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Foundling Fathers
When a radical think tank clones America’s founding fathers, The Boys from Brazil meets the bicentennial in this ingeniously satirical mashup of U.S. history, cloning, and technocracy gone terribly wrong.
The trouble starts when a curious teenager, Benjamin, finds an iPhone in his privy. The problem is, it’s supposed to be 1750.
Ben takes his discovery to his brothers—Thomas, John, and George. The boys have been raised in isolation on an island plantation by a firm but kind woman, Mary Libertas. All four of them chafe at Mary’s restrictions upon them—especially Thomas, who has impregnated yet another servant.
Meanwhile, their de facto father figure, Jeff Hancock, complains to the shadowy Antediluvian Society that it is past the time to explain to the boys where they come from and what they must do: Run America the way it used to be run.
In this more-than-slightly-absurdist novella, Philip K. Dick Award–winning author Meg Elison (Find Layla) skewers those looking to an idyllic past to solve the problems they continue to create.
The trouble starts when a curious teenager, Benjamin, finds an iPhone in his privy. The problem is, it’s supposed to be 1750.
Ben takes his discovery to his brothers—Thomas, John, and George. The boys have been raised in isolation on an island plantation by a firm but kind woman, Mary Libertas. All four of them chafe at Mary’s restrictions upon them—especially Thomas, who has impregnated yet another servant.
Meanwhile, their de facto father figure, Jeff Hancock, complains to the shadowy Antediluvian Society that it is past the time to explain to the boys where they come from and what they must do: Run America the way it used to be run.
In this more-than-slightly-absurdist novella, Philip K. Dick Award–winning author Meg Elison (Find Layla) skewers those looking to an idyllic past to solve the problems they continue to create.
192 pages, Paperback
First published June 23, 2026
About the author
Meg Elison
48 books1,158 followersMeg Elison is a Hugo, Philip K. Dick and Locus award winning author, as well as a Nebula, Sturgeon, Eugie, and Otherwise awards finalist. A prolific short story writer and essayist, Elison has been published in Scientific American, McSweeney’s, Fantasy & Science Fiction, Fangoria, and Best American Science Fiction and Fantasy. Elison is a high school dropout and a graduate of UC Berkeley. She lives in the Berkshires.
megelison.com
megelison.com
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 58 reviews
December 7, 2025
This novella relies on an interesting idea. What would happen if right wing billionaires had access to cloning technology?
Meg Elison explores the extraordinary coming of age of the American founding fathers, brought back and raised on a lonely island. The whole plan? Help them take over the US and make America great again.
Armed with bright young minds and hungry for the truth, they learn that everything they have been taught about themselves was a lie destined to preserve their greatness.
Being born twice is not the same as coming back, though. Great men are also a product of their times... Even if the fairy godmother of genetics provided them with a good baseline, nothing tells us that their clones would be anything but mediocre.
I wish this book was longer. The exposition was really long, and it felt like the story was cut short when we could really have explored what those men could become in the modern world. I wish one of them, using nostalgia as leverage and his name as a brand, had accessed the presidency... Only to lead the country to a disaster.
Special effort was devoted to the style, which really feels like 18th of 19th century English. Reading SF that sounds like Thoreau was really fun.
Thank you NetGalley and Tachyon publishing for the ARC. Thank you Meg Elison as well.
Meg Elison explores the extraordinary coming of age of the American founding fathers, brought back and raised on a lonely island. The whole plan? Help them take over the US and make America great again.
Armed with bright young minds and hungry for the truth, they learn that everything they have been taught about themselves was a lie destined to preserve their greatness.
Being born twice is not the same as coming back, though. Great men are also a product of their times... Even if the fairy godmother of genetics provided them with a good baseline, nothing tells us that their clones would be anything but mediocre.
I wish this book was longer. The exposition was really long, and it felt like the story was cut short when we could really have explored what those men could become in the modern world. I wish one of them, using nostalgia as leverage and his name as a brand, had accessed the presidency... Only to lead the country to a disaster.
Special effort was devoted to the style, which really feels like 18th of 19th century English. Reading SF that sounds like Thoreau was really fun.
Thank you NetGalley and Tachyon publishing for the ARC. Thank you Meg Elison as well.
June 25, 2026
If given the means by science, how far would conservatives go to keep steering this country exactly the way they want to? Would they settle for cloning Ronald Reagan? Or would they want to go all the way back?
Foundling Fathers is an absurdist piece of speculative fiction that asks the question of if you clone some (not all) of our founding fathers, raise them to their majority in surroundings identical to those their primes were raised in, and then they find out their lives are complete lies…what happens then?
The answers aren’t pretty. Whenever people talk about “the good ol’ days”, or, “I wish we could go back to that time”, what they’re really longing for is the power structure at that time and how it made their lives easier. Nostalgia screws with your mind: it lets you remember the good as so very good but also fogs over all the bad just outside your purview. It’s what makes so many people want to only remember Thomas Jefferson as a great statesman and academic without remembering he was an unrepentant rapist and slaver. Or remember Ben Franklin as a great inventor and thinker without thinking of him as a slovenly, lecherous drunkard.
So it’s no wonder that nothing goes to plan in this story for anyone. No one gets the answers they want. No one’s plans go the way they wanted or needed them to. As always, the only way through is to adapt. 4⭐️
Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for access to this title.
Foundling Fathers is an absurdist piece of speculative fiction that asks the question of if you clone some (not all) of our founding fathers, raise them to their majority in surroundings identical to those their primes were raised in, and then they find out their lives are complete lies…what happens then?
The answers aren’t pretty. Whenever people talk about “the good ol’ days”, or, “I wish we could go back to that time”, what they’re really longing for is the power structure at that time and how it made their lives easier. Nostalgia screws with your mind: it lets you remember the good as so very good but also fogs over all the bad just outside your purview. It’s what makes so many people want to only remember Thomas Jefferson as a great statesman and academic without remembering he was an unrepentant rapist and slaver. Or remember Ben Franklin as a great inventor and thinker without thinking of him as a slovenly, lecherous drunkard.
So it’s no wonder that nothing goes to plan in this story for anyone. No one gets the answers they want. No one’s plans go the way they wanted or needed them to. As always, the only way through is to adapt. 4⭐️
Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for access to this title.
January 3, 2026
This is a fantastic, witty little novella that takes some arch conservative's ultimate wet dream (what if we could make little clones of the Founding Fathers and raise them according to the ideals of the original 1776 conditions, but make sure that they side with us, the modern day tech bro Republican party) and turns it into a perfect punk rebellion. Also, gives us the nightmares of a Thomas Jefferson being unleashed on dating apps. Ye gods and little fishes. Watching the boys unravel their situation and start to poke at the edges of their reality is fascinating, and there are a few moments where you will have to pause because you're laughing so hard at what has just been uttered by characters. Has a real "fuck you, I won't do what you tell me" vibe to it, and I'm looking forward to seeing how this hits when it lands next summer. This novella was one of my last and best reads of 2025.
Review of advance copy received from NetGalley
My thanks to NetGalley and Tachyon Publications for an advance copy of a novella that deals asks questions about are great people created and shaped by their pasts, or can they manipulated to fit a mythology, and what happens when the real world clashes with the reality they have grown up knowing, and a mother decides to let her children live.
American history has heroes and villains, even a creation tale as deep and rich as Norse and Greek mythology, a darkness vaster than the Cthullhu tales, and probably as fictional. The founding fathers walked on water, created a nation out of whole cloth, freed the Americas from oppression, and never owned slaves. Or abused the slaves they owned. And never fell out with their child. Except maybe John Adams, who well arrested people who spoke bad about him, but seemed to love his wife, though he did ignore her. We grew up on cherry trees, kites with lightening, writing Declarations, and well, John Adams defended the British troops at the Boston Massacre. They had feet not only of clay, something Americans don't want to think about. Exceptionalism is America's birthright. Many feel by letting more people in, by letting women vote, by letting minorities feel citizenship, that America has lost their way. The founding fathers wouldn't recognize this country they would say. Or maybe they would fit right in. Foundling Fathers by Meg Elison asks the question, what makes a leader, a thinker, a inventor, a John Adams, and how could technology make a new one today, and what happens when these ghosts of the past, find out that all they know is a lie.
Ben Franklin is just about to use his favorite privy when he finds a strange block, with a glassy surface on the window sill. Confused Franklin picks up the object, pushes a button, and finds a whole new world. Pictures of women not in frocks, but in outfits for frolicking. Weather, Instagram, and even more pictures of women. Ben brings this to his brothers, all who share different last names, but have grown up on an island hidden from the hated British, raised by their loving Mother, and teacher John Hancock. John Adams, Thomas Jefferson and the oldest George Washington, are first stunned by the device, but questions always thought about suddenly make sense. Devices flying through the sky. The boat they never meet bringing supplies. The slaves who care for them. These boys know something is up, but have no idea what, or why, or even who to trust. The four make a solid Declaration that they will get answers, and throw off the shackles of oppression.
A dark book, one I am sure a tech bro or two is trying to do. Probably with Ronald Reagan or something. I can easily see this happening. However it is a funny book, and one that asks a lot of questions. What makes a person become a Founding Father. Money, wealth and power, sure, but there are a lot of things here that make one question that. Questions that I think we never ask about the heroes we are supposed to love so much. For a novella this is a very complete story, though I do want more adventures of these four in modern America. What snuck up on me most was how I felt about the Mother character. One doesn't get much from her until near the end, in a scene that really hit me quite hard, and left me quite moved.
An interesting book about character, cloning, and what people think about leadership, and of course control. A funny book, with a lot of dark humor and lots of hidden things that only occur later. I really enjoy this book, and would like to see more about these characters, and read more by Meg Elison.
American history has heroes and villains, even a creation tale as deep and rich as Norse and Greek mythology, a darkness vaster than the Cthullhu tales, and probably as fictional. The founding fathers walked on water, created a nation out of whole cloth, freed the Americas from oppression, and never owned slaves. Or abused the slaves they owned. And never fell out with their child. Except maybe John Adams, who well arrested people who spoke bad about him, but seemed to love his wife, though he did ignore her. We grew up on cherry trees, kites with lightening, writing Declarations, and well, John Adams defended the British troops at the Boston Massacre. They had feet not only of clay, something Americans don't want to think about. Exceptionalism is America's birthright. Many feel by letting more people in, by letting women vote, by letting minorities feel citizenship, that America has lost their way. The founding fathers wouldn't recognize this country they would say. Or maybe they would fit right in. Foundling Fathers by Meg Elison asks the question, what makes a leader, a thinker, a inventor, a John Adams, and how could technology make a new one today, and what happens when these ghosts of the past, find out that all they know is a lie.
Ben Franklin is just about to use his favorite privy when he finds a strange block, with a glassy surface on the window sill. Confused Franklin picks up the object, pushes a button, and finds a whole new world. Pictures of women not in frocks, but in outfits for frolicking. Weather, Instagram, and even more pictures of women. Ben brings this to his brothers, all who share different last names, but have grown up on an island hidden from the hated British, raised by their loving Mother, and teacher John Hancock. John Adams, Thomas Jefferson and the oldest George Washington, are first stunned by the device, but questions always thought about suddenly make sense. Devices flying through the sky. The boat they never meet bringing supplies. The slaves who care for them. These boys know something is up, but have no idea what, or why, or even who to trust. The four make a solid Declaration that they will get answers, and throw off the shackles of oppression.
A dark book, one I am sure a tech bro or two is trying to do. Probably with Ronald Reagan or something. I can easily see this happening. However it is a funny book, and one that asks a lot of questions. What makes a person become a Founding Father. Money, wealth and power, sure, but there are a lot of things here that make one question that. Questions that I think we never ask about the heroes we are supposed to love so much. For a novella this is a very complete story, though I do want more adventures of these four in modern America. What snuck up on me most was how I felt about the Mother character. One doesn't get much from her until near the end, in a scene that really hit me quite hard, and left me quite moved.
An interesting book about character, cloning, and what people think about leadership, and of course control. A funny book, with a lot of dark humor and lots of hidden things that only occur later. I really enjoy this book, and would like to see more about these characters, and read more by Meg Elison.
Review of advance copy received from NetGalley
There is much fiction currently being written, both inside the sff fields and outside, that are in conversation with our current political situation. Thomas Ha's "In My Country", a Hugo finalist for Best Short Story comes immediately to mind (largely because I'm currently reading it), and Meg Elison's upcoming novella from Tachyon Publications, "Foundling Fathers" is another. As I fished around for how to start this review, several ways came to mind. What I settled upon, however, is what I believe is quite possibly the best first line of any novella (or maybe any other piece of fiction) I've ever read:
"It took Benjamin Franklin twenty-seven minutes and fourteen seconds to discover there was pornography on the internet."
I don't know what a sentence like that says about me - that it drew me into the book completely and utterly - but I feel that if that doesn't draw in the reader, well, I'm sure there's something else that would, but I find it difficult to believe.
The year, as far as Ben Franklin knows, is 1750. What he has discovered is a smartphone that someone left in a "privy". Like any intelligent and curious teenage boy, he started poking around, and well, you know. He immediately takes the device to his brothers: Tom, John, and George (who of course are Jefferson, Adams, and Washington). This is one more piece of evidence that not all is what it seems to be. What are those things that fly in the sky? Why do they never see the boat that comes to bring them supplies? Why does their calendar not match up with what they learn from the device about Ptolemy (among other things)?
Let's back up a bit. The boys, their "parents" Jeff Hancock and Mary Libertas, and a bunch of "slaves" there to serve their every need, are part of an elaborate scheme by the Antediluvian Society, a group of right wing billionaires who (and where have you heard this before?) want to make America what it was, bring it back to the glory of yesteryear. The boys are being brought up with Christian values (as the society sees them), manners, and other behaviors of 1750. They are living on an island in isolation so they don't know anything about the outside "real world". The Saratoga plan (there's always a plan, and like most plans, this one does not survive contact with the enemy), is to introduce the clones (I mean, did I have to tell you they were clones, and thus this novella becomes science fiction?) to society and return America to its former (in the society's eyes) glory.
Of course, the boys aren't supposed to know it's 2026 and not 1750, but they were raised to be as intelligent as the originals, and once they found the smartphone they started putting two and two together and really did get four and demanded to know what was really going on and what their part is in the whole thing.
As I finished the book, I didn't know what to think of it. But the more I thought about it, the better it got. The fact that the right wing cabal's plan was going awry feels like it parallels what is going on in the real world in the U.S. today, and it really is sweet and delicious. To be fair, we don't know how things really end up in the novella, just as we don't know how things are going to end up in the real world we are living in today. It's not necessarily easy to predict where we're going to end up in our timeline, and so Elison didn't predict where the Fab Four (John, Ben, Tom, and George), as I've come to think about them, are going to end up. This is a terrific read, and one that I heartily recommend. Just don't leave your cellphone laying around where people who aren't supposed to see it will find it. You never know what will happen.
"It took Benjamin Franklin twenty-seven minutes and fourteen seconds to discover there was pornography on the internet."
I don't know what a sentence like that says about me - that it drew me into the book completely and utterly - but I feel that if that doesn't draw in the reader, well, I'm sure there's something else that would, but I find it difficult to believe.
The year, as far as Ben Franklin knows, is 1750. What he has discovered is a smartphone that someone left in a "privy". Like any intelligent and curious teenage boy, he started poking around, and well, you know. He immediately takes the device to his brothers: Tom, John, and George (who of course are Jefferson, Adams, and Washington). This is one more piece of evidence that not all is what it seems to be. What are those things that fly in the sky? Why do they never see the boat that comes to bring them supplies? Why does their calendar not match up with what they learn from the device about Ptolemy (among other things)?
Let's back up a bit. The boys, their "parents" Jeff Hancock and Mary Libertas, and a bunch of "slaves" there to serve their every need, are part of an elaborate scheme by the Antediluvian Society, a group of right wing billionaires who (and where have you heard this before?) want to make America what it was, bring it back to the glory of yesteryear. The boys are being brought up with Christian values (as the society sees them), manners, and other behaviors of 1750. They are living on an island in isolation so they don't know anything about the outside "real world". The Saratoga plan (there's always a plan, and like most plans, this one does not survive contact with the enemy), is to introduce the clones (I mean, did I have to tell you they were clones, and thus this novella becomes science fiction?) to society and return America to its former (in the society's eyes) glory.
Of course, the boys aren't supposed to know it's 2026 and not 1750, but they were raised to be as intelligent as the originals, and once they found the smartphone they started putting two and two together and really did get four and demanded to know what was really going on and what their part is in the whole thing.
As I finished the book, I didn't know what to think of it. But the more I thought about it, the better it got. The fact that the right wing cabal's plan was going awry feels like it parallels what is going on in the real world in the U.S. today, and it really is sweet and delicious. To be fair, we don't know how things really end up in the novella, just as we don't know how things are going to end up in the real world we are living in today. It's not necessarily easy to predict where we're going to end up in our timeline, and so Elison didn't predict where the Fab Four (John, Ben, Tom, and George), as I've come to think about them, are going to end up. This is a terrific read, and one that I heartily recommend. Just don't leave your cellphone laying around where people who aren't supposed to see it will find it. You never know what will happen.
Review of advance copy received from NetGalley
This novella explores a fascinating question, what if cloning technology allowed us to bring back historical figures like the founding fathers? And it pairs that with the reality of modern times and how things would most likely go down, which is to say terribly and problematic. Right wing billionaires trying to bring back the founding fathers for their own usage is a very fitting occurrence, and this book feels realistic despite being science fiction.
This novella follows four young men, George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, Benjamin Franklin, and John Adams. They are being raised on an island as though it is 1750, despite it actually being 2026. However, they are starting to realize that it may not in fact be 1750. A large clue to this is the phone that Franklin finds left behind in the bathroom, giving the wonderful opening line: “It took Benjamin Franklin twenty-seven minutes and fourteen seconds to discover there was pornography on the internet”. If that doesn’t hook you in, I don’t know what will!
The story is told in a way that feels authentic to teenage boys as well as them being raised in a historical fashion. The overall tone and wording is distinctive as being older English in a way that ensures the reader is kept in the story, but not in a way that is overly difficult to understand and thus distracting. I really appreciated how the historical elements were shown and the reactions of the boys to various modern technologies from their outdated lens was highly entertaining. However they are still teenage boys having teenage boy thoughts, adding to the commentary that just because they are clones does not mean they will serve the role being hoped for them
Ultimately, the boys are discovering that the world they have been raised in is not how the rest of the world is and there are expectations set upon their existence due to who they are supposed to be. This story is an excellent satire on billionaires trying anything to hold power and restore the world to what they assume would be the ideal.
Owing to the novella format, this book is quite short and I feel like a lot of elements of the plot could have been further explored, however the overall message of the story is perfectly conveyed. I would have loved to know more about various things that occur, but this book did not leave me needing more because it wrapped up everything quite well. I loved how quick this was to read and I finished it easily as an evening read!
I really enjoyed this book, it was a fun science fiction/speculative fiction read with a heavy dose of satire in the best way! I would recommend this book to fans of what if questions, and humor regarding American history. However, as a self proclaimed hater of history classes throughout my life (because I’m bad at them), this was a wonderful read that did not bring out my hatred. This book is out June 23, 2026!
Thank you to Netgalley, Tachyon Publishing, and Meg Elison for the opportunity to read an eARC of this book!
This novella follows four young men, George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, Benjamin Franklin, and John Adams. They are being raised on an island as though it is 1750, despite it actually being 2026. However, they are starting to realize that it may not in fact be 1750. A large clue to this is the phone that Franklin finds left behind in the bathroom, giving the wonderful opening line: “It took Benjamin Franklin twenty-seven minutes and fourteen seconds to discover there was pornography on the internet”. If that doesn’t hook you in, I don’t know what will!
The story is told in a way that feels authentic to teenage boys as well as them being raised in a historical fashion. The overall tone and wording is distinctive as being older English in a way that ensures the reader is kept in the story, but not in a way that is overly difficult to understand and thus distracting. I really appreciated how the historical elements were shown and the reactions of the boys to various modern technologies from their outdated lens was highly entertaining. However they are still teenage boys having teenage boy thoughts, adding to the commentary that just because they are clones does not mean they will serve the role being hoped for them
Ultimately, the boys are discovering that the world they have been raised in is not how the rest of the world is and there are expectations set upon their existence due to who they are supposed to be. This story is an excellent satire on billionaires trying anything to hold power and restore the world to what they assume would be the ideal.
Owing to the novella format, this book is quite short and I feel like a lot of elements of the plot could have been further explored, however the overall message of the story is perfectly conveyed. I would have loved to know more about various things that occur, but this book did not leave me needing more because it wrapped up everything quite well. I loved how quick this was to read and I finished it easily as an evening read!
I really enjoyed this book, it was a fun science fiction/speculative fiction read with a heavy dose of satire in the best way! I would recommend this book to fans of what if questions, and humor regarding American history. However, as a self proclaimed hater of history classes throughout my life (because I’m bad at them), this was a wonderful read that did not bring out my hatred. This book is out June 23, 2026!
Thank you to Netgalley, Tachyon Publishing, and Meg Elison for the opportunity to read an eARC of this book!
Review of advance copy received from Publisher
Imagine if a group of right-wing misogynists with billions more money than sense decided that what they needed was a group of cloned founding fathers to assume the leadership of America and take it back to the 18th century values that made it great. The young brothers Tom Jefferson, Ben Franklin, John Adams, and George Washington have been growing up on an isolated island off the Virigina coast in what they believe to be the 1700s. The only adults they know are their mother, their teacher, and servants all of whom are really contracted employees who have sustained this artificial setting according to a plan. Politics and beliefs are not genetically determined, although personality characteristics may be, and the intelligent young men are finding discrepancies and suspecting something is not right about their world and the engineered book-teaching they have been spoon-fed. Then Ben finds a smartphone in the privy, and all hell breaks loose. “It took Benjamin Franklin twenty-seven minutes and fourteen seconds to discover there was pornography on the internet.”
The concept is fantastically original, with great comic contrasts as the boys scheme and confront authority, But then they are abruptly epiloged into modern society. The only way this truncation of the story arc makes sense to me is if the novella is the first of several that make up one complete novel. I’m looking forward to the rest of it. Meanwhile, it might be best to wait for the publication of more story before reading this set-up novella.
Meg Elison made it into the big time when her debut novel The Book of the Unnamed Midwife won the Philip K Dick Award for US paperback original publication in 2015. Since then, she has written sequel novels for that, a striking collection Big Girl, and numerous shorter works. Thank you to Tachyon Publications for an Advance Review Copy of The Foundling Fathers in epub format, in exchange for an honest review on social media platforms and on my book review blog. This new title is scheduled for release on 23 June 2026.
The concept is fantastically original, with great comic contrasts as the boys scheme and confront authority, But then they are abruptly epiloged into modern society. The only way this truncation of the story arc makes sense to me is if the novella is the first of several that make up one complete novel. I’m looking forward to the rest of it. Meanwhile, it might be best to wait for the publication of more story before reading this set-up novella.
Meg Elison made it into the big time when her debut novel The Book of the Unnamed Midwife won the Philip K Dick Award for US paperback original publication in 2015. Since then, she has written sequel novels for that, a striking collection Big Girl, and numerous shorter works. Thank you to Tachyon Publications for an Advance Review Copy of The Foundling Fathers in epub format, in exchange for an honest review on social media platforms and on my book review blog. This new title is scheduled for release on 23 June 2026.
Review of advance copy received from Netgalley
A huge thank you to Tachyon for an advance copy of Meg Elison's Foundling Fathers!
I found this book while digging through spec-fic publishers and the premise just looked like too much fun to pass up. Finding out the author, Meg Elison, is from the Berkshires (right in my backyard) pretty much sealed the deal. But then I checked out the press kit and author’s video - which got an actual lol - and I was officially excited.
The book delivers in a big way. The writing is super witty, and I adored the contrast between the 18th-century period English and the bluntness of modern speech. “What is this before me?” to “John Hancock had fucking had it" is peak comedic timing for me. I found myself laughing out loud at the start of nearly every chapter.
By the middle of the book, I was already picturing this on-screen. There are some abrupt transitions between characters and timelines, but if you view it through a cinematic lens - thinking of them as hard cuts, really - the pacing makes a lot of sense, especially when all four boys are speaking concurrently.
My only real gripe is that I wanted more. The “explosive” events leading to the boys' escape felt a bit rushed, and I think there was a lot of tension there that could have been fleshed out further. I also wished Jefferson had faced some actual consequences for his inferred sexual assaults, but the book stays true to the reality that, in his life, he never really did. All that said, of course I want more. It’s a phenomenally-written novella, and wanting more of a world is a pretty good sign of a successful story.
I really like when an absurd concept is taken seriously. We get that here. Elison gets the temperaments of these guys right - they are flawed people in a flawed system overseen by flawed men. The ending, where they finally meet the person who "made" them, is handled perfectly. I usually hate using the word "masterful," but for that specific scene, I can't think of a better way to describe it. Elison captures the boy’s profound disappointment wonderfully - a sentiment she echoes in her afterword.
It’s a huge “Mission: Accomplished” for Meg Elison and Foundling Fathers. Like an actual “Mission: Accomplished,” not a USS Abraham Lincoln “Mission: Accomplished.” We’re lucky to be along for the ride.
Keep an eye out for this one from Tachyon in June.
I found this book while digging through spec-fic publishers and the premise just looked like too much fun to pass up. Finding out the author, Meg Elison, is from the Berkshires (right in my backyard) pretty much sealed the deal. But then I checked out the press kit and author’s video - which got an actual lol - and I was officially excited.
The book delivers in a big way. The writing is super witty, and I adored the contrast between the 18th-century period English and the bluntness of modern speech. “What is this before me?” to “John Hancock had fucking had it" is peak comedic timing for me. I found myself laughing out loud at the start of nearly every chapter.
By the middle of the book, I was already picturing this on-screen. There are some abrupt transitions between characters and timelines, but if you view it through a cinematic lens - thinking of them as hard cuts, really - the pacing makes a lot of sense, especially when all four boys are speaking concurrently.
My only real gripe is that I wanted more. The “explosive” events leading to the boys' escape felt a bit rushed, and I think there was a lot of tension there that could have been fleshed out further. I also wished Jefferson had faced some actual consequences for his inferred sexual assaults, but the book stays true to the reality that, in his life, he never really did. All that said, of course I want more. It’s a phenomenally-written novella, and wanting more of a world is a pretty good sign of a successful story.
I really like when an absurd concept is taken seriously. We get that here. Elison gets the temperaments of these guys right - they are flawed people in a flawed system overseen by flawed men. The ending, where they finally meet the person who "made" them, is handled perfectly. I usually hate using the word "masterful," but for that specific scene, I can't think of a better way to describe it. Elison captures the boy’s profound disappointment wonderfully - a sentiment she echoes in her afterword.
It’s a huge “Mission: Accomplished” for Meg Elison and Foundling Fathers. Like an actual “Mission: Accomplished,” not a USS Abraham Lincoln “Mission: Accomplished.” We’re lucky to be along for the ride.
Keep an eye out for this one from Tachyon in June.
Review of advance copy received from NetGalley
Foundling Fathers by Meg Elison - ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Thank you so much to NetGalley and Tachyon Publications for this eARC in exchange for my honest review 🫶
First things first— I absolutely FLEW through this! I had such a blast with this book, finished it in just under an hour!
The premise is honestly fascinating (and, I will admit, not too far fetched in our current climate): deluded right-wing billionaires cloning the founding fathers and raising them as if it were the 1700s on a remote island in order to recapture the magic of those geniuses in present times. Elison does a fantastic job of fleshing out each of the boys, sprinkling in traits familiar to the original Founding Fathers while also giving them voices unique to these brothers raised by a single mother— a delightfully accurate glimpse into life as a sibling.
This novella follows four young men, George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, Benjamin Franklin, and John Adams. They are being raised on an island as though it is 1750, despite it actually being 2026. However, they are starting to realize that it may not in fact be 1750. A large clue to this is the phone that Franklin finds left behind in the bathroom, giving the wonderful opening line: “It took Benjamin Franklin twenty-seven minutes and fourteen seconds to discover there was pornography on the internet”. If that doesn’t hook you in, I don’t know what will!
Things take a sharp turn when the boys try to confront their mother about their discovery— the story turned fairly dark fairly quickly, but it was done almost seamlessly, with the grief and disbelief and innocence lost being almost tangible.
The way Mary— the woman given the role of mother to the Foundling Fathers— code-switches from Revolutionary-era English to modern when she isn’t around the boys is staggeringly well-written, as are Ben, Thomas, George, and John’s reactions to various modern technologies through their outdated lenses. While they may be (clones of) Founding Fathers, they are still very much teenage boys, and that comes through beautifully.
This story is a fun science fiction/speculative fiction read with a heavy dose of satire— particularly regarding billionaires trying anything to hold power and restore the world to what they assume would be the ideal— and a delightful 250th birthday gift to America. Highly highly recommend!
Thank you so much to NetGalley and Tachyon Publications for this eARC in exchange for my honest review 🫶
First things first— I absolutely FLEW through this! I had such a blast with this book, finished it in just under an hour!
The premise is honestly fascinating (and, I will admit, not too far fetched in our current climate): deluded right-wing billionaires cloning the founding fathers and raising them as if it were the 1700s on a remote island in order to recapture the magic of those geniuses in present times. Elison does a fantastic job of fleshing out each of the boys, sprinkling in traits familiar to the original Founding Fathers while also giving them voices unique to these brothers raised by a single mother— a delightfully accurate glimpse into life as a sibling.
This novella follows four young men, George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, Benjamin Franklin, and John Adams. They are being raised on an island as though it is 1750, despite it actually being 2026. However, they are starting to realize that it may not in fact be 1750. A large clue to this is the phone that Franklin finds left behind in the bathroom, giving the wonderful opening line: “It took Benjamin Franklin twenty-seven minutes and fourteen seconds to discover there was pornography on the internet”. If that doesn’t hook you in, I don’t know what will!
Things take a sharp turn when the boys try to confront their mother about their discovery— the story turned fairly dark fairly quickly, but it was done almost seamlessly, with the grief and disbelief and innocence lost being almost tangible.
The way Mary— the woman given the role of mother to the Foundling Fathers— code-switches from Revolutionary-era English to modern when she isn’t around the boys is staggeringly well-written, as are Ben, Thomas, George, and John’s reactions to various modern technologies through their outdated lenses. While they may be (clones of) Founding Fathers, they are still very much teenage boys, and that comes through beautifully.
This story is a fun science fiction/speculative fiction read with a heavy dose of satire— particularly regarding billionaires trying anything to hold power and restore the world to what they assume would be the ideal— and a delightful 250th birthday gift to America. Highly highly recommend!
July 1, 2026
The back cover gives away the plot premise, so I am not going to worry about that spoiler.
In the near future a bunch of really rich right-wing guys decide to clone the founding fathers, Thomas Jefferson, John Adams, Ben Franklin and George Washington. They raise them from birth on a deserted island off the coast of Virginia. They tell them that it is the 18th century. They give them an education of that time and teach them the speech and manners of those days. They hire a woman to be act as their "mother".
When they are young men, the whole thing falls apart. Their "mother" accidently losses her iPhone, and Ben Franklin discovers it.
There is a fun escape story. The creators of this mess try to control it. All four of the founding fathers go into different lives.
This is a concept book. It is better not to ask questions like, "how could rich smart people think this was a good idea? or 'how technically could you get cells bearing identical male and female DNA for all four of them? or "how could you think raising the four of them on an uninhabited island in a 250-year-old world, would prepare them to be effective right-wing leaders today?"
It is more fun to go along for the ride. Elison comes up with credible versions of what the four of them might be like in this bizarre setting. Franklin is smart and lazy. Adams is smart and quick to take offense. Jefferson is a genius and a womanizer. Washington is a rock of common sense. She has fun running them through mock versions of their lives. Washington leads them in battle. Franklin masters the technology. Jefferson discovers the true year from the night sky.
I enjoyed the story. It is fast paced and doesn't take itself too seriously. It skewers the mindless worship of the founding fathers by carrying it to its logic extreme, while at the same time showing that the four of them were substantial people.
In the near future a bunch of really rich right-wing guys decide to clone the founding fathers, Thomas Jefferson, John Adams, Ben Franklin and George Washington. They raise them from birth on a deserted island off the coast of Virginia. They tell them that it is the 18th century. They give them an education of that time and teach them the speech and manners of those days. They hire a woman to be act as their "mother".
When they are young men, the whole thing falls apart. Their "mother" accidently losses her iPhone, and Ben Franklin discovers it.
There is a fun escape story. The creators of this mess try to control it. All four of the founding fathers go into different lives.
This is a concept book. It is better not to ask questions like, "how could rich smart people think this was a good idea? or 'how technically could you get cells bearing identical male and female DNA for all four of them? or "how could you think raising the four of them on an uninhabited island in a 250-year-old world, would prepare them to be effective right-wing leaders today?"
It is more fun to go along for the ride. Elison comes up with credible versions of what the four of them might be like in this bizarre setting. Franklin is smart and lazy. Adams is smart and quick to take offense. Jefferson is a genius and a womanizer. Washington is a rock of common sense. She has fun running them through mock versions of their lives. Washington leads them in battle. Franklin masters the technology. Jefferson discovers the true year from the night sky.
I enjoyed the story. It is fast paced and doesn't take itself too seriously. It skewers the mindless worship of the founding fathers by carrying it to its logic extreme, while at the same time showing that the four of them were substantial people.
Review of advance copy received from NetGalley
What happens when eccentric billionaires have access to cloning and choose to recreate the myth of America's birth? Find out in Meg Ellison’s new political satire novella, Foundling Fathers.
Ellison has written a lovely, rainy Saturday summer read. Don’t take this book too seriously. The premise is meant to be ridiculous. We can laugh at the billionaires knowing they are not smart enough to realize their plan would never work in the long run.
This is not a laugh out loud read. You’ll likely give out gentle chuckles from time to time but a nice smile will be on your face the whole time. You will be gripped from the opening line. Elison tells you everything you need to know about the real Benjamin Franklin. If you’re also looking for subtle and then not so subtle references to Epstein, you’re in luck, they’re all over the place!
Ellison has chosen a spectacular cast for her story. Four founding fathers of whom lived exceptionally different lives, at times opposed each other. Their “mother”, a conservative conformist in her youth who carried these clones into the 21st century. Included are several side characters who are all definitely “straight” white men obsessed with “making America great again”.
With humor and unexpected twists you’ll be enthralled with Meg Elison’s new work and be hopeful she will continue to work in this sphere.
Nothing But The Good is a review page dedicated to positive forward reviews. Discussing what we enjoyed about reading. Thank you to Tachyon and NetGalley for this ARC. Goodreads for
Ellison has written a lovely, rainy Saturday summer read. Don’t take this book too seriously. The premise is meant to be ridiculous. We can laugh at the billionaires knowing they are not smart enough to realize their plan would never work in the long run.
This is not a laugh out loud read. You’ll likely give out gentle chuckles from time to time but a nice smile will be on your face the whole time. You will be gripped from the opening line. Elison tells you everything you need to know about the real Benjamin Franklin. If you’re also looking for subtle and then not so subtle references to Epstein, you’re in luck, they’re all over the place!
Ellison has chosen a spectacular cast for her story. Four founding fathers of whom lived exceptionally different lives, at times opposed each other. Their “mother”, a conservative conformist in her youth who carried these clones into the 21st century. Included are several side characters who are all definitely “straight” white men obsessed with “making America great again”.
With humor and unexpected twists you’ll be enthralled with Meg Elison’s new work and be hopeful she will continue to work in this sphere.
Nothing But The Good is a review page dedicated to positive forward reviews. Discussing what we enjoyed about reading. Thank you to Tachyon and NetGalley for this ARC. Goodreads for
Review of advance copy received from Netgalley
TL;DR: An interesting thought experiment
Source: NetGalley, thank you so much!
Plot: A goverment faction clones our founding fathers, what could go wrong?
Characters: These weren’t really the important part, it was more the idea.
Setting: Again, not important.
SciFi: We didn’t get much of that either?
Thoughts:
I’m not sure what to feel about this one besides “It’s something I read”. The thought experiment is interesting, and I feel like perhaps with a bit more exploration this could have been very fascinating. But as it was we got a very surface level look at the type of people who might/would do this. The disregard for selfhood, for being ones own person. The idea that just the genetics decides the person.
It’s a very simple idea with a simple execution. It’s short and to the point, so there isn’t a whole lot I can say about it. I will also add, the misogyny is strong and deeply built in. I full understand that it’s part of the villianizing of the people doing this that we’re supposed to buy into but it was uncomfortable. There was also some clear violence against immigrants so if you don’t want to read that, continue on.
Overall it was just… something I read? I can’t give you much more. If you’re a history buff I can see this being a fun experiment to explore but I’m not sure if it really served me in any way.
Source: NetGalley, thank you so much!
Plot: A goverment faction clones our founding fathers, what could go wrong?
Characters: These weren’t really the important part, it was more the idea.
Setting: Again, not important.
SciFi: We didn’t get much of that either?
Thoughts:
I’m not sure what to feel about this one besides “It’s something I read”. The thought experiment is interesting, and I feel like perhaps with a bit more exploration this could have been very fascinating. But as it was we got a very surface level look at the type of people who might/would do this. The disregard for selfhood, for being ones own person. The idea that just the genetics decides the person.
It’s a very simple idea with a simple execution. It’s short and to the point, so there isn’t a whole lot I can say about it. I will also add, the misogyny is strong and deeply built in. I full understand that it’s part of the villianizing of the people doing this that we’re supposed to buy into but it was uncomfortable. There was also some clear violence against immigrants so if you don’t want to read that, continue on.
Overall it was just… something I read? I can’t give you much more. If you’re a history buff I can see this being a fun experiment to explore but I’m not sure if it really served me in any way.
Review of advance copy received from NetGalley
Holy cow, this immediately started out so fun! I love a story that just throws you in with no preamble, sink or swim. I started at midnight and read straight through to the end, only stopping long enough to get a snack.
The boys are so well written, not just the way Elison worked the more familiar traits into their makeup, but the way they were so obviously close-knit young men with a single mother. The two that stood out the most were John Adams, the baby, and Thomas Jefferson, the steadfast mama's boy with a Madonna/whore complex. But Washington and Franklin were exactly the levelheaded antithesis you'd expect from a gaggle of brothers. Just a perfect glimpse into siblinghood.
The story turns dark so quickly as the boys start to confront their caregivers about their unreality. I wasn't prepared, but it was so gracefully segued. I don't know that I've ever had such an initially fun book shift so viscerally, with such definitive moments where innocence was lost. The grief and disbelief were tangible, and so eloquently written.
I don't have the words to properly convey how much I loved this book. It was funny, insightful, poignant; I don't often wish I could go back and read a book again for the first time, but if ever there was one to choose, for me it's this one.
Thank you to NetGalley, Tachyon Publications, and Meg Elison for the opportunity to read this in advance!
The boys are so well written, not just the way Elison worked the more familiar traits into their makeup, but the way they were so obviously close-knit young men with a single mother. The two that stood out the most were John Adams, the baby, and Thomas Jefferson, the steadfast mama's boy with a Madonna/whore complex. But Washington and Franklin were exactly the levelheaded antithesis you'd expect from a gaggle of brothers. Just a perfect glimpse into siblinghood.
The story turns dark so quickly as the boys start to confront their caregivers about their unreality. I wasn't prepared, but it was so gracefully segued. I don't know that I've ever had such an initially fun book shift so viscerally, with such definitive moments where innocence was lost. The grief and disbelief were tangible, and so eloquently written.
I don't have the words to properly convey how much I loved this book. It was funny, insightful, poignant; I don't often wish I could go back and read a book again for the first time, but if ever there was one to choose, for me it's this one.
Thank you to NetGalley, Tachyon Publications, and Meg Elison for the opportunity to read this in advance!
Review of advance copy received from Netgalley
What if radical billionaires had cloning technology and decided to bring back the Founding Fathers? The concept is intriguing, parts were hilarious (the boys discovering an iPhone and finding porn within a matter of minutes), the pace was nearly perfect, but this fell a little flat for me overall. I would have loved to see this do MORE. Yes, it's a novella, but I felt much could have been shortened or, honestly, taken out completely to make room for either more humor and/or concepts to create a bigger impact. I think it would have been hilarious to see the boys actually talk to the billionaires about what they specifically want for the country. Would have been even funnier if the boys replied with what would be considered more left-leaning retorts. I would have liked to see them interact with the modern world a little more too. This was an amazing concept, but I really needed and wanted more out of it! Not necessarily a full-length novel, but edited in a way that leaves more room for the important and intriguing parts.
Thank you to NetGalley and Tachyon Publications for an advanced copy. All thoughts and opinions are, as always, my very own. This one is set to release on June 23rd.
Thank you to NetGalley and Tachyon Publications for an advanced copy. All thoughts and opinions are, as always, my very own. This one is set to release on June 23rd.
Review of advance copy received from NetGalley
Meg Elison delivers a delightfully twisted satirical novella in Foundling Fathers. She starts with Benjamin Franklin finding a mobile phone and quite quickly working out how to navigate its mysteries. This Benjamin Franklin has three brothers – Samual Adams, Thomas Jefferson and George Washington – and the four were born and have been raised on a remote island. The finding of the phone sets off a chain of events that will reveal to them who they really are and what their purpose is.
Foundling Fathers plays with the idea that what right wing Americans really want is to go back to the past. And what better way to do this than to clone a group of the Founding Fathers and put them in place to “save America”. Only nothing is that simple and Elison has fun playing with what she considers to be the potential consequences of playing god in this way.
Foundling Fathers is an enjoyable thought experiment. In it Elison can consider the cause of “true believers” and but also what these great men of American history might actually think about the state of their Nation in the early 21st century. But more than all of that it has its tongue firmly in its cheek and provides an enjoyable way to deconstruct current US politics.
Foundling Fathers plays with the idea that what right wing Americans really want is to go back to the past. And what better way to do this than to clone a group of the Founding Fathers and put them in place to “save America”. Only nothing is that simple and Elison has fun playing with what she considers to be the potential consequences of playing god in this way.
Foundling Fathers is an enjoyable thought experiment. In it Elison can consider the cause of “true believers” and but also what these great men of American history might actually think about the state of their Nation in the early 21st century. But more than all of that it has its tongue firmly in its cheek and provides an enjoyable way to deconstruct current US politics.
Review of advance copy received from NetGalley
The premise of this book is that a group of American billionaires decide to lo0ok to the past for future leadership, and clone the founding fathers, based on the idea that the individuals were special and that this specialness can be used for current leadership. The part set on the Island (i.e. most of it) is clever, and particularly interesting since I just read Yesteryear. they are very different books, but both are playing with the idea of returning to a better past.
The move of the island is sudden and jarring and that's where the satire really kicks in. It's biting and insightful and I loved it.
I may have missed some references since I am not American, particularly in relation to the personalities of the boys / founding fathers. This book works on many levels and I really enjoyed reading it.
Thanks to NetGalley, Tachyon Publications and Meg Elison for the eARC in exchange for an honest review.
The move of the island is sudden and jarring and that's where the satire really kicks in. It's biting and insightful and I loved it.
I may have missed some references since I am not American, particularly in relation to the personalities of the boys / founding fathers. This book works on many levels and I really enjoyed reading it.
Thanks to NetGalley, Tachyon Publications and Meg Elison for the eARC in exchange for an honest review.
Review of advance copy received from Netgalley
* thanks to Tachyon Publications for the NetGalley review copy (pub date: June 2026)
Aaaagh. I LOVE the crazy concept of this book: Clones of Washington, Franklin, Jefferson, and Adams are being raised in isolation, in 1700s-style conditions, by a shady group of billionaires who want to use these dingdongs to lead the US and take it back to the way it was in the 1700s, when white men were men and everyone else was property (and where we seem to be headed even without the clones, thanks to the maga fuckwits).
ANYWAY, then Ben Franklin finds an iPhone in the privy and everything goes bananas. This should have been SO FUNNY, but the plot is way too jumpy and the timeline is way too compressed — they find the phone and like five minutes later another crazy thing happens and then there’s a location change and some conversations and then it’s basically over. With a little room to breathe and really lean into the absurdity of it all, this could have been a five star book.
Aaaagh. I LOVE the crazy concept of this book: Clones of Washington, Franklin, Jefferson, and Adams are being raised in isolation, in 1700s-style conditions, by a shady group of billionaires who want to use these dingdongs to lead the US and take it back to the way it was in the 1700s, when white men were men and everyone else was property (and where we seem to be headed even without the clones, thanks to the maga fuckwits).
ANYWAY, then Ben Franklin finds an iPhone in the privy and everything goes bananas. This should have been SO FUNNY, but the plot is way too jumpy and the timeline is way too compressed — they find the phone and like five minutes later another crazy thing happens and then there’s a location change and some conversations and then it’s basically over. With a little room to breathe and really lean into the absurdity of it all, this could have been a five star book.
Review of advance copy received from Netgalley
I have to confess, I picked this up because of the intriguing premise: what would happen if America's Founding Fathers—Washington, Jefferson, Franklin, and Adams—got their hands on modern smartphones? I was expecting a sci-fi take that would really lean into their brilliant minds and distinct personalities, perhaps creating some high-stakes drama or showcasing their 'prodigy' status in their youth.
While the book does capture some of their charm, I felt it was a bit light compared to their legendary historical statures. However, once I reached the final chapter, everything clicked. It cleared up why the author chose this specific direction and ending. It felt 'grounded' and logical in its own way. Even though it wasn't as dramatic as I’d hoped, it was still an enjoyable read with a truly satisfying conclusion.
Special thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for providing an ARC in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.
#NetGallery #Foundling Fathers
While the book does capture some of their charm, I felt it was a bit light compared to their legendary historical statures. However, once I reached the final chapter, everything clicked. It cleared up why the author chose this specific direction and ending. It felt 'grounded' and logical in its own way. Even though it wasn't as dramatic as I’d hoped, it was still an enjoyable read with a truly satisfying conclusion.
Special thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for providing an ARC in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.
#NetGallery #Foundling Fathers
Review of advance copy received from NetGalley
I was immediately intrigued upon seeing the concept of this novella, despite having limited knowledge about the founding of the USA - and Foundling Fathers was a fun read. It's packed full of interesting ideas, but the novella format often doesn't leave enough space to fully explore them - I would have liked further expansion of the events of the latter third of the novel, as well as what happened next.
The misogyny, racism, and all round bigotry which pervade the text serves a purpose, but it's still hugely discomfiting to read.
The characters are a highlight of this novella - again, despite a lack of background knowledge beyond the musical Hamilton, I could easily distinguish between the boys. Even the background characters seemed distinct, with their own motivations. I would have liked to learn more about Mary, however.
All in all, Foundling Fathers is a fun, speedy read - albeit with occassional moments where some gritting of teeth may be necessary! I would love to have seen it explored further.
3.5 stars rounded up to 4.
Thank you to Tachyon Publications and Netgalley for the ARC.
The misogyny, racism, and all round bigotry which pervade the text serves a purpose, but it's still hugely discomfiting to read.
The characters are a highlight of this novella - again, despite a lack of background knowledge beyond the musical Hamilton, I could easily distinguish between the boys. Even the background characters seemed distinct, with their own motivations. I would have liked to learn more about Mary, however.
All in all, Foundling Fathers is a fun, speedy read - albeit with occassional moments where some gritting of teeth may be necessary! I would love to have seen it explored further.
3.5 stars rounded up to 4.
Thank you to Tachyon Publications and Netgalley for the ARC.
Review of advance copy received from Netgalley
Thank you to Tachyon Publications and NetGalley for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.
3.5 stars.
A collection of billionaires decide that the US's political system needs an overall and decides the way to deal with this is to clone the founding fathers with a view to them taking the country back to the 'good old days.'
The book starts with the four young men having been brought up on an island in ignorance of the outside world until they begin to gain awareness.
I really liked the idea of this book as a way to explore the obsession that modern society has of returning to old ideals and ways of thinking. Unfortunately the idea worked a little better for me than the execution. I didn't find any of the founding fathers particularly compelling, although I will confess my knowledge of early American politics is lacking and I probably would have understood more references here if I did!
Definitely a unique read, but one that didn't entirely work for me.
3.5 stars.
A collection of billionaires decide that the US's political system needs an overall and decides the way to deal with this is to clone the founding fathers with a view to them taking the country back to the 'good old days.'
The book starts with the four young men having been brought up on an island in ignorance of the outside world until they begin to gain awareness.
I really liked the idea of this book as a way to explore the obsession that modern society has of returning to old ideals and ways of thinking. Unfortunately the idea worked a little better for me than the execution. I didn't find any of the founding fathers particularly compelling, although I will confess my knowledge of early American politics is lacking and I probably would have understood more references here if I did!
Definitely a unique read, but one that didn't entirely work for me.
July 4, 2026
3 ⭐️
thank you to netgalley, the publisher and the author for allowing me to read and review this before its official release :)
i really enjoyed this, i thought it was very clever and surprisingly interesting. i must admit, after going in without having read the synopsis, i thought i was not going to like this due to my lack of knowledge on american history... but although it's true that i might have missed a few references and easter eggs, that did not take away much from my reading experience! it was a quick and easy read that accompanied me during the little free time i had during work!
i was a bit disappointed when realizing this was a novella, because i thought it had potential to be a full-length novel and its quick unravel made the story feel a bit too rushed and not exactly executed satisfyingly.
lastly, i don't think the author's writing style really connected with me: it seemed too quirky and dramatic for my liking, but it surely made the reading way faster!
thank you to netgalley, the publisher and the author for allowing me to read and review this before its official release :)
i really enjoyed this, i thought it was very clever and surprisingly interesting. i must admit, after going in without having read the synopsis, i thought i was not going to like this due to my lack of knowledge on american history... but although it's true that i might have missed a few references and easter eggs, that did not take away much from my reading experience! it was a quick and easy read that accompanied me during the little free time i had during work!
i was a bit disappointed when realizing this was a novella, because i thought it had potential to be a full-length novel and its quick unravel made the story feel a bit too rushed and not exactly executed satisfyingly.
lastly, i don't think the author's writing style really connected with me: it seemed too quirky and dramatic for my liking, but it surely made the reading way faster!
Review of advance copy received from Netgalley
I love the idea behind this book--deluded billionaires cloning the founding fathers and raising them as if it were the 1700s on a remote island in order to recapture the magic of those geniuses in present times. It certainly seems like something that could (but should never) happen! I hope Elon never reads this.
The first part is brilliantly funny. The mom code-switches from revolutionary-era language to modern-day parlance when not around her sons. Her boys (George, Ben, et al) find her cell phone and are taken aback in wonder at such a device. I so wish the author had spent more time on the island and less in the aftermath of them joining the real world, which was not nearly as entertaining.
Three and a half stars rounded up to four. Thanks to Tachyon Publications, via NetGalley, for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.
The first part is brilliantly funny. The mom code-switches from revolutionary-era language to modern-day parlance when not around her sons. Her boys (George, Ben, et al) find her cell phone and are taken aback in wonder at such a device. I so wish the author had spent more time on the island and less in the aftermath of them joining the real world, which was not nearly as entertaining.
Three and a half stars rounded up to four. Thanks to Tachyon Publications, via NetGalley, for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.
Review of advance copy received from Netgalley
I was really intrigued by this premise: bringing back the founding fathers.
But this fell really flat to me.
This is super short, it's less than 150 pages (at least, the digital version that I read).
I get that the author was trying to do old-timey dialogue, but it didn't read quite right. It read as awkward and clunky and kind of cringe. I really don't think that's how Benjamin Franklin would talk to himself. But him finding pornography is accurate. If you know the dark side of him, that tracks.
This was a super cool idea that I really thought could've been taken in a very politically relevant and dramatic and impactful way, but that wasn't really what was done here. There really wasn't much plot or story to this, in my opinion.
Thanks to NetGalley for the e-ARC of this book in exchange for my honest review!
But this fell really flat to me.
This is super short, it's less than 150 pages (at least, the digital version that I read).
I get that the author was trying to do old-timey dialogue, but it didn't read quite right. It read as awkward and clunky and kind of cringe. I really don't think that's how Benjamin Franklin would talk to himself. But him finding pornography is accurate. If you know the dark side of him, that tracks.
This was a super cool idea that I really thought could've been taken in a very politically relevant and dramatic and impactful way, but that wasn't really what was done here. There really wasn't much plot or story to this, in my opinion.
Thanks to NetGalley for the e-ARC of this book in exchange for my honest review!
Review of advance copy received from NetGalley
I read the book courtesy of NetGalley.
This is kind of a 4 stars for idea, 3 stars for execution kind of review. The concept - right-wing billionaires clone the Founding Fathers and raise them in a faux 18th century, is very wittily realized. I'm sure if I was American, I could get more out of it, but even without that, general & pop cultural knowledge of American history sufficed to get a chuckle here and there, and a raised eyebrow elsewhere. The attention to detail worked very well. But the quick pace and the length honestly didn't quite work for me - this could have been a novelette, if it was not meant to be fully developed into a novel, but as it was, just as I was getting into things, the story ran out. Too much build-up, not quite enough payoff, and potentially interesting themes and plot developments left up in the air.
Perhaps it could work as a serial?
This is kind of a 4 stars for idea, 3 stars for execution kind of review. The concept - right-wing billionaires clone the Founding Fathers and raise them in a faux 18th century, is very wittily realized. I'm sure if I was American, I could get more out of it, but even without that, general & pop cultural knowledge of American history sufficed to get a chuckle here and there, and a raised eyebrow elsewhere. The attention to detail worked very well. But the quick pace and the length honestly didn't quite work for me - this could have been a novelette, if it was not meant to be fully developed into a novel, but as it was, just as I was getting into things, the story ran out. Too much build-up, not quite enough payoff, and potentially interesting themes and plot developments left up in the air.
Perhaps it could work as a serial?
Review of advance copy received from Publisher
An absurd and yet almost believable novella, Foundling Fathers imagines that a billionaire-funded, right-wing conservative group figured out how to secretly clone the founding fathers and raise them as if it's still the 1700's. Except what happens a 20-year-old Benjamin Franklin finds a cell phone? (all the while Jefferson is probably off impregnating another servant girl)
You probably see the vibe of the book. I liked it, though I wish the end had either been more absurdly funny or more politically pointed. I do think the author is right - there is absolutely a cohort of people who would try to do this if they could. I received a copy of this book for review from the publisher, all opinions are my own.
You probably see the vibe of the book. I liked it, though I wish the end had either been more absurdly funny or more politically pointed. I do think the author is right - there is absolutely a cohort of people who would try to do this if they could. I received a copy of this book for review from the publisher, all opinions are my own.
Review of advance copy received from Author
An inventive and incisive use of Science Fiction to strike at the heart of culture. Here an organization has tried to clone and raise versions of the Founding Fathers--Washington, Jefferson, Addams, and Franklin--all in such secret conditions that the boys themselves don't know it's not 1750. The story opens on Ben Franklin finding a cell phone and immediately figuring out how to get porn. The novel is both really funny (you are not ready for the second chapter) and pointed about misplaced idealism and how flawed any single person's reasoning is, no matter how powerful they think they are. The perfect read for the USA's 250th anniversary.
Thank you to the author for sending me an early copy.
Thank you to the author for sending me an early copy.
Review of advance copy received from NetGalley
I genuinely wanted to love this, but it unfortunately missed the mark for my personal reading tastes.
As a pure thought experiment or an exploration of a high-concept premise, it is undeniably cool. However, the execution is incredibly emotionally sparse. I am a reader who needs robust character development to truly anchor a story, and without that depth, I found myself struggling to feel invested in the characters or the ultimate outcome. Additionally, the specific style of humor just didn't align with my own sensibilities.
All of that being said, I recognize exactly who this book is for. If you are a reader who prioritizes clever, high-level premises over deep character studies and appreciates cheeky, exploratory fiction, this might be exactly what you are looking for.
As a pure thought experiment or an exploration of a high-concept premise, it is undeniably cool. However, the execution is incredibly emotionally sparse. I am a reader who needs robust character development to truly anchor a story, and without that depth, I found myself struggling to feel invested in the characters or the ultimate outcome. Additionally, the specific style of humor just didn't align with my own sensibilities.
All of that being said, I recognize exactly who this book is for. If you are a reader who prioritizes clever, high-level premises over deep character studies and appreciates cheeky, exploratory fiction, this might be exactly what you are looking for.
Review of advance copy received from Netgalley
Meg Elison has taken a disturbing what if... and turned it into a satirical novella about techbros with god-like money and the political acumen of elementary school textbooks cloning three of our Founding Fathers to usher in a short-sighted Ameri-topia. When boy-Franklin finds a cellphone in the privy of their experimental island, the entire plan dramatically unravels, taking destiny with it.
I thoroughly enjoyed this, and I was surprised (and somewhat disappointed) when it ended so soon. I took a lot of delight in Elison’s skewering of the current techbros with her mighty pen, but despite their originators’ pasts, I felt sympathy for the boys. This left with me with a lot to consider about nature vs. nurture, political upbringing, victimization, cognitive dissonance, and generational atonement.
Another excellent work by one of my favorite people writing today.
Thank you to NetGalley and Tachyon Publications, LLC for the review copy.
I thoroughly enjoyed this, and I was surprised (and somewhat disappointed) when it ended so soon. I took a lot of delight in Elison’s skewering of the current techbros with her mighty pen, but despite their originators’ pasts, I felt sympathy for the boys. This left with me with a lot to consider about nature vs. nurture, political upbringing, victimization, cognitive dissonance, and generational atonement.
Another excellent work by one of my favorite people writing today.
Thank you to NetGalley and Tachyon Publications, LLC for the review copy.
Review of advance copy received from Netgalley
Foundling Fathers is gleefully unhinged satire that knows exactly how ridiculous it’s being.
The premise alone: a group of cloned Founding Fathers discovering a smartphone in 1750, sets the tone and Meg Elison runs with it.
It’s fast, biting, and deeply amused by the chaos of power, masculinity, and “original intent.” Equal parts sci-fi, historical farce, and political skewering, this book is smart without being smug and funny without pulling its punches. You can almost visualize the current crop of moronic fascists trying and failing to do something like this.
Thanks so much to the publisher and NetGalley for the ARC!
The premise alone: a group of cloned Founding Fathers discovering a smartphone in 1750, sets the tone and Meg Elison runs with it.
It’s fast, biting, and deeply amused by the chaos of power, masculinity, and “original intent.” Equal parts sci-fi, historical farce, and political skewering, this book is smart without being smug and funny without pulling its punches. You can almost visualize the current crop of moronic fascists trying and failing to do something like this.
Thanks so much to the publisher and NetGalley for the ARC!
Review of advance copy received from Netgalley
3.5 stars, rounded up to 4 because I like Meg Ellison.
A novella with a fun conceit: what if the founding fathers were cloned by a shadowy right wing thinktank, raised in isolation, all driving towards a destiny where they could.... Somehow lead the nation?
I loved the concept, but the execution fell short to me. While there are satirical elements, the story feels either too long, or too short, to make the points it wants. I felt shocked when it ended; I kept seeing the pages dwindle as I read and the pacing escalated, only to just kind of peter out.
Worth a read however, and I appreciate the advance copy from Tachyon and Netgalley.
A novella with a fun conceit: what if the founding fathers were cloned by a shadowy right wing thinktank, raised in isolation, all driving towards a destiny where they could.... Somehow lead the nation?
I loved the concept, but the execution fell short to me. While there are satirical elements, the story feels either too long, or too short, to make the points it wants. I felt shocked when it ended; I kept seeing the pages dwindle as I read and the pacing escalated, only to just kind of peter out.
Worth a read however, and I appreciate the advance copy from Tachyon and Netgalley.
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