Reviewed by Taylin
TITLE: Submerging Inferno
SERIES: Men of Myth #1
AUTHOR: Brandon Witt
PUBLISHER: Self Published
RELEASE DATE: September 22, 2020
LENGTH: 401 pages
BLURB:
Brett Wright and Finn de Morisco come from vastly different worlds. Disowned by his family for being gay, Brett builds both a life on his own terms and walls around his heart. But nothing can prepare him for the evil that stalks him in the night or from discovering the dark secrets of his heritage.
The youngest of a doting family, Finn lives a sheltered life that allows him to trust easily and makes him quick to jump to the rescue. While using his knowledge of the supernatural world to help Brett uncover the truth of his ancestry, Finn learns neither his magical life nor falling in love is as simple and risk-free as he believed.
New knowledge comes with a price—one that may prove too high for them to pay.
(This is book one of three. Books one and two contain cliffhangers.)
REVIEW:
Erm, wow. Where to start my review? I usually begin with a summary that is a little different from the blurb. But, the info above pretty much covers it. So, I’m going to delve right in and say from the off that. I’m excited about this series of three books. I don’t typically read a series with cliffhangers because I’m too impatient to wait for the next installment. However, these come out in quick succession (within weeks of each other) stopping me stewing for too long.
The story starts at a somber funeral that Brett is not welcome at because he was disowned by his Grandfather a few years previous. The scene establishes Brett’s background in a way that pulls at the heartstrings. To recover from the ordeal, he heads for the sea, where he is at his happiest. Unfortunately, recently his tranquility within the waves has been interrupted by some weird experiences.
Brett is brutally honest about how attractive he is compared to others. As the story is told in the first person, his summary came over as a little arrogant losing him some of the earlier sympathies. In short – he’s good-looking, and he knows it.
Brett is introduced to Finn but ignores him in favor of a man with piercing green eyes that just walked through the door. Suitably chagrined, Finn nurses his wounds until he realizes what the man with the green eyes is. Finn shoots after Brett. When Finn finds Brett, he is shocked to discover that although worse for the experience, Brett managed to defend himself enough not to be killed, and in a most unexpected way.
Finn takes Brett home, and from that moment, Brett gets an education in things that lurk in the dark. Finn comes from a long line of witches and warlocks. And to iterate a famous quote, ‘The force is strong in this one’, laced with an air of innocence. There are more supernatural beings, one of which is Brett, although he does not know his heritage, and neither does Finn’s family. Unfortunately, too is the fact that the thing that tried to kill Brett in the alley will do anything to finish the job, putting family and friends at risk.
What follows is an investigative story laced with the defense of the family, murder, realization, and world setting. The story is told in the first person from Brett and Finn’s viewpoints and other than some autonomous body parts (mainly the eyes) it is technically sound. E.g. One particular sentence started with … My eyes flitted between – technically speaking it should have read something like – I flit my eyes between.
There was much to love about this read. The diverse nature of the cast, even within the same family, was lovely. The flack sent his way by fin and his family, balances out the bravado Brett has over his looks. The Morisco’s also own a Mexican restaurant. Mexican food seems to be a feature of this author’s books. Another aspect that I was chuffed to read was how the author did not hold back on the darker elements. There are, almost disturbing, demonstrations of exactly how bloodthirsty some supernatural beings can be.
Investigations center around discovering what Brett is, and the reasoning behind him being hunted. To this end, I occasionally got a little frustrated when I wanted to shout, ‘look at the facts man and do a Sherlock Holmes’. Getting involved is, however, part of the experience of a good story.
It is clear that lots of thought and logic has gone into this story, and it is long. There is an absolute ton of scene-setting because this story sets out the world and who lives in it for future installments and there is more to come. Book two, Rising Frenzy has a release date of October 6, and the last in the series, Clashing Tempest, October 20.
I feel a little mean giving this story four hearts, which is a recommended read. However, it is difficult for me to give it more because as fascinating a read as it is, there are technicalities, and the story isn’t complete – it continues with cliffhangers. But it is one hell of a start and I get the feeling that the two novels to come will be outstanding and their ratings will increase accordingly – fingers crossed. I eagerly count down the days until I am able to read book two.
RATING: 
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