Reddit mentions of Freehold (Freehold Series Book 1)

MHI is part of Baen's free library. There's a large number of book 1's for various Baen series that remain free permanently on Amazon and other places.

----

The last time this was brought up here's what I said:

So Baen is heavier on SciFi than Fantasy/Urban Fantasy...and their authors tend to display their Conservative/Libertarian philosophies a bit more. But they do tell some fun stories if you lean towards their politics or can roll your eyes at that.

There's some others out there that I can't think of, but these are favorites of mine other than MHI...

John Ringo has a fantasy series I haven't gotten to yet and the weakest of his SciFi series up for free. I wish they had Live Free or Die or Through the Looking Glass, which are much much better series, but alas:

http://www.amazon.com/Hymn-Before-Battle-Legacy-Aldenata-ebook/dp/B00BEQP50Y/ref=la_B000APPSXE_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1456879886&sr=1-1&refinements=p_82%3AB000APPSXE

http://www.amazon.com/There-Will-Dragons-Council-Wars-ebook/dp/B00BER04VI/ref=la_B000APPSXE_1_2?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1456879886&sr=1-2&refinements=p_82%3AB000APPSXE

David Weber does great space navy battles in his Honor Harrington series.

http://www.amazon.com/Basilisk-Station-Honor-Harrington-Book-ebook/dp/B00ARPJBS0/ref=la_B000APBAFE_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1456879923&sr=1-1&refinements=p_82%3AB000APBAFE

Williamsons Freehold is a Libertarian's utopian heaven, but it's a favorite popcorn read of mine - the latter half is heavy military SF.

http://www.amazon.com/Freehold-Book-Michael-Z-Williamson-ebook/dp/B00BEQLTZY/ref=sr_1_1_twi_kin_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1456879862&sr=8-1&keywords=freehold

The Ring of Fire series is about a 1990's era West Virginia coal mining town that gets thrown back into the year 1632 in Europe.

http://www.amazon.com/1632-Ring-Fire-Eric-Flint-ebook/dp/B00BEQLQNE/ref=sr_1_4_twi_kin_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1456882709&sr=8-4&keywords=1632

>What's with sci-fi/fantasy writers? Is democracy not dramatic enough?

I think most Sci-fi writers take a look at how technology is expected to develop in the future, and can only see how it would help with the subjugation of large groups of people, rather than their liberation. In addition, I think that most of them are in the paradigm that world peace, or some semblance of it, is only achievable through a one-world government so in order to make a 'feasible' world without constant warring states, you have to turn it into one big state that keeps everyone in line.

I mean, if you have interstellar starships full of nuclear weapons, then it becomes really easy to imagine that you can rule a whole planet with a central organization that controls the nukes. Who needs democracy at that point?

Edit: oh, and I should add that they emulate historical trends, where one big empire is generally the way large territories are governed, after one nation makes a large conquest of the surrounding ones. So this 'trend' is assumed to hold into the future, with larger territories held due to the better technology.

Additionally, the more technology develops, the more prosperous we tend to become. The more prosperous we become, the larger the government leech is able to grow, and the more the government leech can grow... the more powerful its military can become (+ technology). The more powerful a military becomes, the larger a population it can successfully control.

Thus, when you extrapolate technology/prosperity growth into the future, its easy to imagine a giant country like China or the U.S. building up a giant, technologically advanced army and conquering the planet or most of it (maybe doing so 'peacefully,' even. Which is to say "united under our banner or we nuke you.").

Anyone who is still in the statist paradigm will have a REALLY hard time imagining a free society being the dominant social organization since they don't think such a thing is feasible on any scale, much less a planetary/interplanetary one.


But with that said, you just need to seek out the right Sci-fi authors:

• The Moon is a Harsh Mistress by Robert Heinlein is excellent.
  
• The Probability Broach by L. Neil Smith portrays a world that operates as a free society
  
• The Freehold (ebook is free!) series by Michael Z. Williamson has a slightly different vision for how a free society would operate against the more standard Sci-Fi tyrannies.
  
  Others are certainly out there if you look.

Freehold Book 1 is currently free on Amazon and the 21 hour ebook is only $1.99. https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00BEQLTZY/ref=dbs_a_def_rwt_hsch_vapi_tkin_p1_i0

Sample.
The Course of Empire (Course of Empire Series Book 1) by Eric Flint
1632 (Ring of Fire Series) by Eric Flint
Northworld Trilogy by David Drake
Starliner by David Drake
Star Soldiers by Adre Norton
Oath of Swords (War God Book 1) by David Weber
On Basilisk Station (Honor Harrington Book 1) by David Weber
The Honor of the Queen (Honor Harrington Book 2) by David Weber
The Star Agency (The Star Agency Chronicles Book 1) by R.E. Weber
The Last Praetorian (The Redemption Trilogy Book 1) by Mike Smith
Hard Duty: Merkiaari Wars Book 1 by Mark E. Cooper
The Synchronicity War Part 1 by Dietmar Wehr
Dark Space by Jasper T. Scott
The Tank Lords by David Drake
Redliners by David Drake
A Desert Called Peace (Carrera Series Book 1) by Tom Kratman
Gunship by John Davis
With the Lightnings (Lt. Leary Book 1) by David Drake
Tales of Honor #1 by Matt Hawkins and Jung-Geun Yoon
The Fringe Worlds: (The Human Chronicles Saga Book #1) by T.R. Harris
Freehold (Freehold Series Book 1) by Michael Z. Williamson
The Last Roman (The Praetorian Series Book 1) by Edward Crichton
The Sea Hag by David Drake
Forbidden The Stars (The Interstellar Age Book 1) by Valmore Daniels
FCBD 2015: Tales of Honor by Matt Hawkins and Linda Sejic
The Philosophical Strangler (Joe's World Book 1) by Eric Flint
The Creatures of Man by Howard L. Myers
In the Heart of Darkness (Belisarius Saga Book 2) by Eric Flint
Northworld Trilogy by David Drake
Starliner by David Drake