Why it's essential
and narrator Ray Porter have created something truly special here, the kind of fun, smart, immensely entertaining production that reminds us why we love listening.
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What is Project Hail Mary about?
The fate of the world is in the hands of a lone astronaut on a last-ditch, one-way mission to understand and stop a threat to the human race (no pressure). He’ll need to use every bit of his scientific knowledge and resourcefulness to piece together a solution—but luckily, he won’t have to do it alone, after all.
Editor's review
An unabashed nerd, Sam Danis can’t get enough of sci-fi, fantasy, and horror—but she likes to dabble in thrillers and memoirs as well.
Andy Weir’s debut novel was such a resounding hit, not only among genre fans but also the reading and listening public at large, that it seemed unlikely if not impossible for Weir to top himself. He’d already achieved what so many authors strive for their whole career. So when was first pitched as very much in the same vein as The Martian, I approached the title with both excitement (I’ll listen to anything by Andy) and a healthy dose of skepticism. I knew I’d likely enjoy it immensely, as I did with , but how could any listen compare?
But then, with a plot like this—a lone astronaut on a seemingly doomed mission—and a narrator like Ray Porter, it did seem promising. I wasn’t prepared for the reality that this listen might (dare I say it?) be even better than The Martian. Ryland Grace is an entirely different type of character for Weir—a bit of a "Boy Scout," as Weir put it back in 2021, earnest to a fault and lacking the self-assured swagger of Watney. But this is precisely what makes him relatable. As listeners, we admired Watney; we identify with Grace.
As with most new titles at Audible, I got my hands on the manuscript before I had a chance to listen. This is always a bit of a catch-22 for an editor. I want so badly to dive into the book, but I’d prefer to hear it, especially with Ray Porter—one of the all-time greats in sci-fi & fantasy—at the helm. I ended up starting the story in print, just long enough to discover that a key element of the story was sound-based (hint: alien language), and that’s when I immediately stopped and determined that I had to hear it for the full effect. Ray Porter is as amazing as ever in this performance. What I love about Ray is his range—he’s got snark, sarcasm, and comedic timing down to a science, but that means he can also catch you off guard with his skill for emotional intensity. This being a rather high-stakes story, that deftness of performance makes all the difference.What makes this listen most special, to me, is that it’s really a tale of friendship. The story has all the thrills and scientific detective-work that have defined Weir’s brand, but the relationship at the center of it—that between Grace and (spoiler!) the extraterrestrial Rocky—is what gives it heart. Weir himself describes it as both buddy story and bromance. Listeners, you may cry. More than once. But I promise, it’s oh so worth it to get to know these two. Rocky may well become one of your favorite ETs in fiction, as he has for me. Who doesn’t need a tale about two very unlikely allies coming together, despite their physical, social, and communication differences, to collectively save their two species?No matter how you experience it, I believe you’ll love —but you’d be missing out to not hear this truly special audio production and Ray Porter’s equally exciting and endearing rendition.
