Set in the far future, this book portrays a young woman who reluctantly resumes her life as a monarch, a fate from which she fled as a child. Shortly after her return to the Palace, she faces personal and global crises that threaten the way of life her people have known for 300 years. While centered on a young woman seeking to set herself apart from her family legacy, the book explores an environmentally-conscious society where everyone is provided their basic needs in exchange for each person’s contribution of skill and knowledge. Pouring the Cup is the first novel in a series chronicling a human colony on a world 100 light-years away from Earth, where the new residents maintain the planet’s natural beauty by living cleaner, simpler lives.