When an amateur astronomer discovers that the sun is getting dimmer, forecasting the next ice age and the end of all life on Earth, the world’s scientists are put to work to understand why in Andy Weir’s latest sci-fi, Project Hail Mary.
It soon becomes clear that our sun is not the only one affected. In fact, there’s only one similar star that doesn’t seem to be losing its shine and humanity needs to go there to investigate and hopefully find answers. The trouble is, it’s really far away. So far away that the brave crew who goes there will be signing up for a one-way journey.
Fortunately, when the world is about to end, humanity doesn’t just fall to pieces, they club together, conscripting the best and brightest, showering them with unlimited budgets and resources to try and science themselves a solution. It’s odd then, that humanity’s last hope is Rylan Grace, a school science teacher who has no interest in sacrificing his life to save the world.
It’s even more disconcerting that when we meet Grace at the beginning of the book, he’s alone on a spaceship hurtling at near lightspeed to destinations unknown with no memory of who he is, or why he’s there…
With exposition told mostly through flashback, Project Hail Mary uses the amnesiac narrator trope to great effect, pacing the book perfectly, allowing the reader to unpack information in just the right order and although it can often sail uncomfortably close to spoonfeeding plot devices, it’s still a welcome meal. This is in part due to the Heinlein levels of scientific accuracy. Project Hail Mary is as much a scientific thesis paper/doomsday guide as it is a gripping sci-fi disaster adventure.
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