It was just a novel, but it dominated my life. Eat, sleep, read. Eat, sleep, read went the routine. But what was it that compelled me to endure so many hours reading when my eyes throbbed with pain. Only when the letters on the pages blurred to incoherence, did I stop reading. I could write a 1000 page essay on why I enjoyed this novel, so much but I won't mercilessly. The Premise of the novel was the middle aged and the egos and how peaceful Mars was before the scientists came. They ripped off my favourite soap popper, damn. During the Mars selection process, candidates were deceitful in-order to be amongst the first to travel to Mars. Personalities began to clash from the moment they left earth and only intensified. The scientific principles and theories involved in this book are Ginsu-edged futuristic fact. It is obvious to me that the author devoted years of study in-order to provide a believability to the scientist's own miracle of creation. Simply it was cool. But what impressed me most was how skilfully the author was able to balance character development with scientific theories resulting an excellent balance. Some of the following themes are features in this book and if any of these interest you, you should enjoy this read. Personal aspirations vs. Corporate aspirations. Environmental preservation (responsibility). Government vs. Corporation. Government control vs. Good of society. Scientific research vs. Good of society. Society's role in developing government. Cultural differences (culture clash). What more can I say, this may be the first and maybe the last to get a perfect rating. Total satisfaction.  10/10.