Project Hail Mary by Andy Weir Free Audiobook

Project Hail Mary by Andy Weir Free Audiobook

Andy Weir’s debut novel The Martian 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 Project Hail Mary 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 Artemis, 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 when I interviewed him 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 much 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.