Apologies that it has taken me ages to read this book, but life has been very hectic recently  which has then lead me to being in a reading slump! Anyways, I picked this book up as I am a huge fan of award season and I really wanted to read all the books of the films nominated for ‘Best Adapted Screenplay’ at the Oscars this year. I had heard great things about ‘The Martian’ and the storyline sounded really interesting and unique. I’m so glad that I read this book because it was hilarious and a thrilling survival story which kept me on the edge of my seat through the whole book!

It was an incredible story, unlike anything I’ve ever read. It’s a story of survival about astronaut Mark Watney, who is left behind on Mars by his crew, after the mission goes wrong and his crew thinks him dead. Surrounded by nothing but solitude and red desert, Mark is forced to use a painful amount of brain cells to ensure his survival, with no one knowing he’s alive. 

“I’m pretty much fucked. That’s my considered opinion. Fucked.”

Mark Watney, is now one of my favourite fictional characters ever! He’s so much fun to read about thanks to his sarcasm and use of explicit language, which never failed to make me laugh and the fact that he is also a smartass makes me love him more! If I wasn’t cracking up every page, I was at least smiling, even in the darkest times sometimes, because Watney always finds the most surprising and crazy thing to say to make me laugh; every bit of his dialogue was just hilarious!

“Live Another Sol would be an awesome name for a James Bond movie.”

It was also nice to see the points of view from NASA on Earth, as well as from the crew members when they eventually find out Mark is still alive. It provides some unique perspective to the story and gave us even more suspense.

The storyline was well paced and there were enough ups and downs in the plot itself to keep me excited and wondering just how the hell the most recent crisis was going to be resolved. I loved as well the log format, in which Mark told us of his daily adventures/disasters as well as the messages between him and NASA which again had me laughing out loud which no book has ever made me do before!

“Please watch your language. Everything you type is being broadcast live all over the world.”
[12:15] WATNEY: Look! A pair of boobs -> (.Y.)”

Overall, I give this book 5/5 stars, it was intense, fantastic and surprisingly hilarious book with a lot of great story moments, thrill moments and death-defying moments. It’s certainly the best sci-fi book I think I’ve ever read and it’s a story that’s well worth checking out. I’ve also watched the film with Matt Damond and I thought he captured the character of Mark Watney so well and everything was just wonderful, so keep your eyes peeled for a film review on ‘The Martian’!