Patriots: A Novel of Survival in the Coming Collapse, the first book in the series, was first distributed as shareware in 1995 and first published in paperback in 1998.

In November 2006, responding to pent-up market demand, Rawles self-published a restored 33-chapter edition of the novel, through XLibris, a vanity press.

Much of Patriots takes place in the Intermountain west, specifically in the Palouse Hills region, in and around Moscow, Idaho.

[8] A reviewer for the Tennessean newspaper called the novel a "combination military thriller and how-to survivalist guide.

"[10] The Kirkus Review described the series as "long on details about guns, survival techniques and military capabilities and short on the suspense".

It was translated by Ernesto Rubio Garcia and published by La Factoria De Ideas, in Madrid, Spain.

Sales for the sequels were strong, with Survivors, Founders and Expatriates all achieving places on The New York Times Best Seller list.

The cover artwork was created by Tony Mauro Jr. On its release day, October 4, 2011, Survivors rose to #2 in Amazon's overall book sales ranks and #1 in their action-adventure category.

[15] Rawles and Survivors were the centerpiece of a Vancouver Sun article by Kim Murphy about the American Redoubt movement that was run by dozens of newspapers, including the Los Angeles Times.

It was translated by Ernesto Rubio Garcia and published by La Factoria De Ideas, in Madrid, Spain.

[18] In his brief review of Founders, Gregory Cowles of the influential The New York Times Book Review poked fun at the comma in Rawles's name, but granted: "Rawles is a well-known survivalist, and he's surely the only writer on this list whose fans frequently ask him how best to stockpile food (it depends on which food) or whether to favor bullets over gold during the total collapse of civilization ("You can't defend yourself near as well with a Krugerrand").

"[14] The third sequel in the Patriots series is entitled Expatriates: A Novel of the Coming Global Collapse (ISBN 9780525953906).

The publisher's web page summarizes the storyline: "When the United States suffers a major socioeconomic collapse, a power vacuum sweeps the globe.

A newly radicalized Islamic government rises to power in Indonesia, invades the Philippines, East Timor, Papua New Guinea, and finally northern Australia.

Publishers Weekly called Liberators the "rousing fifth after-the-apocalypse thriller [installment in the novel series]" and also mentioned that "Supporters of the 'prepper' movement…will lap up every detail.

[25] Mark Rubinstein of The Huffington Post called the book "[A]nother entertaining and thought-provoking novel, describing steps people can take in the event of a global collapse.

The novel also describes the establishment of a Christian nation of refuge called The Ilemi Republic, in East Africa.