Project Hail Mary

by Andy Weir
2021, Ballantine Books
eBook, 496 pages, $14.99 CAD

Rating: ★★★☆☆

I didn’t go into Project Hail Mary with high expectations. It might have been the hype around the book, or the fact that it recently got adapted into a movie of the same name. I’m not sure. Regardless, I had zero to low expectations going in. The opening chapters of the book don’t really help, seeing as they are slow and annoying to get through. Andy Weir spends a lot of time obfuscating important plot points behind amnesia in the name of intrigue—which I usually dislike. However, I was surprised to have enjoyed myself with Project Hail Mary, especially when things pick up around halfway through the book, where the forced intrigue takes a backseat to science-based action. I just wish the opening, the ending, and the constant flashbacks were more compelling.

I also can’t help but feel as though Weir may have dropped some plot points here or there—most notably, a romance between the protagonist and another character. There’s sloppiness in the narrative structure that I don’t remember while reading The Martian, though I may need to re-read it to be sure. Project Hail Mary feels written to be turned into a movie, complete with over-the-top characters, forced intrigue, and a happily-ever-after, Flash Gordon-esque ending. I doubt I’ll come back to this book, but I didn’t hate my reading of it.