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The Harsh Whisper: A Gothic Romantasy Thriller
In a city where silence is law, her voice could start a revolution.
Veridia is frozen in eternal twilight—a sprawling 1890s metropolis ruled by the Bellwether elite and their most brutal The Hush. A magical spell that strips the masses of speech, thought, and resistance. Perfect order through perfect silence.
But Elara Voss can still scream.
A low-caste private investigator born with Echo—a rare magical deafness that lets her read the vibrations of lies, grief, and forbidden truth—Elara is immune to The Hush. She's the regime's worst nightmare. The one person who can expose what they've hidden for a century.
When a case about an assassin using protest music leads her into the belly of the regime, Elara discovers a horror beyond The Hush is powered by the permanent suffering of children.
Now she's marked for death. Hunted by the very House that destroyed her family.
Her only chance of survival? An alliance with the man she should hate
Cassian Bellwether—heir to tyranny, master of compulsion, and the most dangerous sound mage alive.
His voice is a weapon. His gift is a curse. And the moment his magic touches Elara's silent soul, everything he thought he knew shatters. She's immune to his power. She makes him feel. And she might be the only person who can free him from the legacy he never wanted.
Forced into a lethal partnership, they must unravel a conspiracy woven into Veridia's very architecture. But as Elara closes in on the truth, Cassian's family tightens the noose—and he faces an impossible
Betray his blood, or silence the woman who's become his salvation.
The music is rising. The Hush is breaking. And in a city built on lies, speaking the truth is a death sentence.
A morally gray romantasy steeped in Gothic mystery, forbidden magic, and enemies-to-lovers tension that will leave you breathless.
Book One in The Silent Truths Trilogy
Perfect for readers who ✓ Enemies-to-lovers with impossible stakes
✓ Morally complex antiheroes
✓ Historical fantasy with dark political intrigue
✓ Disability representation done right
✓ Magic systems that cost everything
✓ Romance that burns slowly and devastatingly
If you devoured The Shadows Between Us, Six of Crows, or A Darker Shade of Magic, this book is for you.
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ "A masterclass in atmospheric world-building and emotional devastation."
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ "Cassian Bellwether is my new morally gray obsession."
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ "I stayed up until 3 AM because I HAD to know what happened next."
Scroll up and grab your copy now—because once The Hush breaks, there's no going back.
Veridia is frozen in eternal twilight—a sprawling 1890s metropolis ruled by the Bellwether elite and their most brutal The Hush. A magical spell that strips the masses of speech, thought, and resistance. Perfect order through perfect silence.
But Elara Voss can still scream.
A low-caste private investigator born with Echo—a rare magical deafness that lets her read the vibrations of lies, grief, and forbidden truth—Elara is immune to The Hush. She's the regime's worst nightmare. The one person who can expose what they've hidden for a century.
When a case about an assassin using protest music leads her into the belly of the regime, Elara discovers a horror beyond The Hush is powered by the permanent suffering of children.
Now she's marked for death. Hunted by the very House that destroyed her family.
Her only chance of survival? An alliance with the man she should hate
Cassian Bellwether—heir to tyranny, master of compulsion, and the most dangerous sound mage alive.
His voice is a weapon. His gift is a curse. And the moment his magic touches Elara's silent soul, everything he thought he knew shatters. She's immune to his power. She makes him feel. And she might be the only person who can free him from the legacy he never wanted.
Forced into a lethal partnership, they must unravel a conspiracy woven into Veridia's very architecture. But as Elara closes in on the truth, Cassian's family tightens the noose—and he faces an impossible
Betray his blood, or silence the woman who's become his salvation.
The music is rising. The Hush is breaking. And in a city built on lies, speaking the truth is a death sentence.
A morally gray romantasy steeped in Gothic mystery, forbidden magic, and enemies-to-lovers tension that will leave you breathless.
Book One in The Silent Truths Trilogy
Perfect for readers who ✓ Enemies-to-lovers with impossible stakes
✓ Morally complex antiheroes
✓ Historical fantasy with dark political intrigue
✓ Disability representation done right
✓ Magic systems that cost everything
✓ Romance that burns slowly and devastatingly
If you devoured The Shadows Between Us, Six of Crows, or A Darker Shade of Magic, this book is for you.
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ "A masterclass in atmospheric world-building and emotional devastation."
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ "Cassian Bellwether is my new morally gray obsession."
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ "I stayed up until 3 AM because I HAD to know what happened next."
Scroll up and grab your copy now—because once The Hush breaks, there's no going back.
121 pages, Kindle Edition
Published October 6, 2025
About the author
Royal Rajput
31 books4 followersRoyal Rajput writes stories where magic collides with bureaucracy, algorithms fail catastrophically, and love demands the ultimate price.
About the Author
From Gothic romantasy in frozen Victorian cities to techno-thrillers about living supercomputers, Royal crafts worlds where the impossible becomes inevitable and the system itself is the monster. Whether it's Fae bound by compliance forms, deaf investigators navigating cities where silence is law, or auditors uncovering conspiracies that span centuries, every story explores what happens when order meets chaos—and when love costs everything.
The Series
The Silent Truths Trilogy follows a deaf investigator in a frozen 1890s city where silence is law and speaking the truth is revolution. Gothic romantasy with morally gray heroes and enemies-to-lovers tension that devastates.
The Chaos & Code Series asks what happens when meticulous bureaucrats try to regulate ancient Fae power with clipboards and compliance forms. Think: forced magical marriages, soul bonds with deadly consequences, and bureaucracy that becomes a battlefield.
The Analog Series descends into the raw, scarred reality of post-digital collapse, where living supercomputers hunt through blood-soaked ledgers and the only way to expose the truth is to sacrifice your sanity. Techno-thriller meets dark romance in a world where debt is permanent.
Writing Philosophy
Royal writes for readers who demand complexity, consequence, and characters who earn their endings—devastating, triumphant, or bloodily complicated—through fire and blood.
These aren't safe stories. They're visceral explorations of power, trauma, choice, and the horrifying beauty of systems that consume us.
When Not Writing
Royal can be found researching obscure Victorian customs, mapping fictional cities in obsessive detail, and asking questions like "What if your office building was alive and hungry?" and "Can a compliance form bind a soul?"
Currently Working On
Books 2 & 3 of The Silent Truths Trilogy, because Elara and Cassian's story demands to be told in full devastating glory.
Connect
Amazon: amazon.com/author/royalrajput
Newsletter:https://substack.com/@royalrajput
About the Author
From Gothic romantasy in frozen Victorian cities to techno-thrillers about living supercomputers, Royal crafts worlds where the impossible becomes inevitable and the system itself is the monster. Whether it's Fae bound by compliance forms, deaf investigators navigating cities where silence is law, or auditors uncovering conspiracies that span centuries, every story explores what happens when order meets chaos—and when love costs everything.
The Series
The Silent Truths Trilogy follows a deaf investigator in a frozen 1890s city where silence is law and speaking the truth is revolution. Gothic romantasy with morally gray heroes and enemies-to-lovers tension that devastates.
The Chaos & Code Series asks what happens when meticulous bureaucrats try to regulate ancient Fae power with clipboards and compliance forms. Think: forced magical marriages, soul bonds with deadly consequences, and bureaucracy that becomes a battlefield.
The Analog Series descends into the raw, scarred reality of post-digital collapse, where living supercomputers hunt through blood-soaked ledgers and the only way to expose the truth is to sacrifice your sanity. Techno-thriller meets dark romance in a world where debt is permanent.
Writing Philosophy
Royal writes for readers who demand complexity, consequence, and characters who earn their endings—devastating, triumphant, or bloodily complicated—through fire and blood.
These aren't safe stories. They're visceral explorations of power, trauma, choice, and the horrifying beauty of systems that consume us.
When Not Writing
Royal can be found researching obscure Victorian customs, mapping fictional cities in obsessive detail, and asking questions like "What if your office building was alive and hungry?" and "Can a compliance form bind a soul?"
Currently Working On
Books 2 & 3 of The Silent Truths Trilogy, because Elara and Cassian's story demands to be told in full devastating glory.
Connect
Amazon: amazon.com/author/royalrajput
Newsletter:https://substack.com/@royalrajput
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Displaying 1 of 1 review
January 11, 2026
well written with gorgeous imagery of music and silence. the subtle enemies to lovers was really well done
Displaying 1 of 1 review