Dr. Lisa Theus

Historical Fiction Editor

Lisa Theus thinks one of the best ways to get to know somebody is their favorite books, and she credits Eiji Yoshikawa’s Musashi with helping her fall in love with her now husband. Her favorite works include (listed chronologically!): The Epic of Gilgamesh, Thucydides’ History of the Peloponnesian War, Ovid’s Metamorphoses, Thomas à Kempis’ Imitation of Mary, the poetry of John Donne, J.R.R. Tolkien’s Lord of the Rings, Robin McKinley’s The Blue Sword, and Pope Benedict XVI’s Jesus of Nazareth.

She has spent most of her life training herself how to think like an ancient Roman (she earned a PhD in Classics at Rutgers University and taught college courses for several years). Eventually, she left academia for something more stable–working first as a church secretary for her local Catholic parish and now as an assistant for a financial advisor. She can’t keep her head out of history or rich worlds, however, and she loves reading about noble heroes and the difficult pursuit of virtue–however that may manifest. Bonus points for an engaging cast of characters and strong worldbuilding.
When she isn’t working for her paycheck, she’s pursuing the life of a freelance writer and editor; building her own worlds; volunteering in her community; or playing video games with her husband.

Corinna Turner

Fantasy Editor

Carnegie Medal Award nominated author Corinna Turner has been writing since she was fourteen and likes strong protagonists with plenty of integrity. She has an MA in English from Oxford University, but has foolishly gone on to work with both children and animals! Juggling work with the disabled and being a midwife to sheep, she spends as much time as she can in a little hut at the bottom of the garden, writing.

She is a Catholic Christian with roots in the Methodist and Anglican churches. A keen cinema-goer, she lives in the UK. She used to have a Giant African Land Snail, Peter, with a six inch long shell and an even larger foot, but now makes do with a cactus and a campervan! 

Trapped in Time by Jerry J. Weis

Can a team of misfit teens save the day in this wholesome time-traveling romp?

For the Pastoral Care of the Sick: July Books to Pray with Reading List

Use your recreational reading to foster an empathetic and Catholic imagination. A reading list to reflect on the sacrament of anointing of the sick, for them and their caregivers.

2021 Summer Reading List for Preteens

Six series that are a must-have for your Preteen’s library ages 8-13

Misshelved Magic by S.R. Crickard

A non-magical librarian and a student mage discover the secrets of a magical library.

Books for Lent

Deepen your Lenten reflection with these stories of repentance and forgiveness

A Truly Clawful Christmas By Corinna Turner

Father Benedict must learn to embrace the adrenaline rush if he’s going to survive being a rural priest living alongside dinosaurs.

City of Shadows by Declan Finn

St. Tommy uncovers a group of elites using an ancient artifact to destroy London.

Introducing Our New Romance & Poetry Editor Tiffany Buck

Poet Tiffany Buck joins the Catholic Reads team!

A Life Decision by Laurie M. Lamb

When Joe and Peyton find out that their unborn baby may have Down Syndrome, they are faced with a devastating decision.

The Reluctant Queen: The Story of Esther by Lin Wilder

Chosen by Xerxes to be queen, chosen by God to be savior of His people: the story of Esther.

Books to Pray with: January The Gift of Diversity

Every month in 2024 Pope Francis has a monthly prayer intention. Every month we will release a book list that will draw your heart and soul deeper into prayer on these topics.
January starts the year off with praying for and in thanks of the gift of diversity to the church.

Coven (Book 7 of St. Tommy Series): By Declan Finn

St. Tommy fights the CPS and a group of pagans who have taken over a military base.

The Branded Ones by Colleen Drippe

Fr. Ruiz has little idea what he’s getting into when he takes a post on the isolated and pagan planet of Fen.

The Heart of the Matter by Graham Greene

“Virtue, the good life, tempted him in the dark like a sin.”

A Very Jurassic Christmas by Corinna Turner

Christmas with Jurassic dinosaurs is often wild!

Through the Ashes by Jacqueline Brown

Fans of The 100 and Runaway’s and The Gifted will find this YA story riveting.

Servant of the Suffering: Rose Hawthorne by Voyage Comics

The great-great-great-granddaughter of a Salem witch trial judge is on her way to Catholic sainthood.

Climb the Tree by Michael Bertrand

Investigations into a haunted suburban community mixes the fun of Stranger Things with the other-worldly sense of Tales from the Loop and the madness of House of Leaves.

I, Claudia By Lin Wilder

Will the extraordinary events lead the wife of Pontius Pilate, Claudia Procula, to the Son of God?

The River of Life by Diana González Tabbaa

The death of little Anthony’s father shakes his faith until a heaven-sent friend helps him find his way back to God.