Record executive Theo has been dispatched to coax an album from the Future Saints. Since the death of their manager the band has been on a spiral. Theo is immediately struck by their lead singer, Hannah, but she won’t listen to anyone’s direction .. especially a Suit like Theo.

I know music fiction is a bit of a trend right now but I hadn’t found one I truly enjoyed until Future Saints. I loved the backstory that added a layer of depth to the story, as well as the music and lyrics. Theo’s character was great, as well as Hannah’s. There was a bit of a romance but it was more hinted at and it didn’t take over the plot.

“These are the only powers I possess. This guitar, this stage, this microphone, my words in people’s mouths. I swear to god I’m going to make somebody hear me.”

The Future Saints comes out 1/20.

I received a free copy of, The Future Saints, by Ashley Winstead, from the publisher and Netgalley in exchange for an honest review. Hannah is in a band, called The Future Saints, but Hannah is not acting like a saint at all, self destructive, and not listening to people, on her side. This book was hard to read at time because of Hannah's attitude and self destructing ways, but it was a good read.

Thank you so much Atria for the arc. I have been trying to read this one for awhile now and am having a hard time connecting to the story and the characters! I'm hoping I'll come back to this one closer to release date.

I wanted to give this book up in the beginning... but I did not. and I am super glad that I kept going. After a little slow start the book got much better! The story follows a band, the future saints, and thier rise to fame... and all the things that can happen in between. I felt the story line was very good, and you will fall in love with the characters.

Hannah, Ripper and Kenny make up The Future Saints band- a band with talent that is on a downward spiral. Theo is brought in as their new manager with two goals- get one more record from The Future Saints and earn the promotion. In a combination of interview transcripts, video description and storyline, the reader follows along the as The Future Saints grow into their talent and what that means as they simultaneously deal with grief and loss as a band.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
I went into this story not knowing what to expect- definitely recommend going in blind and letting this story take you on a ride! The plot started a bit slow, but then fully and completely pulled me in. I was invested in Hannah’s journey through her grief over her younger sister who’d passed away. The emotional journey was raw, real and I loved every minute- even as I was reaching for the tissues. The additional romance element was sweet and romantic as it developed. Ashley Winstead is an amazing author and this one is further evidence of that!
Definitely one to look out for on pub day!! 🥰

I really loved the vibes of this book, however the writing just didn't do it for me.

I think it's because I just love Ashley as a thriller author, that I felt she didn't pull this one off as good.

I didn't connect with any of the characters, and had a hard time with the "talking dead sister" pov.

10/10 All the stars in the world should go to The Future Saints. I was blown away. Someone, please make this into a movie! I want nothing more than to hear the music that so vividly jumped off the page. I can't believe how emotional I got there at the end. This might be Winstead's best work yet. And that's saying A LOT since she's one of my favorite authors. Do yourself a favor and just pre-order this now. Your future self will thank you.

I so wanted to like this book, but I unfortunately had to DNF about halfway through. The writing style felt like a lot of tell and not show, and I felt that some of the main points of the story were revealed far too early. And not only were they revealed too early, they were also pretty obvious. I did like how it was setting the tone for a Daisy Jones and The Six vibe set in modern times (one of the few times I've enjoyed the incorporation of TikTok in a book).

This was absolutely amazing!! Loved everything about it! Thank you NetGalley and publisher for early arc

Five star read from me! This was my first Ashley Windstead book and it did not disappoint! I enjoyed every page in this book!

Thank you to NetGalley and Atria Books for the ARC!

If you loved Daisy Jones, add this one to your list. The only difference is this one had Theo, whose devotion to the lead singer was borderline godlike! None of her antics could stop his devotion!

Wow.

This book hit me at exactly the right time, so maybe that's contributing to my high opinion of it. But I think I would have loved it no matter where or when I encountered it.

Ever since Daisy Jones and the Six came out a few years back, I've read every fictional rock memoir/oral history/docuseries/faux podcast I can get my hands on. Given my love of all things musical and classic rock especially, it's a genre my little Gen X heart has come to love. But none have quite lived up to Daisy Jones. Until I met the Saints.

Hannah Cortland is talented and tortured, and Theo Ford swoops in to save her, her band, and maybe her soul. I loved everything about this book -- the characters, the meditation on grief, the ode to sisterhood and friendship, and the dark, moving lyrics of the songs Hannah writes. I had a hard time letting this one go and moving on to the next book, and I suspect Hannah and Theo -- and Ginny -- will stick around in my head for quite awhile.

I started this book one month after losing my dad in pretty unexpected fashion, and I needed its message on grief, survivor's guilt, moving on, and letting go. Beating yourself up doesn't bring back the person you lost, and it's not what they'd want for you anyway. And hiding from the people who care about you when you're hurting doesn't help either. All those messages hit home for me, and then I read the acknowledgements and learned that the author lost her dad during the writing of the book. I'd received an eARC of this book a few weeks ago and just happened to read it on a much-needed vacation following my dad's memorial service. Coincidence? Fate? A message from my dad? Depends on what you believe, I guess, but this book came along just when I needed it.

One of my complaints with other books in this genre is that the fictional "rise to the top" of the band in question tends to be super unrealistic (looking at you, Jennifer Weiner). This story recounts the Future Saints' ascending star in a way that makes sense -- not instant fame, but rather years of work and middling success followed by a blast to the top fueled by social media and word of mouth. In 2025, that feels realistic to me.

The end of the book and the way things go for all the band members seems realistic to me too. I can't say any more without spoilers, but it's a good combo of real life and happily ever after that made sense to me, and might make sense to other readers who have experienced a loss similar to Hannah's, or who have also dealt with the demons that haunt her.

This is the first book I've read by this author, and my understanding is that it's the first one like this that she's written. Her previous work seems to mostly be thrillers/murder mysteries that honestly don't sound like the kind I would like. But the heart she put into this book makes me want to go back and look at her catalog again and see if maybe I judged her too quickly. If she writes more literary fiction like this, I'll be the first in line to get a copy. The Future Saints doesn't come out until January 2026 -- I can't wait to see what others think of it.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the eARC of this book.

Ladies and gentleman, there is no one quite like Ashley Winstead. The scale of her writing blows me away yet again. Not only is this unlike anything she has written in terms of genre, but the depth at which this one was written is just next level. The base stoy itself, phenomenal. But then you throw in articles and features who genuinely sound like completely different authors and it is just so impressive. I easily could have binged this in a day or two, but I wanted to savor it and really take my time to connect with these characters. I am so mad that The Future Saints aren't real. I feel so invested in them and their journey. Winstead made them feel so real, I am convinced I will hear their songs on the radio the next time I get in my car. What a wonderful, deep, emotional story with grief at its center. Another stellar book by one of my absolute favorite authors.

Thank you to the publisher for the early access! I cannot wait to get my hands on a physical copy.

•Theo is sent by the record label to supervise the fledgling band, The Future Saints. Theo is known as “the fixer” in his field, so it’s up to him if the record label will continue pumping time and money into this band, or if it’s time to cut the cord. The band, once doing well, has taken a bit of a turn when the lead singer’s sister passed away unexpectedly.

•Hannah, the lead singer, is struggling after the death of her sister. She’s acting out, and dragging her band mates down with her.

•This book gave me major Daisy Jones vibes. I loved Daisy, but this was a miss for me. While it was a good book, I just didn’t feel emotionally tied to any character.

•Thank you to NetGalley, Atria Books, and Ashley Winstead for this ARC. It will become available on January 20, 2026.

I’ve known Ashley Winstead as a thriller author, so to see a more standard fiction book pop up from her was surprising. When I saw that this book was labeled as similar to Daisy Jones and the Six, I was sold…but it is actually quite different from Daisy Jones (the book). It is more modern, sadder and ultimately more optimistic in the end. I very much enjoyed reading it, and I will be thinking about the Saints—and hoping they were real—for a long time.

Ashely Winstead doesn’t again. Five Star Read!!!!

I had a very enjoyable experience with this book.

Thank you to NetGalley, Atria Books, and Ashley Winstead for this Advanced Readers Copy of The Future Saints. The book is expected to release January 20, 2026.

As an avid Daisy Jones and the Six lover and thriller reader, I was excited to get an arc of this book. Ashley Winstead has earned my trust. While, I haven’t read any of her thrillers. I have a couple sitting on my shelf that just skyrocketed it up my TBR.

The story is crafted in a way that is so powerful and poignant, but also fun and loose. While there have been lots of books about bands and musical artists, The Future Saints (the band) has this je ne sais quoi. They are modern, but also classic and just really easy to relate to. It could’ve been really easy to make this a cheesy story or a complete rip off of Daisy Jones but the story feels unique in both its message and it’s storytelling. It’s about grief and loss and success and fame, and everything all at once. Hannah is an amazing main character and I really feel connected to her throughout this book. I do wish we got a little more development of the other band meets, but understand the focus on Hannah‘s story. I also think we could’ve gotten a tad more content generally but think the book makes itself make sense.

At first, I thought the timeline seemed a little condensed, but it ultimately made sense given where the story was going. Overall, I highly recommend this book for anyone that loves music, Daisy Jones, and the Six or just a book in general.

So exciting to read a new Ashley Winstead book! Loved that even though Theo and Hannah’s professional lives are relatable the things they deal with are. Wish the Saints were a real band so I could see them in person, they sound like a great time!

Stayed up all night reading this book because I was so attached to the characters. It’s not my typical genre of book I read but I loved every minute of it.

4 stars.

Theo is a record company “fixer” in line for a big promotion and he’s been sent to salvage what he can (if anything) from the Future Saints, a band signed to his label that showed some initial promise but has been reeling, changing musical direction since the death of the band’s manger and sister of the band’s lead singer/guitarist, Hannah. Hannah is self destructing since Ginny’s death and may be pulling her two bandmates down too. Can Theo cut them loose? Or is there something in the new music?

I liked that Hannah was a real mess; who wouldn’t be? What I liked a bit less was the idea that Ginny was around in such a literal sense. I wish the other members of the band and the road manager had been a bit more fleshed out as characters, but overall, I enjoyed the book which definitely gives DAISY JONES vibes, and if you enjoyed that book you’ll probably like this one OK too.