Let me preface by saying that space doesn't usually interest me; typically I find it a smidge boring, all that technical jargon and such. I was a little nervous with this one as it seemed at first like it was going to be more of a survival manual and less of a novel. I am happy to report I was completely wrong. Don't get me wrong, there is a lot of technical stuff in here, but it's done in such a way that it's actually interesting and funny. Seriously, it's some funny stuff. This book for me was exceptional in its story, in its character development, in its research...everything. An astronaut was left for dead on Mars (with the movie trailers now out, I assume this doesn't need a recap really). Turns out, he's not dead. Once NASA figures it out, they have a limited amount of time to figure out how to rescue him and he has limited resources to manipulate to keep himself alive for as long as possible. Seriously, that's really it, the whole thing in a nutshell. Listen to me...it's fantastic! Just read it, though I'm late to the party so probably most people already have. I can't wait for more from this author.