A Book Riot article suggests five science fiction books for fans of the upcoming Project Hail Mary movie, based on Andy Weir's novel. The recommendations focus on themes of searching for habitable planets and encountering aliens. The list includes thrillers involving space missions and interstellar challenges.
The article, titled 'Space Yourself: 5 Books to Read After You See Project Hail Mary,' appeared on Book Riot on March 19, 2026. It highlights the film's release as one of the most anticipated movies of the year. Project Hail Mary adapts Andy Weir's novel, featuring a lone astronaut's mission to save humanity and his encounter with an alien life form, described as an optimistic tale. (A reference to Tim Curry's voice adds a lighthearted Rocky Horror nod. 'Oh, Rocky!'). The recommendations suit fans of the book or film, or anyone seeking more sci-fi reads on planetary searches or alien contacts. First is 'The Fold' by Peter Clines, a thriller where Mike Erikson tackles a DARPA teleportation device in the desert that risks global catastrophe. Next, Yume Kitasei's debut 'The Deep Sky' follows survivors on The Phoenix spaceship, derailed by an explosion en route to a new habitable world, with humanity's fate at stake. Laura Lam's 'Goldilocks' depicts an all-female crew targeting the Goldilocks Zone amid Earth’s collapse, facing sabotage and internal conflicts. In Karen Lord's 'The Best of All Possible Worlds,' a displaced alien society seeks aid from locals on their adopted planet to avert extinction, unraveling cultural mysteries. Finally, Adrian Tchaikovsky's 'Elder Race' centers on anthropologist Elder Nyr, mistaken for a sorcerer, who intervenes to protect alien locals from a perceived demon. The piece encourages applying this knowledge to discover more sci-fi.