Foundlings

By: Richard Levesque

Narrated by: Steven Jay Cohen

Length: 11 hrs and 55 mins

Publisher's Summary

Derek Chandler had it all - the education, the promising future, the beautiful wife - but a tragic accident changed everything, and his life now stands in ruins. Haunted by the ghosts of what might have been, Derek tries to lose himself in his new job, but what begins as a minor academic mystery soon unravels, leaving him with the burden of a second truncated life: that of long-vanished science-fiction writer Kichiro Nakamura. 

Convinced that finding Kichiro is somehow the key to finding his own peace, Derek is drawn into a frantic search of modern and post-war Los Angeles as he tries to reconstruct the shattered kaleidoscope of American and Japanese cultures. And the key to everything just might be the beautiful - and very suspicious - tattoo artist Yuki Kamikaze.

©2015 Richard Levesque (P)2018 Richard Levesque

Wonderful mystery about a rarely mentioned time

This is the first book I’ve read/listened to by this author and I would listen to another. I really enjoyed it. This book has historical facts, a full circle mystery, and touched on many prejudices that are relevant today- not only within the Japanese people. The book’s chapters flip back and forth between the current day (with Derek and his companions), and the past (with the life of Kichiro x starting when he’s a young boy, up until his death). I like the way we gain insight into the true story of Kichiro and that we are privy to answers Derek is not.

After loosing his wife in a tragic accident, Derek moves and gets a new job. In his new office he finds a sci-fi manuscript written by an unknown author. Initially, he is interested in the mystery as a means of distraction, but soon he becomes enthralled with finding the answers. With the help of a couple people, he starts to find clues into the life of Kichiro. Derek’s not the only one with an interest in finding out the truth.

This is the first book I’ve listened to by this narrator ( Steven Jay Cohen ) and I would gladly listen to another. I’m unaware of the correct pronunciation of Japanese words, but it sounds like the narrator does. He does very well with all the voices- from young to elderly females and young boys to adults. I could really imagine the characters from the narrator’s renditions. Listening to him, it’s easy to forget you’re listening to a book being read to you.

There are no explicit sex scenes, excessive violence or swearing.

I was given this free review copy audiobook at my request and voluntarily left this unbiased review.
Please feel free to comment on whether you found my review helpful.

Captivating to the very end

I read about 200 books a year and listen to maybe 25. Foundlings was smooth writing from beginning to end. The characters developed nicely, the transitions from the present to the 1940's flowed easily and I was even surprised by events in the story a few times. I mention this because there are some predictable spots in the story, but I always find some since I read so much, so it might just be me. I only listen to audiobooks in the car and found myself sitting in the driveway for just "a few more minutes" of listening. As the narrator, Steven Jay Cohen nails it. A flawless performance, and good "voices". I have long enjoyed his work and just looked on Audible to see if there were other books by Levesque narrated by Cohen. Oh happy day, the answer is yes.

Survival, Twists, Emotional - Captivating

A captivating story of two men; two lifetimes apart and both seeking peace in the world they live in. Derek Chandler is trying to recover from losing his wife to a tragic accident; he makes a discovery that sets him on a journey where he hopes he will find peace. Koichiro Nakamura is trying to find his own peace during World War II while his family is trapped in the internment camps in the US and he is fighting against the Emperor of Japan.

Chandler’s discoveries of Nakamura’s writings set him on a path to discover who this man was and what happened to him. In his research, Chandler stumbles across the truth and it is not what he expected!

Richard Levesque has written a mystery based around historical events with a shocking twist! I was captivated by the story immediately and found opportunities to hear it. The final twist left me wide-eyed and amazed. Levesque has a way of capturing his audience and holding them from beginning to end.

Steven Jay Cohen performed the book perfectly. He captured the essence of each character and made them real. There were times I felt Cohen was Chandler or Nakamura. He has a smooth voice with the correct amount of inflection.

The audio quality and production of this book were clear and without issue.

Audiobook was provided for review by the author/narrator/publisher.
Please find this complete review and many others at my review blog.
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WOW

Foundlings
: Richard Levesque

This is part historical fiction, part mystery/suspense, and hints of romance. The story line moved back and forth thru time without being time travel. This is a listen that keeps the listener on the edge waiting to see what what would happen next. The characters were interesting and the more you get to know them the more you want to know. This had enough twists to an unexpected ending.



The narration was well done. The characters were well portrayed. Steven Jay Cohen voiced a fine story.



I was given this free review copy audiobook at my request and have voluntarily left this review.

Absorbing Audible Original

Engrossing story of a young man's life struggles expoposing a cringable, historical time in our nation's history.

Not my go to genre but enjoyable none the less

I was given this free review copy audiobook at my request and have voluntarily left this review.

TLDR; Solving the mystery of an American white man's life, who was raised by a Japanese family during WW2. It's a great mystery story, with an edge of paranormal.

So this isn't one of my go-to genres, so I'm not well versed in the tropes of the genre. That said I really enjoyed this, there's just enough of a paranormal edge that it could have been a recounting of the story from memory. I don't have a lot of literature to compare this to, I'd call it close to a murder mystery, but without a murder.

Overall, this was a great listen, really enjoyed the setting and the perspective game me some interesting thoughts on how the US handles itself at times of war.

Slow start but worth it

Before I begin, I have been given their book free of charge in exchange for an honest review, for anyone that doubts I am free to give an unbiased review, find Rouge in the book store and read my review of it. I found the book to be pretty bad and gave a review that reflected as much. Now I have to say the author is pretty dang amazing, the stories he comes up with are incredible and so unique by them selves, and I'll be damned if you don't see how he can possibly have anything left to tell when he finds a way to surprise you. The narrator is pretty good especially with first person narratives, this one had several points of view and it got a little sloppy, I honestly think it's that he seems new to the industry and just needs time to find the right ques. all in all I think it's a great work and well worth your credit.

Story is interesting. Performance good

Performance was good. Story was interesting. Very much what I expect and enjoy from Richard Levesque.

Excellent!

Wonderful book and highly recommended! So much more than I expected. Great storyline and very good characters. On top of that, the narration was also very good. I was given this free review copy audiobook at my request and have voluntarily left this review.

amazing storyline

Derek Chandler had it all - the education, the promising future, the beautiful wife - but a tragic accident changed everything, and his life now stands in ruins. Haunted by the ghosts of what might have been,
amazing storyline