The Stardust Thief

Loulie al-Nazari, known as the Midnight Merchant, is a notorious black market dealer of illegal magical artifacts, aided by her loyal jinn bodyguard. When her use of forbidden magic saves a cowardly prince's life, she inadvertently draws the attention of his father, the Sultan. Blackmailed into a perilous quest under penalty of death, Loulie must retrieve an ancient, wondrous lamp capable of restoring the land's fertility – but also of destroying all jinn. She embarks on this dangerous journey accompanied by one of the Sultan's sons and a fierce woman from his Forty Thieves, who harbors a deep hatred for jinn. Alongside her jinn protector, they face relentless ghul attacks, a vengeful jinn queen, and a dangerous assassin from Loulie's past, whose reemergence unearths a royal secret threatening to plunge the sultanate into war. In a world where stories become reality and illusions hold sway, Loulie discovers that her burdens – her enemies, her magic, and even her past – are not what they seem, forcing her to confront her true identity and shape the destiny thrust upon her.