The Will to Battle (Terra Ignota, #3)

by Ada Palmer

The pair have crossed swords, I suspect, or had sex. Or both. It can be difficult to tell the difference.

Apollo: “But would Mars finish, Mycroft? If we, who work so hard to reach fresh planets, find them instantly at hand? Who would break their backs making red deserts green for their great-grandchildren when unclaimed paradises teem with fruit? A new world that does not require us to be brave—how kind a poison.”

[The Expanse Spoilers] calls to mind the plight of Mars in the latter half of the Expanse...