics/space that's hard work. The explanations are okay, but they come thick and fast and I don't have the patience to research all the things I don't understand (I also think this would be a problem for a lot of readers - it surely can't be just me that doesn't know some of this eccentric language). So, we both quickly lost interest despite enjoying the childlike awe and excitement of the main character.

It is with no hesitation that I give this book five, once I started reading it I could not put it down. Weir can certainly spin a tale gosh darn it.

There is plenty of science in this novel of that you can be sure, and you will need someone much smarter then me to tell you if much of it was legit. But when you stop and think about it that is not the reason we read and love Weir's books and love them. We read them because we love an under dog and gosh darn it Grace is the most lovable under dog I have come across in a long time. He is sweet and humble and a fish out of water.

There is an under lying tension in this book that the dual time frame drives to an almost frantic pace. One chapter we are on Earth where the details of man kinds demise are detailed and the race is on to find a Hail Mary. The next chapter we are in space as Grace is forced to solve one problem after another so this Hail Mary pass works and earth is saved.

There are many twists in turns in the novel in both time frames that I simply did not see coming. Rocky comes to mind here. The ending of this book is jaw dropping and I am still coming to grips with it. I can not recommend this book enough.
Thanks to Netgalley the author and publisher for a chance to read this novel in exchange for an honest review

Thanks NetGalley and the publisher for the digital copy in exchange for an honest review.

I really like this author's work. I find The Martian pretty amazing, Artemis really fun (although it has its problems) so I was excited to see what he would do next and I'm glad to say I was not disappointed.

Ryland Grace in the only survivor on a mission to save Earth. He wakes up in a spacecraft and initially doesn't even remember who he is or why he's there, so the book is told from two perspectives: one is from him trying to recover his memories and the second are flashbacks that led him to his current situation.

First I have to say that I really admire how the author deals with the scientific aspect of it. I know approximately zero about science and the author still makes me feel like I understand it without being too didatic. It's not so easy to find sci-fi authors like that. Also, the humor is on point in here. I felt like his previous book - Artemis - was a bit too much with the humor, but this one has a nice balance of drama, suspense and humor.

In addition to it, there is a beautiful friendship on this book - I'm kind of reluctant to talk more about it, because I'm afraid it might be a spoiler - but it made me shed tears. It's so amazing! The author also talks a lot about ethics, culture and other themes throughout the book.

The only problem I had with it was its size. I felt like it could be shorter at times, but that's it. I feel like the ending might not please everyone, but I liked the author's choice. He could've easily taken the obvious path, but he chose something a bit unexpected.

Overall, I think it's a very good sci-fi book and even those who didn't read his previous works will enjoy it.

ARC provided by Goodreads and the publishers—Ballantine Books, Cornerstone—in exchange for an honest review.

3.5/5 stars

Andy Weir is back with a new novel suitable for fans of The Martian.

“Stupid humanity. Getting in the way of my hobbies.”

I’m sure I’m not the only that became a fan of Weir’s work because of The Martian. For years I’ve heard such amazing things about The Martian, and it’s not until three months ago that I caved in and finally read The Martian. I was blown away by how good it was. It’s an incredible thing, especially because I’ve watched the movie adaptation first, and I knew how the story will go already. And still, I was impressed, entertained, and felt satisfied from reading the novel. I know that Artemis has been mixed received; I haven’t read it yet, so I can’t say much on this novel. However, if you’re a fan of The Martian, I really don’t see how you’ll end up disliking this one.

“Sometimes, the stuff we all hate ends up being the only way to do things.”

If you haven’t heard of the premise of Project Hail Mary, I’m going to sum it up briefly now. Ryland Grace is a lone astronaut with a task to save Earth from disaster, but he’s alone, and he has no memories of what has happened before. He has to find a way to save Earth from disaster, and then come back home, all by himself. See? It’s practically the premise of The Martian with a new addition of saving the world. I won’t lie, there were times where the plot and the structure of the storyline felt too similar; I enjoyed it, but an extra distinction would’ve earned this book a better remembrance strength in my head. That being said, this isn’t a carbon copy of The Martian; Weir still managed to make Project Hail Mary a different book besides the incredibly similar premise and storytelling structure.

“I feel like Sherlock Holmes. All I saw was “nothing,” and I draw a bunch of conclusions! Conclusions that are wildly speculative and with nothing to prove them, but conclusions!”

Ryland Grace, as a character, felt pretty much like a non-foul-mouthed Mark Watney. Other than that, the voice of his narrative felt highly similar to Mark Watney; whether this is a good thing or not, it’s up to each reader to interpret. Personally, despite the similarity to Mark Watney, this was a good thing for me because I was indeed in a mood for reading a POV of a character that can act positively despite their harsh circumstances; I got what I wanted here. I did, however, found that the scientific details were too much.

“Human suffering is often an abstract concept to kids. But animal suffering is something else entirely.”

I’m not claiming that I understood every scientific detail in The Martian, but in my opinion, Weir did a superb job in balancing the science info-dump in The Martian along with the characterization, plotting, and humor. The Martian never stopped feeling super intriguing and captivating to me. That’s not the case in Project Hail Mary, not at first, anyway. The heavy discussions on mathematics and physics were simply over my head, and there were so many of them in the first half of the novel that it felt to me like I was transported back to high school to fail these two lessons again. Fortunately, the second half remedied the pacing; the balance between plot, characters, dialogues, and scientific info-dumps was handled significantly better. And similar to The Martian, the ending of Project Hail Mary was enormously satisfying.

“Maybe it’s just the childish optimist in me, but humanity can be pretty impressive when we put our minds to it.”

Filled with positivity, intellect, and thrill, to me Project Hail Mary was almost as good as The Martian. I will admit that my expectations towards this novel may be a bit too high, and I’m sure many readers who enjoy—plus understand—the intricate scientific details will have a more enjoyable reading experience. What’s the highlight of Project Hail Mary? Rocky. That’s all I’m going to say on this.

Official release date: 4th May 2021

You can pre-order the book from: Amazon UK | Amazon US | Book Depository (Free shipping) | Bookshop (Support Local Bookstores!)

The quotes in this review were taken from an ARC and are subject to change upon publication.

A fantastic story that takes you from the familiarity of Planet Earth to the strangeness of another Solar System. I've read a few different stories where the main character has no memory and their past is slowly revealed to the reader at the same time as the character, but none have been done as well as this! True to form Andy Weir has his expected twists and turns throughout the story, leaving you on the edge of your seat and always wanting to read more.

In Project Hail Mary, Ryland Grace, the main character, wakes up alone on a spaceship. he is not sure who he is, what he is doing here. He soon remembers that he was sent on a mission to save Earth by investigating a mysterious event in the galaxy that threatens life on Earth.
I had loved Andy Weir two prior books Artemis and The Martian and he does not disappoint in his latest book. The book has a great pace, terrific characters and is full of science (that I'm not smart enough to verify as accurate or not).

What an absolutely brilliant book.
Everything that made the Martian great and then some, a whole lot of some. It’s best left unexpected, but it was surely enjoyable.

The science was succinct. In-depth enough to be plausible, but not too in-depth as to overwhelm. I am really not sure how accurate some stuff is (its science fiction after all) but it was definitely perfectly believable to me in the context of a great story.

Really don’t want to say too much more. Anything additional would verge on being a spoiler.
If I could give Andy a fist-bump I would.

Thank you NetGalley and Random House UK for a review copy.

"Ryland Grace is the sole survivor on a desperate, last-chance mission--and if he fails, humanity and the earth itself will perish."

Andy Weir is such an amazing writer and this book didn't disappoint. I highly recommend it

I was so happy when I got an arc of this book. Thank you to the publisher and Netgalley for gifting me a copy to review.

I absolutely adored The Martian, it is one of my favourite books. Unfortunately I didn’t enjoy Artemis so I was a little unsure going into this. I read this in February as I couldn’t resist it any longer. I’m so glad I read it as I really enjoyed it.

The story follows Ryland Grace and its in his POV. He wakes up and realises he’s in space but doesn’t know why. We follow his journey as he realises who he is, why he’s in space and then his journey trying to find a solution to earths problem. I really liked Ryland, I enjoyed his character and his humour. He’s one man in a can trying to find a way to save earth. I enjoyed all the characters in this book, some were so interesting and I liked how Ryland viewed them.

The plot pulled me in and I found myself thinking about the book when I wasn’t reading it. The book does sometimes jump from current time to one of Ryland Grace’s memories of the past. I enjoyed how the book revealed the plot and what lead to Ryland to being in space. There was science talk which parts I understood and others I couldn’t wrap my head around as science has never been my thing.

It’s so hard to review this without spoiling much but let’s just say I adored it. The journey was thrilling, emotional and fun in places. There were times were I felt like I should have been holding my breathe while I saw what happened. Also that ending, what a way to end a book. I wasn’t expecting it to end the way it did.

Overall this is a book that I enjoyed so much. I loved the writing, characters and the space journey. I have already pre-ordered a finished copy of this book. I will happily reread it and I highly recommend it.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️.5

Possible spoilers

4.5 stars

I was reading another unnamed book,and struggling to get into it,so put it aside,and thought I'd try this one.
I mean,I really liked The Martian,so this could be good.
By the end of the second page,I was hooked. The writing just flows,it really did feel like a friend telling me a story.
It also made me feel quite clever,as the sciencey bits didnt seem overwhelming.
Putting an ordinary every day teacher into a world saving situation and a strange friendship that warmed my bitter little heart,really was the feel good book I needed mid pandemic.
It's an absolute gem of a book,and enough humour ,inventiveness and sarcasm I'd think to keep everyone happy.

Returning to the heady mix of science and humour that defined “The Martian” Andy Weir’s Project Hail Mary is an absolute joy to read, with equal amounts of laughing out loud and hanging from the edge of a reading cliff…extremely entertaining and despite it’s science fiction scenario highly believable.

Our main protagonist awakes far far from home, with only the dead for company and a distinct inability to remember what the heck he is doing there. Add to that he’s about to face a first contact situation and no idea whether they be friend or foe…

That’s where we start and from then on it’s a wild ride towards life or death, with the kind of page turning quality that only comes when you are reading a writer who can intelligently entertain an audience with a pitch perfect mix of story and emotion.

Science Teacher saves the world is such a brilliant concept, assuming he can pull himself together, executed in cleverly insightful style, never predictable and oh the ending, it’ll just leave you…ok well you’ll have to wait and see.

Loved it. Every minute. Highly HIGHLY recommended.