A Thousand Nights by E.K. Johnston

Lo-Melkhiin has had three hundred wives, and all of them have died; some lasted only one night. When he comes to her village, she knows Lo-Melkhiin will take her beloved sister, the most beautiful girl there. So she takes her sister's place, expecting to die. But she survives the first night. Still, the palace is a dangerous place; her husband even more so. Her only chance of survival lies in the stories she spins, which, fuelled by her sister's prayers, keep coming true. The magic behind the stories has kept her alive so far, but is it enough to defeat the monster inside her husband?

This is a beautiful re-telling of the Arabian Nights, with a king whose wives keep dying, and a young woman who survives 1000 nights, but there the similarities end. The language is poetic and evocative, and while the ending may be predictable, the path it takes to get there is not.

Recommend this to teens who like retold fairytales, vivid settings, or subtle magic.