Here I am, a few years after receiving the ebook ARC finally finishing the book. I did start the ebook a few times but was never in the right frame of mind for it. So glad I used a credit at Audible to finally dive in.

Project Hail Mary is definitely one of those books that listening to will give a different experience than reading with eyeballs. The sound effects when Rocky talks are great. I have no doubt that they probably annoyed the hell out of others but, for me, they added to my enjoyment.

I don't want to say too much about the story because not knowing is so much more fun. What I will say is that I laughed, my face nearly leaked, and I fell in love with these characters. And I loved the way it ended on a few different levels that I can't mention here because spoilers...

The reason for the 4 stars instead of 5 is because I am not a science person. I appreciate all of the research and work that went into making the science authentic but it was hard to get into some of the longer, super science filled chunks of the book. I wanted more of the action and interaction and less of the science lessons.

I still loved the book and would happily listen to it again. ( )

I loved this audio book. Ray Porter did and excellent job with the narration, and I found myself reluctant to stop listening each evening. Teacher Ryland Grace finds himself in space in a last ditch effort to save earth. The tale blends present day with flashbacks describing how he ended up in the current situation. He's not a hero. He's just an average guy doing heroic things. My main concern was how it was going to end. I couldn't see any of the possibilities really making me happy, but even that was satisfying. ( )

So good! This is just impossible to put down.

You've read the plot elsewhere, so a few other things. I thought it was kind of funny how there's no swearing. "When the poop hits the fan", "gosh darn it", and so on. There's also a tendency to really explain the science. Combine these two and this read as an adult level Heinlein book. I re-read one of those recently and they don't hold up, but those same YA elements are here at a more advanced level.

Rocky, especially, is a compelling character. The other characters on Earth, don't have much of a backstory, but that's not a problem. So-and-so, professor $something at $university, world's foremost expert on $subject, is about as deep as it goes. It doesn't matter.

I did suspect the ending about 2/3 of the way through, though I had no idea how they'd get there or what would be the ultimate result. All I can say is it's terribly rewarding. ( )

Excellent novel well worth reading. This is a very good imagining of first contact that imagines all of the problems of communication and different ways of living. Weir writes the interspecies relationship with empathy that is weaved in amongst the thinking through problems and the edge of your seat action sequences. Very fun ride. ( )

Not my usual genre, but this book was so gripping that when my kindle battery gave out, I huddled on the floor next to the outlet to continue reading. Yeah, yeah, I skimmed parts of the explanations (the halves separating 180 degrees for the centrifuge blah blah) but the story itself was worth it all. (Yes, I'm still on vacation, but I don't think that would have made a difference!). ( )