Petrik's Reviews > Project Hail Mary
Project Hail Mary
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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.
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.
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.
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.
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.
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.
You can find this and the rest of my reviews at Novel Notions
Special thanks to my Patrons on Patreon for giving me extra support towards my passion for reading and reviewing!
My Patrons: Alfred, Alya, Annabeth, Ben, Blaise, Devin, Diana, Edward, Ellen, Gary, Hamad, Helen, Jimmy Nutts, Joie, Lufi, Melinda, Mike, Miracle, Nicholas, Sarah, Seth, Shaad, Summer, Zoe.
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.
You can find this and the rest of my reviews at Novel Notions
Special thanks to my Patrons on Patreon for giving me extra support towards my passion for reading and reviewing!
My Patrons: Alfred, Alya, Annabeth, Ben, Blaise, Devin, Diana, Edward, Ellen, Gary, Hamad, Helen, Jimmy Nutts, Joie, Lufi, Melinda, Mike, Miracle, Nicholas, Sarah, Seth, Shaad, Summer, Zoe.
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Reading Progress
December 12, 2020
– Shelved
March 9, 2021
–
Started Reading
March 12, 2021
–
Finished Reading
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Laura
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Mar 14, 2021 07:11AM
Yeah, this sounds almost exactly like the premise of The Martian...
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Laura wrote: "Yeah, this sounds almost exactly like the premise of The Martian..."
Yeah!! Whether that works or not depends on the reader, seems like many enjoyed it for its premise, though!
Yeah!! Whether that works or not depends on the reader, seems like many enjoyed it for its premise, though!
I loved this one! But then, my love of The Martian and Mark Watney as a character are extremely high. I didn’t mind all the science but it was a bit overwhelming. But yes... Rocky! I had all the feels!
Karen’s Library wrote: "I loved this one! But then, my love of The Martian and Mark Watney as a character are extremely high. I didn’t mind all the science but it was a bit overwhelming. But yes... Rocky! I had all the fe..."
I totally understand that!! I think I wanted a bit more originality in the main character, I felt that he tried to make him more different than Mark Watney but couldn't do it. That said, I still like Grace, my issue is the science bit did get too overwhelming for me that it hurt the pacing. Love love Rocky, though!! :D
I totally understand that!! I think I wanted a bit more originality in the main character, I felt that he tried to make him more different than Mark Watney but couldn't do it. That said, I still like Grace, my issue is the science bit did get too overwhelming for me that it hurt the pacing. Love love Rocky, though!! :D
Gritnay wrote: "Woo really looking forward to this one! A review to influence as always, Petrik.. ;)"
Thank you, Gritnay!! Hope you'll love this one even more than i did! :)
Thank you, Gritnay!! Hope you'll love this one even more than i did! :)
Been interested in seeing a review of this one! As someone who loved The Martian, and very underwhelmed by Artemis, I was hoping this would be better. This author seems to stick to one theme, but that isn't a bad thing imo. Sounds like I will enjoy this one more than Artemis at least!
A.R wrote: "Been interested in seeing a review of this one! As someone who loved The Martian, and very underwhelmed by Artemis, I was hoping this would be better. This author seems to stick to one theme, but t..."
Fingerscrossed you'll enjoy this one, too! I've heard very mixed things about Artemis; mostly negative, and I'll definitely not give that a try! xD
Fingerscrossed you'll enjoy this one, too! I've heard very mixed things about Artemis; mostly negative, and I'll definitely not give that a try! xD
Nick wrote: "Nah I'm not interested in yet ANOTHER book YouTube channel. Go away."
No one is forcing you to watch them... I'll do you one better, I'll block you. That way you won't see my review or channel here again! Have a nice day! :)
No one is forcing you to watch them... I'll do you one better, I'll block you. That way you won't see my review or channel here again! Have a nice day! :)
Lisa wrote: "Get over yourself, Nick Green!
I've been a Petrik Leo fan for a few years now. I only read his reviews. He's never come to my house a forced me to watch anything of his!
I've read some excellent b..."
Thank you for the kind words, Lisa! I appreciate that! :)
I've been a Petrik Leo fan for a few years now. I only read his reviews. He's never come to my house a forced me to watch anything of his!
I've read some excellent b..."
Thank you for the kind words, Lisa! I appreciate that! :)
Nihal wrote: "From seeing your response to John Green's negative review, I can't believe how kind you are. Anyways, it was a great review, and I'm definitely gonna read the book someday. I am not ashamed to tell..."
Did you mean Nick Green? Haha, it doesn't bother me. A bit confused why booktube triggered him so hard, though. Anyway, thank you, Nihal! I hope you'll love both The Martian and Project Hail Mary!! :)
Did you mean Nick Green? Haha, it doesn't bother me. A bit confused why booktube triggered him so hard, though. Anyway, thank you, Nihal! I hope you'll love both The Martian and Project Hail Mary!! :)
Rocky is for sure the highlight of this book! I thought the science stuff was a bit denser than The Martian, too, but it didn't affect my reading experience. Sorry it felt info dumpy to you! I know you're not much of an audiobook guy, but seriously...re-read this on audio one day :P
Kyle wrote: "Rocky is for sure the highlight of this book! I thought the science stuff was a bit denser than The Martian, too, but it didn't affect my reading experience. Sorry it felt info dumpy to you! I know..."
Yeah, that's what my co-blogger said, too! Seems like the audio is awesome. Maybe one day when I'm used to using audiobook! :)
Yeah, that's what my co-blogger said, too! Seems like the audio is awesome. Maybe one day when I'm used to using audiobook! :)
My first Andy Weir. I really enjoyed the story and agree the ending was most satisfying. I’m glad I’m not the only one that found the science a bit heavy for me. Found myself skipping a lot of the heavy physics bits, but it didn’t spoil my overall reading experience.
Alison wrote: "My first Andy Weir. I really enjoyed the story and agree the ending was most satisfying. I’m glad I’m not the only one that found the science a bit heavy for me. Found myself skipping a lot of the ..."
I loved the ending! Unfortunately, for me, I think the science stuff did diminish my reading experience a bit! 😅
I loved the ending! Unfortunately, for me, I think the science stuff did diminish my reading experience a bit! 😅
I actually liked Project Hail Mary more than I did the Martian. As a main character Mark Watney was a bit too cocky for my taste, while Ryland Grace was a more grounded.
Ceyna wrote: "I actually liked Project Hail Mary more than I did the Martian. As a main character Mark Watney was a bit too cocky for my taste, while Ryland Grace was a more grounded."
Totally understandable. I know i'm in the minorty for this!
Totally understandable. I know i'm in the minorty for this!
I was skeptical when I first started reading because it did seem too similar to The Martian, but the further I got in the book, the further it felt separated.
I think I liked this one more than you did. And I wish you enjoyed audiobooks more. Because the audio on this was some peak shit. Loved it. And it hit on some great notes in the story that made it feel more lifelike and human. Also, the musical tones of Rocky talking was very cool, even if not exactly perfect.
Hope all is well with you my friend. I wish we got to interact more but you are just waaaaay to popular now 🤣 you are the man bro!
Oh! And brief aside! I've been having and amazing time with the Crisis Core Remake or Remaster or whatever you want to call it. It great!!! I'm gonna hit that platinum up 😉
I think I liked this one more than you did. And I wish you enjoyed audiobooks more. Because the audio on this was some peak shit. Loved it. And it hit on some great notes in the story that made it feel more lifelike and human. Also, the musical tones of Rocky talking was very cool, even if not exactly perfect.
Hope all is well with you my friend. I wish we got to interact more but you are just waaaaay to popular now 🤣 you are the man bro!
Oh! And brief aside! I've been having and amazing time with the Crisis Core Remake or Remaster or whatever you want to call it. It great!!! I'm gonna hit that platinum up 😉