Kritika H. Rao is a writer of science-fiction and fantasy. She has lived in India, Australia, Canada and the Sultanate of Oman and currently resides in Calgary, Alberta.
Fiction
The Enduring Universe
London: Titan Books, 2025.
Series: The Rages Trilogy
The worst has happened. The Conclave has crashed into the jungle, and humanity clings to survival in the ruins, within one last city.
Equally revered and feared by her council, Ahilya desperately tries to balance the needs of her people with the untameable desires of the trapped Virohi.
All Iravan sees is a crumbling bastion being eaten from the inside out. Answering to no law, he wants to destroy the Virohi before they can wipe out the human race.
As Ahilya and Iravan wage war, the planet rebels, unleashing new rages of untold power. With extinction the price of their failure, the two must face up to their mistakes to forge peace between themselves – to save each other and humanity.
Fiction
The Legend of Meneka
Harper Voyager, 2025.
Publisher’s Synopsis (From its website)
Across the mortal and immortal realms, apsaras—celestial dancers who serve the gods—are revered for their beauty, allure, and spellbinding magic. But Meneka knows that is not all they are. Trained as a weapon—a warrior—she wields illusions that ensnare mortals and advance her lord Indra’s political ambitions. She has played her part well, but the yearning for freedom is growing harder to ignore.
When a mortal sage named Kaushika rises in power and threatens Indra’s rule, Meneka seizes her chance. In exchange for one final mission, Indra promises to set her free. But Kaushika is no ordinary mortal.Fierce, passionate, and wise, he begins to unravel everything Meneka believes. Can she overthrow the man who is, little by little, stealing her heart? As war looms, Meneka must choose: remain loyal to the realm that forged her, or surrender to the desires awakening inside her.
Fiction
The Rise of the Celestials: A Divine Dancers Novel
Harper Voyager, 2026.
forthcoming April 2026
Publisher’s Synopsis (From its website)
After completing her dangerous mission to seduce Sage Kaushika—and unexpectedly finding love in the process—Meneka enjoys a fragile freedom. She now lives in the mortal realm with Kaushika, both learning to trust each other. Yet deep differences linger between them, and conflicting loyalties may still tear them apart.
The illusion of peace shatters when Meneka is abruptly summoned back to the City of Immortals by Lord Indra, who demands her help in facing a threat from the demonic realm. Meneka wants nothing to do with Indra’s schemes, but she can’t return to Kaushika unless she complies. If she fails, her immortal home will fall, Kaushika will be lost to her, and her very identity as an apsara will become forfeit.
To save all she loves, Meneka must navigate the darkest corners of the Immortal Realm, pursued by monsters and demons. But the greatest danger lies in a truth she cannot outrun—one that could shatter her bond with Kaushika forever.
Fiction (Juvenile, Picture book)
Shivi’s Big Leap
Illustrated by Sandhya Prabhat.
Feiwel & Friends, 2025.
Publisher’s Synopsis (From its website)
Shivi can’t wait to return to the activity center with his mom and dad. Today is the day – he’s finally going to reach the top of the climbing wall.
But when he arrives, the climbing wall is much higher than he remembered. How will he ever reach the top?
When Shivi realizes he can channel his favorite Hindu god, Hanuman, to summon the courage to scale the wall, he starts to imagine exactly how Hanuman would reach his goal. Hanuman is brave – bold – fearless. Shivi can be all of those things too – right?
Fiction
The Surviving Sky
London: Titan Books, 2023.
Series: The Rages Trilogy
Publisher’s Synopsis (From its website)
High above a jungle-planet float the last refuges of humanity—plant-made civilizations held together by tradition, technology, and arcane science. Here, architects are revered deeply, with humanity’s survival reliant on a privileged few. If not for their abilities, the cities would plunge into the devastating earthrage storms below.
Charismatic and powerful, Iravan is one such architect. His abilities are his identity, but to Ahilya, his archeologist wife, they are a method to suppress non-architects. Their marriage is thorny and fraught—yet when a jungle expedition goes terribly wrong, jeopardizing their careers, Ahilya and Iravan must work together to save their reputations. But as their city begins to plummet, their discoveries threaten not only their marriage, but their entire civilization.
Fiction
The Unrelenting Earth
London: Titan Books, 2024.
Series: The Rages Trilogy
Publisher’s Synopsis (From its website)
Two months have passed since Ahilya and Iravan learned the devastating truths behind the earthrages. As the cosmic creatures struggle to break into the world, and Nakshar’s architecture disintegrates, the desperate council summons their sister ashrams to a Conclave, to discuss the future of life in the skies.
Ahilya, now a councillor, is determined to share the truth about the cosmic beings and the nature of Ecstatic trajection so she can liberate ordinary citizens and save the condemned architects. Her conviction has alienated her allies and created dangerous enemies. Only Iravan has a chance of persuading the Conclave that Ecstatics are not unstable, but he returns from the jungle struggling with his own Ecstasy. He has little control over his second-self, the primal falcon yaksha, and finds the Conclave hostile to his cause.
As strange, deadly storms break out, threatening refuge even in the skies, Iravan and the other Ecstatic architects face brutal reprisals. And with the barrier restraining the cosmic beings thinning, Ahilya and Iravan know they are running out of time to save everyone. Thrust into the center of the storm, both will have to confront what matters most to them, who they really are, and what it means for the future of humanity.
Links
Kritika H. Rao personal website
Publisher Feiwel & Friends, an imprint of Macmillan Children’s Publishing Group
Publisher HarperCollins Canada
Publisher Titan Books