- [<] Status Log - created:: 2022-03-23 - status-updated:: 2022-03-23 - status-updated:: 2022-11-14 updated metadata - status:: seedling - type:: review - [S] Marketing - purpose:: I was originally going to write this for [[Scott Alexander]] book review contest 2022, but honestly, I'm tired. - desc:: - connections:: One of the most common criticisms I hear about the works of L. E. Modesitt is that all of his books start to sound the same. He's [addressed that criticism](https://www.lemodesittjr.com/2011/10/04/the-same-book-and-lots-of-spoilers/), pointing out the diversity of his protagonists and universes, but the fact is that after 75 novels, some themes are going to start to emerge. Modesitt's authorial voice is sometimes not terribly different from his blog posts, because his political perspectives and philosophies infuse his work. _Isolate_, book one of The Grand Illusion series, feels like a L. E. Modesitt book of a certain type; there's a man with some exceptional skills and combat experience, who is confronted with a complicated political situation that must be solved through bureaucratic maneuvering but is still threatened with violence. In tone, it's very similar to books like _Gravity Dreams_ and _The Octagonal Raven_, with one critical difference: unlike the protagonist of _The Octagonal Raven,_ Dekkard does not particularly drive the plot. Since Dekkard is basically the aide of a powerful man whose most compelling dilemma is whether to support the guy he started the book a supporter of, it's impossible to confuse _Isolate_ with books like those comprising _The Spellsong Cycle,_ which are fantasy stories featuring a woman who must use magic to defeat her enemies in battle. It's a gaslap fantasy, so cravats aren't entirely out of place — but cravats are the sort of fashion accessory I've only ever seen mentioned by two authors: Modesitt & Gail Carriger, author of a popular steampunk werewolf romance series. I was surprised that none of the characters wore singlesuits; _Isolate_ felt like the sort of Modesitt book where the protagonist should be wearing a singlesuit on his way to a situation he expects to get bloody.