Here’s the thing about Project Hail Mary: I already knew what was going to happen, and it still wouldn’t let me go.

This was a re-read for me, this time on audio. The premise is exactly as wild as it sounds. You wake up alone in space with no memory. The fate of Earth is sitting on your shoulders. And you have to figure out both of those problems at the same time. Ryland Grace is essentially the MacGyver of space, solving one impossible problem after another with science that Weir makes genuinely readable without dumbing it down. That part holds up completely on a second pass.

And then there’s Rocky. I’m not going to say much about Rocky for anyone who hasn’t read this yet, except that the friendship that develops between a human and an alien who have to build a shared language from scratch, while also trying to save two worlds, is the kind of thing you don’t see coming the first time and still hits hard when you know it’s coming.

You’ll hear people say you have to listen to the audio for this one. Ray Porter is good. For me, though, the first read is still where I lived in this story the most. Some books you experience differently depending on the format, and this is one of them.

The book itself? Still Recommended. Still the first one I mention when someone asks where to start with sci-fi.

Rating: Recommended. First one I mention.