The Martian by Andy Weir: Out of This World and Absolutely Hilarious

Title: The Martian
Author: Andy Weir
Publisher: Del Rey 
BUY THIS BOOK!!!: Amazon / Book Depository 

I'm stranded on Mars.
I have no way to communicate with Earth.
I'm in a Habitat designed to last 31 days.
If the Oygenator breaks down, I'll suffocate. If the Water Reclaimer breaks downs, I'll die of thirst. If the Hab breaches, I'll just kind of explode. If none of those things happen, I'll eventually run out of food and starve to death.
So yeah, I'm screwed. 

I am just going to put this out there: The Martian was my top read of 2015. Yes, an adult fiction, sci-fi book topped my favourites list. This is coming from someone who almost reads exclusively YA now. But this book deserves every single ounce of praise being awarded to it. If you're someone who only reads YA, or isn't a fan of sci-fi, or just hasn't really considered reading this book: change your mind! I honestly don't feel like you will regret it. I started this feeling a little nervous, I thought all the detailed space talk and equations would either go over my head or bore me to tears. I was worried this would be a book that I would struggle to get through. I was proved oh so very wrong. I could not put this book down, I was absolutely hooked to it and realised quite quickly that I had not only discovered a new favourite book, but also a favourite male protagonist. If you want more reasons you should pick it up then feel free to continue reading this review. But I will provide a quick list of reasons why you should just drop everything and go read it right now:

1. It contains the funniest male protagonist I have ever come across. I finished this months ago and I still can't forget Mark Watney as a character.
2. The book is actually one of the funniest novels I have ever read. I laughed so hard that I snorted and got in a coughing fit.... ON PUBLIC TRANSPORT. 
3. Unputdownable is the perfect word to describe this book, I couldn't tear myself away from the story. 
4. It's a book that can make you cry, make you laugh, and actually manages to get you to do both at once.

In short:

(Yes, I feel this aggressively about it!)

Okay, now I am done trying to force you all to just go and read the book, it's time to get to my actual review. 

Mark Watney is six days in to a two month mission on Mars when everything goes wrong. Mark Watney and the rest of the Ares 3 crew are told to abandon the mission as high risk sandstorms batter their Hab and Mars Ascent Vehicle. During the journey to the MAV, Mark is hit by an antennae that pierces his suit and makes it look as though he has died. The rest of the crew have no choice but to leave him there and make their way back to the ship, to start their long journey home to Earth. But, unbeknownst to them and the rest of Earth, Mark didn't die on Sol 6. He survived. He's now met with the task of trying to find a way to survive on an uninhabitable planet, when he's supplies were only meant to last the duration of the two month mission. He know his only hope is to find some way of surviving for THREE YEARS until the next Ares mission to Mars, and even then he has to journey across the planet to get to their landing spot. As Mark would say, he's basically fucked.


Mark, Mark, Mark! He is my favourite part of this book and I would probably gush about him for the whole review if I could. I want to find Andy Weir and kiss that mans feet, he knows how to write a character. Mark Watney is honestly the funniest character I have ever come across. He has a dry, sarcastic sense of humour, which is the kind I love. Andy Weir also makes him a character that you connect with, understand and relate to, which I thought I would struggle with as he's a friggin' genius, trapped on Mars, who is able to do the most complicated equations in seconds. I did connect with and relate to him though, to his determination to survive. Mark Watney is a character I wish existed, just so I could have the pleasure of meeting him in real life.

The book doesn't just follow Mark on his quest of survival though, we also get to see his old crew and how they are dealing with his death, whilst trying to make their way back home. Then we have NASA who have to deal with the publicity from the death of Mark, only to discover that they have left a man, who is very much alive, stranded on Mars. We see them trying to come up with anyway they can help Mark survive long enough for help to reach him.

I can't remember the last time a book me had me so anxious as this one did. I don't think I have been this into a book and its ending, as I was with this. My fiancé, who has dealt with nine years of my bookworm ways, even said he'd never seen me talk/rave about a book so much, especially to him. He'd also never seen me laugh through my tears, grip the book so hard and then throw it across the bed because I was too scared/nervous/anxious to continue. I don't remember the last time a book had me so highly invested in the characters. Andy Weir managed to compeltely suck me into this story, so much so that it no longer felt like a work of fiction. I was cheering on Mark, crying for him and laughing with him.

I honestly wouldn't want to ruin even a minute of this book for you guys. I can only recommend that you go and try it for yourselves. I don't see any reason you wouldn't want to read this book. Even if it is not your usual genre or age range, pick it up and give it a try. If you don't, you might just be missing out on one of the greatest books of all time. There, I said it! My love for this book is just overwhelming me whilst writing this review. I read the book back in September, and now I know that I have to go and reread it.

5+/5 Butterflies

This is quite honestly one of the greatest books I have ever had the pleasure of reading. If I could gush and rave about it all day, every day, then I probably would. It made me laugh and it made me cry, it made me do both at once. I couldn't put this book down, it was too hard for me to pull myself away from the story and concentrate on anything else. I can't wait to see what Andy Weir does next, I feel bad for the guy as he has to follow up from such a huge success. I have faith in him as an author, the guy is clearly talented beyond words. I really hope my gushing/nonsensical review makes at least one person give this book a chance, you won't be disappointed.