Future Tense Audiobook By Kristen Painter cover art

Future Tense

Ellis McFadden Mysteries

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Future Tense

By: Kristen Painter
Narrated by: Robyn Maryke
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Step into the enigmatic world of the Athos—a vessel that blends the luxury of a cruise ship, the intrigue of a scientific research station, and the might of a military starship. Here, amidst the stars, you'll find Ellis McFadden, the ship’s head librarian, embarking on adventures she never anticipated this late in her career.

The plot thickens when the Athos comes to the aid of a stranded craft, taking aboard three mysterious sisters and their father. They offer a tantalizing trade: visions of the future for those eager to know their fate. The crew and guests are soon captivated by the predictions.

But Ellis senses something amiss. The price for these glimpses into tomorrow seems too steep. So she, boyfriend Frank, and her android cat investigate, uncovering dubious secrets, but her friends are already entranced by the charlatans' charms. Can Ellis break the spell and save the ship's crew from an ominous future?

©2025 Kristen Painter (P)2025 Kristen Painter
Animals Cozy Mystery Science Fiction Women Sleuths Exciting
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🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟
The Best in the Series — Absolutely Unputdownable!

Future Tense is, without question, the crown jewel of the Ellis McFadden Mysteries. Kristen Painter — a powerhouse New York Times bestselling author with more brilliant books than I can count — has outdone herself with this one. The Anthos, a dazzling blend of cruise ship elegance, scientific curiosity, and military might, sets the perfect stage for this unforgettable cosmic mystery.

Ellis McFadden, the ship’s head librarian, proves once again that age doesn’t dim adventure — it sharpens it. When a stranded vessel brings aboard a mysterious family offering glimpses of the future, things go from intriguing to unsettling fast. The visions are addictive, the price is steep, and only Ellis, her steady boyfriend Frank, and her ever-loyal android cat seem to sense the danger.

Robyn Maryke’s narration is a perfect match — rich, expressive, and filled with nuance. She brings Ellis to life in a way that feels like sitting down with an old friend who just so happens to unravel conspiracies between cataloging rare books.

What blew me away was how this story never let me get ahead. I was locked in, step-for-step with Ellis and Frank, as they unraveled the mystery. No spoilers, but the ending? Clean. Satisfying. And full of Kristen Painter’s signature twists and emotional beats.

This is my favorite book in the entire series — smart, suspenseful, and brimming with heart. If you’ve followed Ellis this far, don’t walk — run — to read Future Tense. You won’t regret it.

The Best in the Series — Absolutely Unputdownable!

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This is the 3rd book in the Ellis McFadden Mysteries series, which is definitely Painter’s best written series. I hope for more stories about Ellis the space librarian and her chubby android cat Harry.

Definitely worth listening to.

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I love this new series, and I'm not very much into sci-fi! But it's so much more than that - like your favorite cozy mystery on the the USS Enterprise. Like Nocturne Falls in Space, but it's not supernatural. I truly hope there will be more to the series, and I can't wait for the next one! (While I'm also waiting for the next Nocturne Falls, Shadowvale, and Frost & Crowe, of course!) :)

SO SO GOOD!

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Listener received this title free

Future Tense by Kristen Painter
Ellis McFadden mystery series #3. Science fiction mystery, space opera, romance. Best read in series order.
The luxury space cruise ship is in its Fallow stage. A six week period where there are no planets or other points of interest for travels. Most of the vacationers have offloaded and the ship staff is running on a reduced service schedule. Ellis McFadden is happy to have a little more down time and she’s been spending more time with Frank and knitting a sweater for her compdroid cat Harry.
When an emergency beacon is received from a ship, the Athos rescues the family on board who say their planet has been destroyed and they are the only survivors. They are welcomed on board but Frank is suspicious. His gut says something is wrong. Frank and Ellis tour their ship and it’s like nothing they’ve seen before but photos show a genetic setup. Cruisers start to act strange and a couple disappears. Frank and Ellis won’t stand aside while friends go missing.

🎧 I started this via ecopy and finished by audiobook. The performance was done by Robyn Maryke who does the full series from Ellis’s POV. It’s a fantastic recording with lots of emotion and drama. I listened to this a bit slower than my usual as the narrator keeps a good pace.

So entertaining. I’m having so much fun following Ellis, Harry, Frank and Gracie in their interstellar adventures. A bit of drama, a bit of science, a smidge of closed door romance, and mysterious aliens that come and go in each episode. Favorites Harry and Gracie are pets that are pretty much perfect.
Love this series.

I received a copy of this from the author and purchased a copy to keep and reread.

Future Tense

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Listener received this title free

In this, book number 3 of the series, you will be able to meet other characters in more detail. Ellis and Frank continue their relationship, and you can hear hints of something stronger developing, even though Ellis doesn't want to get married again. Henry, the cat, continues to be adorable and protective and has lots of play days with Grace, the bird.

Everyone in Athos has entered a six-week downtime so they can recharge. All work will be running with lower staff, and the entertainment will continue as usual. During this time, Hassel calls her mother so Ellis can welcome the crew of a stranded ship. The crew includes three daughters and their father, who allegedly can predict the future. When they arrive, they gift spheres that take away your problems. Some refused the gift, Ellis gave hers to Frank, and Hassel put most of the spheres away because they cannot accept gifts.

The stranded crew keeps asking for more accommodations—where to sleep, where to pray, and so on. Ellis's space in the library has been taken over by them. When Ellis and Frank sense that something is wrong, they check the stranded ship. I'm not going to detail this part because the fun, or desperate, part of the book is figuring out who is involved. Besides the ship, the staff of Athos starts to act strangely, especially Ellis's friend Senia and Frank's friend Stan, who then disappeared along with the others.

I loved the way the investigation was done by Ellis and Frank. It was done from a different angle compared to Book 2.

The books keep getting better and better

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