I thought Martian was enjoyable. Fast paced, and the science was generally explained in manner that easy to understand and didn’t ruin the flow of the narrative. Andy Weir’s followup book - Artemis - wasn’t nearly as good.
There are so many reasons to hate Seveneves, but I guess here’s my top 3: First, it is so gobsmackingly pretentious. The author genuinely seems to believe that if this catastrophe were to occur, all the nations would have a big kumbaya moment and launch all their best and brightest into space while the rest of us generally mill about like docile cows, happy that our best and brightest were chosen and peacefully resigned to our fate. Most of the folks chosen to survive are utterly callous about leaving behind spouses and loved ones - to the point that some even disregard the last tearful goodbyes of their doomed family members because they’re just too busy doing smart important stuff up in space.
Second, the stuff on Earth is almost completely ignored. I’m waaaay more interested in how the doomed people on the ground would handle their last days than the eggheads up in space. Then again, given how the author seems to view the earthlings I guess it wouldn’t have been that interesting.
Third, the science stuff is often too dense and interupts the narrative. I’ve gotten to the point where I’m skimming several pages at a time discussing orbital mechanics because I just don’t care.
I’m looking for novels on the pre-apocalypse - how people and society respond to impending doom. On The Beach is a good example, but I’ve already read that. You don’t get that much from Lucifer’s Hammer because most of the folks there pretty much assume the comet will miss up until the end. You get just a little with The Stand. World War Z was great, even with the zombie premise, although I wish he’d cut the vingettes in half and wove the remainder into a narrative.
Other suggestions?