Allison's Defeat (Rise of the Emissary book I)
Sixteen year old Allison has definite plans for her future. A Fender Stratocaster, to marry her childhood sweetheart, and the cover of Rolling Stone is all she wants. So when a new school friend tells her she is to be God's warrior, and a black cloaked woman enters her life with murderous intentions, she fears her dreams will soon evaporate.
Scheherazade (1001 Arabian Nights volume 1: Nights 1-3)
The Sassanian Empire is ruled by a ruthless King who marries a different woman every night and orders her execution the next morning. With the population running thin of potential brides, Ismail is tasked with finding the new queen.
So when his own daughter offers to marry the king herself, Ismail is horrified. She has a plan, though. She can save herself. She can save her father. And she can save every woman who still draws breath in the Empire. And it all begins with a story.