Coyote Rising (2004) 408 pages by Allen Steele.

Coyote is the fourth moon of Bear, which is the third planet orbiting 47 Ursae Majoris--Uma. In Coyote the United Republic of America (URA) sent a 100 member colony ship to Coyote. The URA wanted to make another little URA in the stars, but Captain Robert Lee and others managed to swap the colonists, and most of the crew were no longer loyal to the URA. They struggle to survive and only four years after they arrive more ships start arriving. These from the Western Hemisphere Union, a nation founded on social collectivism. The WHU ships were from 180 years later than the Alabama, they traveled much faster.

Before I go on about the story, which is great, I have to make a couple statements about the premise. Steele says there is no axial tilt, that the seasons are caused by the eccentricity of Bear's (and therefore Coyote's) orbit around Uma. So I have a little problem with the terminology of the LeMarean calendar. Instead of Summer and Winter Solstice, it should be Periuma and Apuma, and without an axial tilt the term equinox is moot -- every day is equal amounts of day and night. Plus it's an eccentric orbit, right? Earth has a slight eccentric orbit, perihelion is January 4th. As a planet is closer to the sun it moves faster, and it doesn't have as far to go. What's this mean? March 21 to Sept 21 is 184 days, back to March 21 is 181 or 182. It means that there should be many more days (weeks? months?) in the Coyote fall/winter than spring/summer.

Second point. You've got a moon going around a big gas giant, where are all the eclipses? There is not one mention of the phase of Bear. Part of the premise was that Coyote was outside of what we would think of as the habitable zone around a star, but it was getting extra light reflected from Bear. That makes me think, hey, full bear must be quite a bit warmer than new bear.

OK, I got that off my chest, I can put that aside and focus on the story, which is really good. The original colonists flee Earth to gain their freedom, only to have these successive ships come just as they are learning how to live on this frontier. Those ships each ten times as many people, would overwhelm them and force them once again into a loss of liberty.

There are a couple of side stories in the book. Reverend Shirow and his 30 member cult/congregation.

Very good pace to the book, good characters, character growth. And it's his book, he can build the planet any way he wants.