Ingram "Los Angeles Daily News" calls "Patriots" "enormously entertaining", while "Kirkus Review" has high praise for the novel's "punchy action and realistic consequences". The rugged individualists who have settled the frontier planet of Greenwood are threatened by politicians and bean counters on Earth, who see Greenwood only in terms of profit. The settlers must set aside their local differences in order to meet the challenge and preserve their world and way of life.