Title: Isolation Play
Author: Kyell Gold
Publisher: Sofawolf Press
Genre: M/M Contemporary Anthropomorphic Romance, Sports
Length: Novel (420 pages)
Rating: 5 stars out of 5
A Guest Review by Cole
Review Summary: A worthy sequel to a series that is growing to become one of my favorites.
**Warning: This Review (and Blurb) contain a spoiler for those that have not read the first installation, Out of Position.**
BLURB
Devlin Miski thought coming out on national TV would be the hardest part about being a gay football player. But it’s when his press conference is over that the trouble really starts. The athletic tiger and his boyfriend Lee, a fox with a tongue as quick as his wit, still won’t get many breaks in their fight for understanding. They’ll need to deal with a stubborn reporter determined to get a story any way he can, furious parents, and hostile teammates–not to mention each other.
All’s fair in love and war–and this is both.
Isolation Play is the eagerly awaited sequel to the best-selling novel Out of Position and picks up Dev and Lee’s story about five minutes after the end of the first book. Well over a year and a half in the making, Isolation Play is the longest work Kyell Gold has released.
Cover and interior illustrations are by Blotch.
REVIEW
Isolation Play is the second novel in the chronicle of Dev and Lee, the tiger and the fox. We first read about them in Out of Position, the review of which can be seen here. This second installation in the series begins directly after the first ends — with Dev coming out in a press conference. Having been blackmailed by Brian, Lee’s former best friend, Dev felt cornered, and he and Lee both knew that the speculation in the press around his sexuality was only going to get worse. So, in somewhat of a surprise move to Lee, Dev announces to the world that he is indeed gay, all during a press conference set up to dispute the charges of public opinion and fight the demands that Brian had made on him to reveal his sexuality and pave the way for future gay athletes to come out of the closet. The only problem, is that Brian doesn’t understand the world of professional sports in the way that Lee and Dev do. Though they hope it will help others in time, Dev and Lee are extremely skeptical that Brian’s idealism can stand up to the pressures that gay athletes face. And that is only if Dev survives. Will he be traded? Will he be targeted by other athletes on the field, open to physical attack to injure him and force him out of the small window he has gotten as a starting player? Is his career over already?
These are some of the questions that Dev faces as he does everything he can to remain the same, humble person he was — only now he is both hated and loved by many as the world’s first openly gay professional football player. There are new groupies and gay groups offering sponsorship and endorsements. At the same time, there are those on the field, in the stands, and in his own locker room that will do what they can to isolate him from playing the sport he loves. If all of this gets to him and he loses the focus he needs to play well, then his chance as a starting player is gone. More than anytime before, he is starting to understand the sport as a mental game — one that he will have to conquer in order to keep what he has worked so hard for.
On the other hand, Lee has found himself in the last place he ever expected — the one that Dev used to be in. Lee is a scout for another professional team, and having been forced back into the closet for his new job because of his relationship with Dev, he now finds himself stuck there. If the League finds out that Dev was drafted for the Dragons at the same time that Lee was working for the Dragons as a scout, Lee could be fired and Dev could lose the merit he has gained working his way up through the ranks. So they both find themselves in a strange situation — the out activist is back in the closet, and the closeted jock has just been forced out of the door. But, more than anything, what will this do to Dev and Lee’s families? Dev has not told his parents that he is gay, and they are forced to find out on national television. This will lead to an enormous hometown showdown, pitting Dev’s father against his own boyfriend in the battle to win Dev’s affections. And it seems that Dev will have to choose one over the other.
I actually liked Isolation Play better than I did Out of Position. I felt that because the things that Dev and Lee have gone through, they have been given a chance to do one of two things: turn on one another, or come together. And though in many ways they remained loyal to the characters that we got to know previously, they have both undergone a change because of those things they went through. They have started to realize that what they have with each other is special and important and worth dealing with the hate and bigotry of thousands. Because of this, both Dev and Lee mature a great deal between the end of the first book and the end of the second, and in their maturity, they put to rest many of the immature games that they played at the behest of one another. The title of this novel displays this overall progression well. The iso play is employed by the offensive line of another team and is described by Dev thusly:
Their O-line is different from Millenport’s. For one thing, it’s smaller and quicker, designed to push people out of the way rather than stop them cold. So they have a pair of Dall sheep on the line, blockers who’ll go low and use their horns to force our tackles to go a particular direction. Pike and Brick can handle them, I’ve no doubt, but then they have a pretty good fullback, an elk who uses his antlers to clear out running lanes. So they run the iso—isolation play—a lot, sending the elk to block me or Gerrard while Bixon lowers his head and sends his compact, muscled form through the lane.
The isolation play is a metaphor for the new direction that their relationship is taking — hunkering down, waiting for the attack, and when it comes being driven apart, isolated from one another. This theme crops up over and over during the novel, with family and the media, and it forces Dev and Lee to look forward instead of always watching their backs. This brings me to the writing, which I also thought had matured. Because Dev and Lee are now able to look towards their future, they have a direction in which to go. This streamlined the plot and characterizations as well, which ultimately gave me hope that their relationship would continue to grow and nourish, because any more directionless floundering in their lives and their relationship would have turned in upon itself and imploded from the force of two such strong personalities.
Another theme with this book is family and the importance of having a network of supporters, whether they be blood relation or of your own choosing. Many a gay man has had difficulty coming out to their family. Some of their families embraced them — some did not. But like most of us, when we grow up and out of our youthful familial ties, we either develop new ones with our family, new roles, or we create whole new families for ourselves. The importance of having a family and working out what those new roles are can dominate and confuse many people’s lives, and Dev is no exception. He loves his family almost to a fault. He was raised the dutiful son, always second best to his older brother, and his father king of the castle, whose word is law. Shaking these bonds, trying to break himself of them and free the whole family is the most difficult thing Dev will be forced to do, and I thought that the situation was handled very well. I certainly enjoyed (though sometimes scared half to death of Dev’s father) the interplay between Dev’s family and Lee, who himself is a force to be reckoned with.
Kyell Gold has said that he has two more installments tentatively planned for Dev and Lee, though he is not sure when they’ll be written and published. I certainly won’t complain how long we’ll have to wait as long as we get more of their story. I can only imagine what was coming, and I’m hoping that we get to see more of Kinnel the reporter, who formed an unlikely friendship with Lee throughout this novel, and who was one of my favorite secondary characters. Those that read Out of Position will definitely love this installment, though depending on their preference in the differences in plot between the two, I’m sure there will be many that love one over the other. For me, they just seem to be getting better, and so does the artwork, which with the permission of Kyell and Blotch, I’ve been permitted to show you today. They are beautiful, aren’t they? I wholeheartedly recommend Isolation Play, both to sports fans, fans of the author, and fans of anthropomorphism.
To view more of the beautiful illustrations by Blotch that are within this book, visit the publisher’s website here. To visit Blotch’s website, click here.
Isolation Play is not available in e-format yet, only in paperback. Out of Position is available in Kindle and Nook formats from their respective suppliers, but without the illustrations. At this point, there is no e-format available with illustrations. If you’re interested and thinking of buying either of these books, this might be an opportune time to do so since they are on sale at the publisher’s site until Valentine’s Day.
I loved Out of Position – I’ve read it after your review – and I think all the people who like gay romance should read it. I understand how some people may be reluctant before they’ve read the book – I guarantee you’ll forget all about muzzles and bushy tails after the first dozen or so pages. Well, you may think things like: You REALLY are a SKUNK, Brian! LOL! And, speaking of the skunk, how much of page time he has in this novel? Because, I hated him intensely. XD
I’m looking forward to reading this, cause if it’s better than the first book like you said – it must be amazing. Unfortunately, I’ll have to wait for the ebook, but, hey, good things come to those who wait. ~_^ Thank you for the review!
I am so happy to hear that you read Out of Position and loved it. I had the same reaction, that the whole theme of anthropomorphism would take over the novel. Maybe fans of that genre love the muzzles and fur and such, but I think that most people just want a good love story, and thats what this story is.
I’m glad you mentioned Brian, because he played such a large part of the first novel, even just by how he affected Dev and Lee from a distance. He gets a mention on the first page or so, right as his moment of glory crashes and burns around him. After that, neither of them mention him again. They really seem to want to get on with their lives, especially since they know they’re going to have a difficult time over what Brian did to their lives.
I was glad that Brian went away (at least for a while, who knows that the coming books contain). I think that, in the first book, Dev and Lee were so busy battling outside forces, and now they have the time they really need to make their relationship work. I was happy to see them get that opportunity, because they are such real characters. They might not be humans, but they act like such real people, much more than a lot of romance characters.
It is worth waiting for 🙂 When the time comes, I really think you’ll enjoy it.
Great review Cole! I loved Out of Position so it’s good to hear that the sequel worked out.
I hope we’ll get the ebook version soon.
Hi Aly! I’m glad to hear that you loved Out of Position. Hopefully it won’t be too long, but someone mentioned in the comments on that review that Sofawolf usually waits around a year before publishing the ebook. So it might be a long wait!
Sold! But you already knew that 🙂 Great review as always.
Hah! Yes, I knew that already. I can’t wait to read the other books by Kyell so I can hear what you thought about them as well 🙂
wow so it´s going to be a longer series. I guess they favour the paperback because of the illustrations.
Thank you for your review 🙂
I emailed Kyell and asked him about this, because I was interested myself, and this is what he said: “I have two more books planned for Dev and Lee right now. Of course, they’re not written, so I can’t guarantee that they’ll come out, but if I have any say in it, they will.” He also mentioned that the general lag between books has been around 2 years — which I certainly understand because I’ve never been a fast writer and I don’t understand how some of these authors put out 4 or 5 books (or more!) a year. Of course, his are also quite long.
Sofawolf published anthropomorphic fiction, and those usually include illustrations — ranging from books like these, with only a few illustrations for key points, to graphhic novels and comics. So, I suppose that is why they favor paperback.
Thanks Helena!
This sounds fabulous! Thanks for the wonderful review, Cole. 🙂
You’re welcome, Lily. 🙂
Just had to say something. I’ve only read 5 or 6 books, like this one, that I actually start reading it again after just finishing it. At least until I let my friend borrow it, hope to get it back soon! And I agree, OOP was good, but Iso Play is a step above.
It’s a great review and I hope to find other love stories that feel this.. “real” whether they’re furry or not. It’s always slightly sad when you finish and then go. Well, now I have to wait. But excited cause you can’t wait to see what comes next.
Gah, sorry for the rambling.
Its no problem Joel! I love to ramble so don’t worry about that. Plus, I understand how when you love a book, like I loved these, that all I want to do is gush about how great it is, and I constantly have to reign myself in.
I understand what you mean about reading the book again immediately after finishing it. If I hadn’t had other things to work on, I might have done so myself. As it stands, I’m looking forward to reading both of these again the next time I have time available. It will certainly be a treat 🙂
I also think that this is a story that benefits from further reads, as the characters are so complex. I can’t wait to get to know them better. Especially Lee, who is sometimes such an enigma, but heartbreakingly open in his actions and words.
So, yes, I definitely agree with you. I’m happy that you loved these as much as I did 🙂
Cole, great review.
Did you start on this one right after “Out of Position”?
How do you guys decide who is going to review what? and when?
I believe there are definitely some stories to tell on those extra characters in the book. Im interested in Gerrard.
Thanks Hannah! I love Gerrard as well, and we get to see quite a bit more of him in Isolation Play. I like his quiet certainty and loyalty. He is also a great father 🙂
I did start reading this directly after reading Out of Position. As a reviewer, we can either request books that we would like, or choose from the new releases from the various m/m publishers, since the main objective is to help sift through all of the huge amounts of new books coming out every week. So, luckily, I was able to read both of these books back to back 🙂
Thanks for your comment, I have to say that these books have a really great cast of secondary characters!
I read Out of Position after it was highly highly recommended on another site – highly enough to move past the anthropomorphic and the price (I think I paid $10 for the ebook). I agree with LadyM that you forget about the furry after a few dozen pages (That is if the furry is not your thing :))
So glad to hear the sequel lives up to the first book but I will be waiting for the ebook verison since I only have room for textbooks on my bookshelves.
Hi aquina, I’m glad to hear how much you ended up loving Out of Position. I certainly thought that Isolation Play lived up to the standard that OoP created, and I’ve heard similar things from those who have read it. So I think that you’ll like it when you are able to get it 🙂
Thanks for replying, aquina!
Yes I really love Out of Position. One of my favourite ebooks. It is a pity the sequel is in hardcover not in ebook version T_T especially with a high ratings on its sequel when it’s normally hard to up the first book.
I agree that it can be difficult to write a sequel that lives up to the expectations of readers, especially with a book that has been received as well as this one has. But, I definitely think that Kyell did a great job on that, I loved this one 🙂
Thanks monica!
I thought Out of Position was a little bit over obsessive in the end part of the book,rehashing things a lot without things moving forward. You know, lots of misunderstandings, getting emotionally captured by everything. Is the sequel the same? Or can dev function on the field without being stressed out about Lee all the time etc?
I can see what you mean about obsessive — Dev was constantly worried about Lee and the outside events that he couldn’t control — affecting his mental game. I guess it just depends on the reader and how much angst you like, whether it is too much for you or not at all.
In the first half of the second book, Dev has a lot of difficulty with the same thing, especially without reporters hounding him at practice and rude comments thrown his way. But he really learns to get a hold on it at some point, with the help of his team and Lee. I was really happy to see him improve in that way, because though the angst of it didn’t bother me, I did just want something to go right for him, and I knew that if he couldn’t get his head in the game and focus, that would never happen.
Thanks saga!
Hi Cole!
Yes that’s exactly what I meant about the angst. Good to hear he gets his head on straight in the end.
I honestly believe that these stories can be enjoyed by anyone who likes good gay romance fiction, even if they don’t like anthropomorphism or football, or even if they don’t know who the author is. Kyell Gold writes books that are comfortable to read and that’s why I think he’s a good author and why I strive to be more like him.
I agree Jay. I also think that Kyell is a good author for another author to study, as he is great with dialogue and characterization. Definitely a great writer 🙂
Cole, is it possible to check out when will the ebook be released? Thanks
Hey monica, I’ve been poking around and hopefully I’ll get a response for you later today. I’ll let you know then.
My guess is that the commenter who posted earlier was right. They said that Sofawolf usually takes a year after the paperback publication to release in eformats. But I’ll let you know for sure when I get an answer 🙂
Hi monica,
I talked to Kyell, and he told me that there are a lot of different factors involved and the ebook publication is not set in stone. He hopes that it will be out by Fall, but most likely not until the end of the year.
Thanks Cole but waiting for a year might gotten my memory off the hook. Hopefully you would able to remind us readers when the ebook is out since there are so many releases in the market these days.
I think they’re loosing sales by not releasing ebooks earlier.
This is the third time this week I was unable to get ebook format. First for a fantasy called The Sentinel Mage, then for The Mahu series (except the first book) and now this one. I though all books came in ebook format these days.
I agree. I wanted to buy The Sentinel Mage as well, and I haven’t yet because it is only available in paperback. The unavailability of books like the Mahu series is one of the main reasons I think that we often don’t see books in eformats. It looks like the Mahu books were originally published a few years ago when epublishing was still quite small, and since only the first book in the series has been republished. So the rights are probably in limbo. The author probably has to wait to republish with another publisher for each book because they were published at each time and they each had a certain amount of time on their contract with the original publisher. So, if the second publisher wants to keep publishing the line, they’ll probably come out in ebook over time.
As for Sofawolf, which has published Out of Position and Isolation Play, they still seem to be relatively new to internet sales. I think their primary source of sales is with the convention circuit, so the more that they see their internet sales go up, I think they’ll probably see the benefit of epublishing. They are a business after all… and the epublishing romance market is where the money is at.
Cole, after you reviewed Out of Position, I bought it, read it, loved it. One point that I really enjoyed is that Dev and Lee still had their own lives, and didn’t give up everything to be together. That made the time they were together all the more important, for that time was precious.
I’d never read “furry” before, and found the references to paws and fur amusing. I will definitely read Isolation Play, but wish it came in ebook form. If it did, I’d already own it. You’re really awesome at this review stuff, ya know that?
Hi Eden, I agree with you. I loved that Dev and Lee were both strong characters, and though they loved each other, they both needed to remain their own person for the relationship to work. I think, also, that for them to drop everything to be together all the time would kill their relationship, and they instinctively know that. There were a lot of little things like this throughout both of the books that seemed much more ‘real-life’ than typical romance characters. It is fresh and invigorating to read characters like that.
Thanks so much, Eden. I admit, sometimes I read other reviews by the wonderful reviewers on this site and I think, I hope I can do as well as them. So, I’m glad that you think so. 🙂
Hey
Oops! I accidentally clicked the Submit button on my iPad when I was trying to check the followup notification checkbox. 😛 Then half way through the comment I switched tab to copy a link and everything I had was lost because iPad refreshed the page. xP Anyway, thank you for another great review. I read it the first day you posted it but decided to read what people had to say about it before leaving my comment.
I love the book, too. I read over half of it while I was still at the convention where the book had its debut; and finished it as soon as I got home from the con. I think Isolation Play really lives up to Out of Position. Though I am not good at writing reviews and your review analyzed the book more in depth. I would have to read it several times to be able to write a review like this.
Also, it seems like many people have question about the ebook for Isolation Play. Sofawolf is a small press company that publishes contents of anthropomorphic nature,which is a small niche in the market of book publishing. When they publish a new product they need to sell a certain quantity of the publication just to cover the cost of producing it. From what I know they don’t publish any of their titles in e-format, yet. Tim Susman, Sofawolf’s co-founder and editor, has only had his book, Common and Precious published on Kindle just last week. The reason that Kyell’s books are on Kindle and Nook is probably because he worked it out with Sofawolf, Amazon and Barnes and Nobles himself to have them distributed in those format. This is also probably the reason that there isn’t illustration for the ebook version. To have illustration in the ebooks, Kyell would have to work not just with the distributors but also the artists.