I tried to get into this novel about the settling and terraforming of Mars, but I couldn't. There were too many characters with too many stupid and petty problems. I tried to care, but I couldn't. Nothing happened except people whined, complained, and went on long boring trips to explore the icecaps.

Somebody got assassinated at one point, but that was years in the future, after the Mars colony was well established. That part was told first, sort of the opposite of a flashback. What's the word for that? Flashahead? Flashforward? Flash-give-away-the-only-interesting-part?

One idea I found interesting is the colonists decided to stick to a 24-hour day. To reconcile this with the Martian day, the clock stops at midnight for thirty-nine and a half minutes.

I didn't finish this book. I didn't consciously give up, I just sort of stopped reading after a hundred pages or so.