Review - Submitted by Sam Burns and W.M. Fawkes

Homeless and living on the street since his father threw him out for being gay, of all the humans taken by the Thorzen, Beau has the fewest reasons to ever want to return to earth. He may be kept in a cell in a lab, but he's fed and doesn't seem to be in any danger, even if the lab's leader Crux does sneer at him. And there's definitely a small bright spot: Crux's son Vorian, who just about everyone avoids, seems to have take an interest in Beau that is more than a little friendly. Vorian has lived under his father's thumb all his life, forced to do the man's dirty work. He hates Crux with a passion, while still trying to win his approval. Will meeting Beau finally give him a reason to stand up to his father?

This third and final book of the Star Marked Warriors series is something of a classic tale: Two lost souls who manage to find their purpose in each other. Although from different species on different planets, Beau and Vorian share a very similar upbringing by parents who put the dis in dysfunctional. They form a bond quickly and it becomes much more than either of them can know at the time.

“Submitted” again parallels the previous two stories of the series, but you definitely should read them first to get the full background of what's happening, that Beau doesn't know about. We get this story from both Beau and Vorian's point of view, so events of the other two books are often referred to but there aren't any details given because you've presumably read about them already.

We know Vorian from the first two books, where he was generally the villain of the story, but even before this installment we had the impression that the young warrior played the part reluctantly. Since we get part of this story from his point of view, we get to learn a lot more about Vorian and what drives him.

Beau is a very easy character to sympathize with. A young man thrown out of his home by a disapproving father would be cliché if it weren't sadly so common in the real world. His “easy” acceptance of his captivity may seem a little too fast for some, but it's not all that implausible, especially with his growing relationship with Vorian.

If you've read the first two books of the series, then you know the “big surprise” that comes very near the end of this story. You'll know it's coming and probably figure out the details of how it manifests a few pages before it happens. However, it ends up being a quite satisfactory ending to this nicely constructed series.

“Submitted” is available from Amazon.