The Aurea Trilogy

Lei Lancaster does not get caught. Four years after his beloved Ven disappeared, leaving him devastated and unmoored, Lei has grown into a selfish, wisecracker thief, weaseling his way into pockets and panties. When he drunkenly ventures beyond the Magicfolk wall that keeps out Aurea’s ancient silver-skinned enemies and stumbles upon a stranger’s plan to assassinate Aurea’s prince, he’s ready to pull one of his infamous escapes…until he learns Prince Raven may actually be Ven, the king’s captive all this time. And what sort of thief wouldn’t try to steal back the one person who made him feel honest? 

But what is supposed to be a simple rescue evolves into full-tilt war when Magicfolk are blamed for the prince’s disappearance. What’s worse, Prince Raven is not the downy-hearted Ven that Lei remembers, and he loathes the childish crook Lei’s become. Before they can fix anything between them, furious Magicfolk sweep them into the fight they caused, where they discover their kingdom has been built on deadly lies. Magic has never been Aurea’s enemy—only its victim. 

For the first time, Lei is caught. If he can’t pull out his best cons and coin-flips to save Raven and the Magicfolk from the king’s violent, escalating plans, he won’t just lose his own hide, but his second chance at love—and all the lives this connoisseur of nonsense never expected to care about.