Either he served in the armed forces or he has friends or relatives who did because he has all the external hijinks and internal doubts and everything that goes with it dead to rights. I have to say, Eliot Kay knows his military boot camp material.

Tanner soon learns there is only one way to deal with his bullying comrades, their ruthless foes and the unforgiving void of space, and that’s to get up close and personal. As if that’s not enough, Tanner is assigned to a small ship whose disgruntled crew has no patience for cerebral new recruits, and they’re on the front lines of all of Archangel’s woes. The pirates grow more audacious with every attack. Brutal as it is, Tanner will need the preparation. Basic training becomes six months of daily bare knuckle brawls, demanding cross-training and constant stress. In response, Archangel begins ambitious military expansion. Corporate security fleets are nowhere to be found when trouble arises. Civil war looms beyond the borders of Tanner’s home star system of Archangel. Vicious pirates stalk the space lanes, claiming to fight an oppressive economic system even as they shed innocent blood. Facing homelessness and a mountain of debt, Tanner enlists in his home planet's tiny navy. Yet when family upheaval brings his otherwise stellar performance in school to a disastrous end, Tanner's plans for university lie in ruins. He never wanted to wear a uniform or medals. Tanner Malone never bought into military myths of honor and glory. Please visit our loan officer as you exit.' Your financial obligation is 67,879 credits. Congratulations! You have graduated high school. 'This test completes your compulsory education.

Good Intentions by Elliott Kay