Fantasy sci-fi is not one of the genres I pick and if I do read its typically some dystopian “huxley-esque” type, but seeing the ruckus on social media around this book, I gave in.

Good thing I was a blank slate (have not read The Martian or seen the movie, have not read Artemis either); but after finishing this book – doesn’t look like I missed much.

So, the Sun is being engulfed by a space bacterium and the protagonist Ryland Grace – is tasked with saving Earth. About Grace, he has a resume that possibly rivals Jesus! He is a single middle-aged schoolteacher / interstellar communication expert / astrophysicist / engineering genius / microbiologist ...list goes on. I lost count of the miracles this guy pulls with his “back of the napkin math “. Cannot forget about Rocky; the spider like alien who befriends Grace and together they take down the space fungi!

The books start of well but once we are in the vacuum of space, the author gets stuck in a rut; there’s just a whole lot of science experimentation with Grace’s unassuming back of the napkin math and Rocky’s engineering – and voila they miraculously evert being annihilated for the umpteenth time.

The ending is so pretentious – I felt there was lot of potential to take a deeper philosophical turn which the author squandered and rather opted for sugar coated fluff; guess he was hoping for another Hollywood movie out of this, because who doesn’t like the warm fuzzy feeling of closure. ( )

A great read, original theme, thoughts and ideas, great technical ideas, provokes a lot of thought, engrossing. ( )

Scientist turned middle school teacher gets roped into a last ditch effort to save Earth. There's lots of nerdy science and even aliens from outer space. This was the second time reading this. Enjoyed it as much as the first reading. If you liked The Martian, you'll like this one, too. ( )

I enjoyed the plot of Hail Mary but didn't like it as much as The Martian. I could easily understand calorie intake and fractions of potatoes in the latter, but the scientific explanations in Hail Mary were far beyond me and I found myself skimming through much of the book. ( )

A bit plodding at times (especially in the earth sections), but absolutely loved the dialogue between Rocky and Grace. Totally made this worth reading. ( )