Jewel Empire

Four inhabitants of the Jewel Empire find themselves summoned for an audience with the empress. Each one knows why: Kane, the ambassador of the Jewel Empire, who is surely being blamed for some of the chaos that has plagued his home. Captain Yasira, who's certainly in trouble for her crew losing a shipment of dreamwine. Mervi, whose addiction to silver got her cast out of the palace despite her rare talent for metallurgy. Val, who has helped too many imperial laborers escape across the border.

When they arrive, the four are surprised to find that they are not, in fact, being called to the gallows as each had assumed. Instead, the empress has brought them together for an impossible and probably lethal mission. They are to rescue the regional imperial governor (also the empress's favorite niece) from a group of mercenaries from Ganar, a region to the South.

They are grateful for the chance to escape punishment for their crimes, but first, they must succeed. If they do, each will get what they desire most. If they fail, the consequences could be deadly.

What seems like an easy mission at first soon grows more challenging as countless obstacles mar their path. The only way for them to make it through is to work together and use their unique skillsets for good. The only problem is that, for a bunch of criminals, working as a team doesn't come easily . . .

The Jewel Empire is an accessible fantasy with familiar tropes like heists and unlikely friendships that will appeal to many non-genre readers.