Without A Whisper: Song Two of the Tangled Elegies

by Molly Macabre, William Burkhardt

The laugher never comforts. It only reminds them that they’re not alone.

Kate and Nick have found safety behind the walls of Fort Vanguard, but peace is fragile in a world crawling with the dead. Each journey beyond the gates is a fight for survival, plagued by the Infected and survivors alike.

When Kate is captured, Nick descends into madness. To find her, he’ll carve through the wasteland, leaving pieces of his humanity behind with every kill.

The dead are evolving. The living are losing themselves.
And love might be the most dangerous disease of all.

299 pages, Kindle Edition

Expected publication February 1, 2026

Reviews

[Janelle Schiecke · Rating 5 out of 5]

I absolutely love Dark Bloom, and was thrilled to read Without A Whisper! What I noticed right away was there are fewer flashbacks, and the story moves forward at an even faster pace. There are so many interesting characters introduced, and lots of unexpected twists and turns. Molly’s prose flows at a great pace, and weaves effortlessly from tragic and hopeless to beautiful and spirited (with humorous dialogue throughout).

When I concluded this book, I sat with it for a bit and appreciated how the story unfolded and came to an end. It’s such a captivating adventure, and what a love story. Without A Whisper is a beautiful sequel to Dark Bloom, and a very well-crafted close to this series.

This is an ARC review.

[TheBookLounge · Rating 5 out of 5]

Alright. I had a week to process what the pages of Without A Whisper gave me. The story that unfolded is one that'll sit with me for a very and I mean VERY Long time. This is a duology but let me tell you something. This is one series that will leave you wanting more, asking why, throwing your hands up, putting the book down to catch our breathe... Man I wish this wasn't the end. Lets get to it shall we!!

Plot: Without A Whisper opens up right where Dark Bloom left off. Nick and Kate find themselves in a situation where they want to go out into the world and in hopes, find some sign of life. Some sort of existence in this cruel punishing world. They head north where they believe a military base is up and running (Fort Vanguard) On their way of course they run into small problems but it's nothing they can't handle. Someone from the Junkyard ends up running into them but I'm not going to say who. "I can't give everything away." So Nick, Kate and this mystery person put their hiking boots on and trek their way north. What they find is something... surprising. Something that they thought was long dead. Maybe they find shelter. A community filled with people who are thriving. Who are making this sick, dark wasteland of a world into something everyone can flourish from. Or... they run into more issues and they have to fight harder than they ever fought before. Guess what??? You have to wait and find out. I know, I'm cruel, right?!?

Nick: Nick is different in this one. Not in a bad way but in a way that makes him vulnerable. He has this anger building up in him that almost... not change who he is but is making him look at things differently. He continues to dwell on the past but at the same time thinks about what he has now. How the end almost ended him but in fact brought meaning, purpose for him to continue. Like book 1, he will do what ever is necessary to protect Kate and I mean he will make sure that whatever made people transform into cannibalistic laughing zombies, you're going to wish it had infected you.

Kate: So many things I can say about Kate but I won't make this too long. She's tougher, meaner but at the same time understanding. She wants to look at things in a more beautiful way. Kate tries so hard to bring Nick down to a more relaxing, calm state but she knows that he needs to be on his toes if they want to survive. She's tougher in a way that tends to have her make rash decisions and sometimes making a rash decision can lead to poor choices. Lets say a poor choice leads to a situation where you can do right from it. Would you still regret that choice??

Writing: One thing I have always said about this authors writing is how immersive it is. I don't know how she does it but with DB, What Comes Before and now this, she has a way to her writing that is very unique. The words just flow through the pages. She does a very good job at keeping you on your toes and also keeping you fully engaged with the narrative

Overall: This is the 3rd book this year that I wish I could re-read for the first time. I read Dark Bloom three times this year and I'm most likely going to read this one three maybe four, five more times. Believe me, I'm not exaggerating. I've said this before and I'll keep saying this. Molly Macabre is a very talented writer. She knows how to pull you in. When she has an idea in her head and gets it on paper, something extraordinary is about to happen. This book with her others will grab you by the neck and keep you glued to the pages. I highly and I mean HIGHLY RECOMMEND!!!

2026...be ready!!!

[Already Overbooked · Rating 5 out of 5]

Just a ghost of the forgotten....

[Lucas Clay · Rating 4 out of 5]

A very entertaining and smooth read that I devoured!
Molly does a good job of keeping you entertained which makes this book fly by. A couple plot points didn't exactly match my personal tastes but it's a solid follow-up to Dark Bloom!

[Tehmeena · Rating 5 out of 5]

Content Warnings; Blood, violence, and gore. SA/trauma/ptsd, heart-wrenching scenes and more...

~I received an arc copy of this book from the author and am voluntarily leaving a review.~

Disclaimer: I might be venting just a little by the end.

Tropes;
✿🩶𝑫𝒚𝒔𝒕𝒐𝒑𝒊𝒂𝒏 𝑯𝒐𝒓𝒓𝒐𝒓
✿💀𝑷𝒐𝒔𝒕 𝑨𝒑𝒐𝒄𝒂𝒍𝒚𝒑𝒕𝒊𝒄
✿🩶𝑺𝒖𝒓𝒗𝒊𝒗𝒂𝒍
✿💀𝑼𝒏𝒅𝒚𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝑳𝒐𝒗𝒆
✿🩶𝑺𝒕𝒓𝒐𝒏𝒈 & 𝑪𝒂𝒓𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝑭𝑴𝑪
✿💀𝑭𝒊𝒆𝒓𝒄𝒆 & 𝑷𝒓𝒐𝒕𝒆𝒄𝒕𝒊𝒗𝒆 𝑴𝑴𝑪
✿🩶𝑩𝒆𝒍𝒊𝒆𝒗𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒊𝒏 𝑯𝒐𝒑𝒆
✿💀𝑯𝒆𝒂𝒓𝒕-𝑾𝒓𝒆𝒏𝒄𝒉𝒊𝒏𝒈
✿🩶𝑭𝒊𝒏𝒅𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝑯𝒖𝒎𝒂𝒏𝒊𝒕𝒚
✿💀𝑻𝒓𝒂𝒖𝒎𝒂 & 𝑫𝒂𝒓𝒌𝒏𝒆𝒔𝒔
✿🩶𝑳𝒂𝒘𝒍𝒆𝒔𝒔 𝑾𝒐𝒓𝒍𝒅
✿💀𝑷𝒂𝒔𝒕 𝑴𝒂𝒌𝒆𝒔 𝑨 𝑼-𝑻𝒖𝒓𝒏
✿🩶𝑼𝒏𝒅𝒆𝒂𝒅/𝑳𝒂𝒖𝒈𝒉𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒁𝒐𝒎𝒃𝒊𝒆𝒔
✿💀𝑳𝒐𝒘 𝑺𝒑𝒊𝒄𝒆 𝑩𝒖𝒕 𝑺𝒊𝒛𝒛𝒍𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝑯𝒆𝒂𝒕
✿🩶𝑬𝒎𝒐𝒕𝒊𝒐𝒏𝒂𝒍 𝑹𝒐𝒍𝒍𝒆𝒓𝒄𝒐𝒂𝒔𝒕𝒆𝒓
✿💀𝑪𝒖𝒕𝒆 𝑷𝒆𝒕
✿🩶𝑷𝒍𝒐𝒕 𝑻𝒘𝒊𝒔𝒕𝒔
✿💀𝑪𝒍𝒊𝒇𝒇-𝑯𝒂𝒏𝒈𝒆𝒓

It's not fun being an Empath.

🩶✿"𝑰'𝒍𝒍 𝒇𝒐𝒍𝒍𝒐𝒘 𝒚𝒐𝒖 𝒕𝒉𝒆𝒓𝒆."✿🩶

This book is book two in the "Songs of the Tangled Elegies" series and the sequel to "Dark Bloom." You need to read the prequel for it to make sense because it literally picks up from where it ends.

Kate and Nick, our FMC and MMC, continue to try and find some sort of light at the end of the tunnel in their hellish world where there seems to be nothing untainted left. But they don't give up. They both decide on heading for a military base, a safe haven, hopefully. However, they encounter obstacles and work together to overcome them. They also run into a certain someone unexpectedly from Kate's past, which doesn't help her or Nick. Along their journey together, it's one thing after the other that threatens to set them back ten steps. Who is that person who sends Kate back into those dark, intrusive thoughts? Will they reach the safety of the base or run into more obstacles? Is there hope in this treacherous, despairing, and plague-ridden earth?

Kate seems to deal with everything a lot better this time. Her character grows into someone who is a lot more caring, considerate, and strong-minded. I appreciate seeing the improvement. She's thinking more positively, trying to make the best of what they have and what life throws at them. I really feel for her and what she has to overcome, being pushed into a startling situation. We learn more about her previous life before the outbreak as well.

Nick shows more of his sensitive yet vulnerable side in this one. His troubles, his ptsd/flashbacks, makes me sympathise with all that he has to endure, even now. There are layers to his tough exterior, especially in a world where he needs to make quick, difficult decisions on the spot. Literally life or death. The angst and resentment torment him and deal with them to the best of his abilities. (Kate does have a hand in helping him do that, which proves how trusting and closer they become).

Next, the world building is wonderfully put together and just so immersive. Post-apocalyptic and zombie universes are so addictive to me, and this one has me by the hooks, from start to end. The plotline is intriguing, doesn't drag, and keeps the reader immersed with the most heart-wrenching emotional rollercoaster. This book has more of a darker and faster pace with a lot more action. Also, we do meet some new characters and some returning (some of them I want to sparta-kick down to the fiery pits of Hell and others I've come to love and care about.) Loko is adorable, such a good dog/pet. Last but not least, I love the heat and some spice we get.

Do you like a world that constantly wants to drag you into the abyss? Has action and danger, light-heartedness and darkness, love and madness, amazing characters, and absorbing plot-line? Zombies, gore, and survival? Hope and angst? A plot twist twists the knife a few times? Do you want to experience the feeling as if someone rips out your heart, squeezes out the bloody juice, and jams it back inside your chest to expect it to keep pumping? Yeah, you do? Then this one is for you. It's releasing on the 1st of February next month, so TBR it right now.

Thank you, Molly Macabre... I'm not crying (Pft! Yes, I am, my heart is in shambles), but thank you for giving me the opportunity to arc read your work. Easily my number one favourites of 2026. I need both books sitting pretty on my shelf in paperbacks. THEY SHALL BE ADMIRED AND NOT TO BE TOUCHED BY ANYONE.

I'm just not OK. I'm not ok. What just transpired? The ending? I'm ready to throw myself out the window now. And, I actually cried a little. Thank you, Molly Macabre. You write so well. The characters feel real. What THEY feel, I feel. F*CK THE WORLD. I'm going to stare at the wall now.

Out of Fives;
✿🩶𝑪𝒐𝒗𝒆𝒓:✨✨✨✨✨
✿💀𝑫𝒂𝒓𝒌𝒏𝒆𝒔𝒔:🖤🖤🖤🖤🖤
✿🩶𝑪𝒓𝒆𝒆𝒑𝒊𝒏𝒆𝒔𝒔:🧟🧟‍♀️🧟‍♂️🧟🧟‍♀️
✿💀𝑹𝒐𝒎𝒂𝒏𝒄𝒆:🥀🥀🥀🥀🥀
✿🩶𝑺𝒖𝒔𝒑𝒆𝒏𝒔𝒆:⁉️⁉️⁉️⁉️⁉️
✿💀𝑻𝒆𝒏𝒔𝒊𝒐𝒏:🔪🔪🔪🔪🔪
✿🩶𝑨𝒏𝒈𝒔𝒕:💔💔💔💔💔
✿💀𝑫𝒂𝒏𝒈𝒆𝒓:⚠️⚠️⚠️⚠️⚠️
✿🩶𝑽𝒊𝒐𝒍𝒆𝒏𝒄𝒆/𝑮𝒐𝒓𝒆:🪓🪓🪓🪓🪓
✿💀𝑯𝒐𝒑𝒆:🕊️🕊️
✿🩶𝑨𝒄𝒕𝒊𝒐𝒏:💥💥💥💥💥
✿💀𝑪𝒉𝒆𝒎𝒊𝒔𝒕𝒓𝒚:⚡⚡⚡⚡⚡
✿🩶𝑬𝒎𝒐𝒕𝒊𝒐𝒏𝒔:🎲🎲🎲🎲🎲
✿💀𝑲𝒂𝒕𝒆 𝑭𝑴𝑪:🩷🩷🩷🩷🩷
✿🩶𝑵𝒊𝒄𝒌 𝑴𝑴𝑪:🤎🤎🤎🤎🤎
✿💀𝑷𝒍𝒐𝒕𝒍𝒊𝒏𝒆:🎬🎬🎬🎬🎬
✿🩶𝑷𝒂𝒄𝒊𝒏𝒈:⌛⏳⌛⏳⌛
✿💀𝑪𝒉𝒂𝒓𝒂𝒄𝒕𝒆𝒓 𝑫𝒆𝒗𝒆𝒍𝒐𝒑𝒎𝒆𝒏𝒕:🏆🏆🏆🏆🏆
✿🩶𝑾𝒐𝒓𝒍𝒅 𝑩𝒖𝒊𝒍𝒅𝒊𝒏𝒈:🌏🌎🌍🌏🌎
✿💀𝑩𝒐𝒐𝒌 𝑹𝒆𝒄𝒆𝒊𝒗𝒆𝒅: 𝒆𝑨𝑹𝑪/𝑲𝒊𝒏𝒅𝒍𝒆.
✿🩶𝑺𝒆𝒓𝒊𝒆𝒔: 𝑺𝒐𝒏𝒈𝒔 𝒐𝒇 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝑻𝒂𝒏𝒈𝒍𝒆𝒅 𝑬𝒍𝒆𝒈𝒊𝒆𝒔, 𝑩𝒐𝒐𝒌 𝑻𝒘𝒐.
✿💀𝑷𝒂𝒈𝒆𝒔: 300.
✿🩶𝑪𝒉𝒂𝒑𝒕𝒆𝒓𝒔: 58.
✿💀𝑮𝒆𝒏𝒓𝒆: 𝑭𝒊𝒄𝒕𝒊𝒐𝒏, 𝑹𝒐𝒎𝒂𝒏𝒄𝒆, 𝑷𝒐𝒔𝒕 𝑨𝒑𝒐𝒄𝒂𝒍𝒚𝒑𝒕𝒊𝒄.
✿🩶𝑬𝒙𝒑𝒆𝒄𝒕𝒆𝒅 𝑷𝒖𝒃𝒍𝒊𝒄𝒂𝒕𝒊𝒐𝒏: 1 𝑭𝒆𝒃 2026.
✿💀𝑾𝒐𝒖𝒍𝒅 𝑰 𝑹𝒆𝒄𝒐𝒎𝒎𝒆𝒏𝒅: 𝒀𝒆𝒔.
✿🩶𝑶𝒗𝒆𝒓𝒂𝒍𝒍 𝑺𝒕𝒂𝒓 𝑹𝒂𝒕𝒊𝒏𝒈:⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

[Annette Jordan · Rating 5 out of 5]

Without a Whisper is book two in Molly Macabre's Songs of the Tangled Elegies duology and while it picks up from where Dark Bloom ends it takes the action up several notches and packs a punch that has seen me thinking about it several times in the week or so since I finished reading.
Obviously I would recommend reading Dark Bloom before picking this up, not just because it introduces the characters but because it is a really good book in its own right. This one is darker, more action packed and is definitely going to make you feel, so consider that your warning because Molly Macabre is not playing.
While the relative safety of Fort Vanguard has made Nick and Kate's lives a lot easier, their hard fought for peace does not last very long, an unexpected encounter with a face from her past sends Kate spiralling and forces both of them to navigate some very dark thoughts. From there things just keep escalating, every time I thought these characters were out of danger something even more terrifying would happen which meant that the almost 300 pages of the book absolutely flew by, I just did not want to put the book down.
Nick and Kate are flawed characters which only makes them all the more human, and seeing their growth and the development of their relationship as the story unfolded made the ending even more impactful and unforgettable.
The writing is powerful, the author really has built a terrifying world, which meant that I appreciated the moments of humor and levity that she managed to thread through the story all the more. My biggest complaint about the book is that it is the end of the series, I would love to have seem more stories set in this world, but that is a selfish view when the author has given us such unforgettable characters and hours of terror and thrills.
I read an ARC courtesy of the author, all opinions are my own

[Rowena Turner · Rating 5 out of 5]

ARC review.

Wow! I’m sitting here trying to come to terms with the ending, not just of Without a Whisper but with the Songs of the Tangled Elegies duology. They say all good things must come to an end but it still doesn’t make it any easier.

Without a Whisper picks right back up where Dark Bloom left off so seamlessly. We are introduced to some new characters as well as some old characters returning. We realised in Dark Bloom that Nick and Kate don’t do things by halves, and it’s no different in Without a Whisper. When Kate finds herself in a terrible situation she still manages to put other people before herself. It very nearly drives Nick to madness, he barely manages to keep himself together leaving bits of his humanity behind in the process. The only thing that he manages to hold onto is his undying love for the broken woman he fell in love with when the world turned upside down.

The writing in this duology is just brilliant. Molly has a way of pulling you into the story and keeping you wanting more. I hated having to go to sleep/ work when I was fully engrossed in the book.

If you haven’t read Dark Bloom yet, now's your chance before Without a Whisper is released!

[Ven · Rating 4 out of 5]

I was very excited to receive my ARC for Without a Whisper, and it does not disappoint.

This is the 2nd book in a duology, and in many ways feels very different in terms of pace and tone to book 1, building on the various characters we met In DB to investigate themes of holding onto or finding humanity in a destroyed and lawless world, asking us to consider if the biggest threat to in this world is the infected or the survivors of the apocalypse.
Where book 1 dived into the horrors in out POV characters backstories from before the disease decimated the world, this focuses more on the brutality of the current world the characters inhabit, and it does not shy away from it, in fact it leans into those themes while balancing it against Kate and Nicks growing relationship.

Which brings me to the ending, which is genuinely shocked me and managed to fully encompass all the themes mentioned above. Does it answer all the questions it asks, no. But then sometimes its better to leave some mysteries unsolved, even if I REALLY want some of those answers.

Once again, a Massive thank you to Molly for providing me an ARC for this in return for an honest review.

[Uilleam Whitedale · Rating 5 out of 5]

Relentless.

Macabre's sequel to DARK BLOOM picks up in the footsteps of its predecessor and slams the gas peddle through the floor. There is barely time to catch your breath, as every seeming ray of hope for Kate and Nick is turned to rot by some unforeseen obstacle to peace, some revenant of the past, the mind, or rotten flesh. Just when you're convinced that there can't possibly be another mind-crushing, soul-draining trap of fate waiting around the corner, it appears and the world again falls into despair. Though Kate and Nick finally find themselves surrounded by people they can trust in a place that holds the promise of a brighter day, the cards turn against them and all they have in the end is each other. The only question becomes whether or not they will be able to keep each other.

Read DARK BLOOM. Then read WITHOUT A WHISPER. You may be left without enough breath for your own faint plea.

[Kristen Moran · Rating 5 out of 5]

"What kind of life are we living if we only care for ourselves?"

This one sentence means everything for this story. Nick and Kate survive so much together in the first book and this one is no different, except now, their love grows so much more.

The mixture of horror and love this book gives you makes you fear for the characters lives, hoping everything will come out okay for the two of them. Praying that just this once they can find a peace between just them two. But in the midst of outbreak where can peace lie and how much can the author rip your heart to pieces?

I absolutely loved the story told in Without a Whisper, you never expect what will come next. You will start to see how the past comes to present and you see just how much the end of the world is beginning to take its toll.

[S.S. Fitzgerald · Rating 5 out of 5]

"Nothing is more cozy and inviting than SA and zombies ripping people to pieces!"

I think this was a great sequel to Dark Bloom. There are less flashbacks to the pre-outbreak days, and when they do happen, they are integrated into the ongoing narrative. There's a larger assemble of characters added to the mix, which is nice to have people to care about aside from our two main leads. We also get introduced to an actual antagonist aside from our rotting friends, which adds to the stakes of the journey.

-I received this as an Advanced Reader copy-

[RowdyPlayer1 · Rating 5 out of 5]

What can I even say about this book. It was simple amazing! When I read Dark Bloom last year it was the only book to ever give me nightmares and was the best indie book I had ever read. Without a Whisper is without question equally just as great with a totally different emotional beat that will have you fist pumping one minute and in tears the next. If you loved Dark Bloom, you will be blown away with Without a Whisper!!

[Rodney McWilliams · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a very satisfying sequel to Dark Bloom. I had trouble putting it down. The characters are strong and well developed. I won't give away the ending, but it fits.