Arctic Prison — Gail Z. Martin

Survival is the ultimate defiance. Condemned to Velant Prison for killing the man who dishonored his sister, Blaine McFadden faces imprisonment for life in a brutal arctic penal colony. The harsh climate and sadistic guards are enough to break a man, and most prisoners don't live long. When a corrupt overseer and a ruffian gang threaten Blaine and a core group of convict friends, they decide to take matters into their own hands -- consequences be damned.

When Blaine McFadden killed the man who dishonored his sister, King Merrill exiled him to Velant Prison on far-away Edgeland, an arctic penal colony known for its brutality. If the icy cold and the hard labor doesn't kill them, the prison's sadistic commandant just might. But Blaine and his convict friends didn't come this far to die easily, and they have no intention of going down without a fight.
The King's Convicts and the upcoming King's Exiles fill the six-year gap at the beginning of Ice Forged, the first novel in Gail Z. Martin's Ascendant Kingdoms epic fantasy series.