You’re scrolling through a bookstore or a digital catalog and you see a tiger in a football jersey. He’s massive, looks like a star athlete, and the art is honestly incredible. That’s Dev. Then you see the fox, Lee. On the surface, Out of Position Kyell Gold looks like it might just be another niche romance for the furry fandom. But it’s not. It’s actually one of the most grounded, gut-wrenching explorations of the "closet" ever written in contemporary fiction.
Kyell Gold didn't just write a story about animals playing sports. He wrote a 300-plus page manifesto on what it feels like to be terrified of your own success because that success depends on a lie. When the first book dropped in 2009, it basically shifted the goalposts for what furry literature could be. It wasn't just erotica; it was a heavy-hitting drama that happened to have tails.
The Premise: More Than Just Jocks and Nerds
The setup is classic, almost cliché. Devlin "Dev" Miski is a tiger, a star cornerback for Forester University. He’s the "alpha" archetype—big, strong, and seemingly straight. Then he meets Lee, a fox who is an activist, a theater geek, and very much out of the closet.
Their first meeting is weird. Lee actually goes to a bar in drag (as a vixen) to prove a point about jock behavior. Dev falls for it, they hook up, and the reveal that Lee is a male fox should have ended things. Instead, it sparks this messy, complicated, and deeply secretive relationship.
The stakes are real. We’re talking about a tiger who wants to go pro. In the hyper-masculine world of American football—even the anthropomorphic version—being gay is often seen as a career-killer. Kyell Gold captures that anxiety perfectly. The locker room isn't just a setting; it’s a cage. Dev is constantly performing a version of himself that he thinks his teammates will accept.
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Why Out of Position Kyell Gold Became a Fandom Staple
It’s the nuance. Honestly, most romance novels give you a "happily ever after" by chapter twenty and call it a day. Gold doesn't do that. He makes Dev and Lee fight. They argue about politics, they argue about Lee's activism versus Dev's need for secrecy, and they struggle with the power dynamics of their own bodies.
- Perspective Swaps: The book alternates between Dev’s and Lee’s points of view. It’s jarring but effective. You get Dev’s "guy-guy" internal monologue—short sentences, lots of sports metaphors, and a general lack of emotional vocabulary. Then you switch to Lee, who is analytical, sharp, and frustrated.
- The World Building: It’s called the "Forester Universe." It’s basically our world but everyone is an animal. Gold uses this to touch on things like "species-ism" which acts as a proxy for race or class, but the core focus is always on the gay experience.
- Authenticity: Even if you hate football, the play-by-plays are intense. Gold clearly knows the game. He uses the mechanics of being "out of position" on the field as a metaphor for Dev’s life. If you aren't where you're supposed to be, the whole defense crumbles.
The Full Series Arc
If you think it ends with the first book, you’re missing the best parts. The series follows these two for over a decade of their lives. It’s rare to see a romance series commit to the "after" of the happily-ever-after.
- Out of Position (2009): The college years. The secret. The outing.
- Isolation Play (2011): Dev goes pro. The pressure of the NFL-equivalent world (the UFL) and the reality of being an "out" athlete.
- Divisions (2013): Dealing with fame, family drama, and the strain of long-distance.
- Uncovered (2014): A shift in focus but still building that world.
- Over Time (2016): Facing the end of a professional career. What happens when the thing that defined you (football) is gone?
- Titles (2019): The finale. It wraps up the legacy of Dev and Lee in a way that feels earned.
There are also spinoffs like Tales of the Firebirds and Ty Game, which follow side characters like Ty Nakamura. But Dev and Lee are the heart of it all.
Understanding the Impact on Furry Literature
Before this series, a lot of furry fiction was relegated to short stories in zines or very niche self-published ebooks. Out of Position Kyell Gold changed the business model. It won multiple Ursa Major Awards (the fandom's equivalent of the Oscars) and proved that there was a massive market for high-quality, long-form novels.
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It also didn't shy away from the "heat" factor. It’s an adult book. The sex scenes are frequent and explicit, but they actually serve the plot. They show the evolving intimacy and the moments where the characters can finally stop performing for the world and just be themselves.
The "Nativist" plotline in the later books also mirrored real-world political shifts. Seeing how Lee, the activist, and Dev, the celebrity, handled rising tensions in their society added a layer of "prestige drama" that you just don't find in standard romance.
Common Misconceptions
People think you have to be a "furry" to get it. You don't. At its core, it’s a story about a guy who is scared of losing his dream because of who he loves. That’s universal.
Another mistake? Thinking it’s a light read. It’s heavy. There are scenes involving homophobic violence (the Brian storyline in the first book) that are genuinely difficult to read. It doesn't sugarcoat the reality of being a pioneer in a hostile environment.
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How to Approach the Series Today
If you’re looking to dive in, start at the beginning. Don't skip to the "pro football" years. The foundation of their relationship is built on the messy, impulsive mistakes they make at Forester University.
Practical Steps for New Readers:
- Check the Artist: The covers and interior art are by Blotch. They are legendary in the community for a reason. Pay attention to how the characters' designs evolve as they age through the series.
- Look for the "Forester" Connections: Gold has written other books like Waterways and Green Fairy that take place in the same world. You’ll see cameos and references that make the world feel lived-in.
- Audiobooks are an option: There are high-quality narrations available if you prefer listening to 15-hour sports dramas while you're at the gym.
The legacy of Dev and Lee isn't just about representation. It’s about the fact that Kyell Gold took a tiger and a fox and made them feel more human than most characters in "mainstream" literature. It's a series about the courage it takes to be exactly who you are, even when the whole stadium is watching.
To get the most out of the experience, read the books in their original publication order. Start with the 2009 edition of Out of Position and follow the characters through their professional journey. Pay close attention to the shifting narrative voice between Dev and Lee, as it provides the most honest look at the internal friction of their relationship. Keep an eye out for the side stories in Tales of the Firebirds to see how the world reacts to Dev's presence from an outside perspective.