The Martian

The Martian was an absolutely fantastic read. Mark Watney is an engaging, interesting protagonist, who deals with existential terror of being alone on dead planet with wit and determination. Some might compare Weir's book to the works of Jack London or to Robinson Crusoe, but with the added element of having a more engaging protagonist. Regardless of comparisons, it's a tight, engaging, thrilling account of man vs nature that at times literally had me on the edge of my seat.
Reading this so shortly after Chris Hadfield's memoir, it really feels like Weir got the astronaut mentality down. Watney's willingness to admit error, his problem-solving focus, and his dark humour seem a little unusual if you're comparing him to the average person – but for an astronaut these qualities seem to fit perfectly.
Another thing I found interesting about the text was the way that Weir used mathematics as a tool to build tension in scenes. He'll start by having Watney calculate how much of something will kill him – acceptable CO2 levels in the atmosphere, say – and then track how they slowly rise to that point. It's a novel type of countdown clock to add to the tasks he has to complete, and while an actual countdown clock would no doubt seem cheesy, here it's an essential part of the plot.