The Fitful Sleep of Immigrants

By: Orlando Ortega-Medina

Narrated by: Geoffrey Scheer

Award-winning author and immigration attorney Orlando Ortega-Medina returns to 1990s San Francisco in The Fitful Sleep of Immigrants, a powerful family drama that plays out within a captivating legal thriller.

Attorney Marc Mendes, the estranged son of a prominent Rabbi and a burned-out lawyer with addiction issues, plots his exit from the big city to a more peaceful life in idyllic Napa Valley. But before realizing his dream, the US government summons his Salvadoran life partner Isaac Perez to immigration court, threatening him with deportation.

As Marc battles to save Isaac, his world is further upended by a dark and alluring client who aims to tempt him away from his messy life. Torn between his commitment to Isaac and the pain-numbing escapism offered by his client, Marc is forced to choose between the lesser of two evils while confronting his twin demons of past addiction and guilt over the death of his first lover.

Inspired by events that forced the author and his partner to emigrate from the United States because of marriage inequality, The Fitful Sleep of Immigrants is an extraordinary and timely tale about the value of family, friendship, loyalty, and love in the face of adversity.

©2023 Orlando Ortega-Medina (P)2022 Orlando Ortega-Medina

Critic reviews

"There's plenty of drama inside and outside the courtroom…plus stalking and 90s homophobia–in this deeply moving novel with depth and heart that explores how difficult it is to find a place called home in a world filled with hate." (Lev Raphael, author of Winter Eyes)

"The thrills in this legal thriller come not only from its plot but also from its rich portrait of the varieties of American estrangement." (Michael Lowenthal, author of Sex with Stranger)

Gay Jewish lawyer makes bad choices.

When we first meet our hero Marc Mendes he is at a crossroads. His work as a partner in a San Francisco law firm is not fulfilling and his relationship with his lover of eight years is just coasting. On top of that Marc keeps flashing back to some event that happened in Israel many years ago. Then almost all at once his lover's claim to asylum from El Salvador where he escaped from is now up for review. This is coupled with a sexual harassment case filed by a rather sensual young man against a former boss. This gets Marc's juices flowing.
While there is the bones of an intriguing story here it all collapses under the weight of bad writing, terrible dialogue, and confusing plot points all of which are emphasized by an awful narrator. I honestly couldn’t differentiate between whiny Marc whose story this is, whiny Jacob, his El Salvador his lover/partner and whiny Silva the manipulative con man from México. Luckily the author uses their names a lot so we don’t lose track of who’s talking. Fortunately the narrator doesn’t try for accent’s very much except for a female immigration lawyer who I guess was supposed to be British. She sounded like what the English would call posh as they snickered.
Though out the book every time Marc is confronted with a some important choice he always makes the wrong one. He tries to justify it to us, the reader, but every time I kept thinking ‘you’ve an idiot'!
By the end I just was glad it was done.

Meh

Predictable and mediocre. I found the reader annoying as well. I wouldn’t spend my money on it.

Brilliant narration!

Geoffrey Scheer provided a brilliant performance for this captivating novel! His voicing of each character in the novel was so distinct and full of emotional resonance. I grew to know and love every character so that by the time the novel was coming to an end, I felt like I was saying goodbye to dear friends! Mr. Scheer is clearly a consummate actor, and he brought a full range of expression to every scenario, pulling the listener in closely and holding us transfixed as the action unfolded! Many rounds of applause to both the writer and the performer! This story brings to life the challenges and barriers all immigrants face. It is timely and important as we continue to wrestle with the very real and prescient struggles many persecuted individuals face in the contemporary US political landscape. Bravo and thank you!