Baen Books reprints Jerry Pournelle’s 1976 novel Birth of Fire

Baen Books has reprinted in one volume two novels written by award-winning SF author Jerry Pournelle: Birth of Fire (1976), which is set on Mars, and King David’s Spaceship (1981), which is not. Published earlier this month under the title Fires of Freedom (2009), the theme of the new volume and the point both novels have in common is the struggle for independence against powerful governmental forces and faceless bureaucrats. In other words, classic Pournelle!

Here’s a synopsis of Birth of Fire, taken from Baen Books' website:
“A teenage delinquent on a crowded, corrupt Earth, Garrett was given a choice: rot in prison on Earth, or be deported to Mars to work in the colony there. But on Mars he would find an inner strength that he had never known before, and when Mars revolted against the multinational corporations that controlled the colonist’s lives, Garrett was on the front lines in the battle for planetary freedom.”

You can read the first twelve chapters of Birth of Fire online, thanks to the generosity of the folks at Baen Books.

Reader reviews of Birth of Fire are posted at Amazon.com.