The Stone Canal, by Ken Macleod

I don't like books that alternate between the past and the future, and if I'd realized that The Stone Canal, by Ken Macleod, was such a book I'd never have bought it. (sigh) By the time I realized it I was on page 61 and thought I might as well read on as I'd enjoyed the future-on-Mars-with-sentient-robots part. I continued to enjoy the more futuristic chapters but never could get much into the political intrigue sections that took place on Earth in the past. Ken Macleod has a blog, and one of the fan sites devoted to him is here.