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! 

Heavenly Rescues and Answered Prayers: True Stories of Faith and Miracles from a First Responder by Andrew Jo Rodgers

A book that’s great to have on hand when one needs a reminder that there are good people out there and that God’s hand is in everything.

Mary, Mystical Rose By, J.T. Frodin

Why is Mary called the Mystical Rose? An interactive children’s book.

The Exile by Allison Ramirez

Is there hope beyond the Island of Mirror?

How to Nourish Your Marriage by M.C. So

Steps to improve your marriage with the sacraments.

Christmas Books to Curl up With

Get into the Advent spirit with stories that entertain and don’t water down the holiday.

Boxers and Saints by Gene Luen Yang

This two part graphic novel tells its story from 2 sides China’s bloody civil war: A Boxer Rebel & a “traitor” Christian-Convert.

Seeking Allah Finding Jesus by Nabeel Qureshi

When a Muslim man asks God to show him who he is, he is unprepared for the answer.

Nowhither by John C. Wright

Ilya Muromets fights off a dozens of tempting sirens and finally grows into the man he needs to be to defeat the Dark Tower.

Lioness Lost by Susan Brinkmann

Can Ari solve a murder, or will a handsome FBI agent distract her?

Sister Aloysius Comes to Mercyville By Linda Etchison, Illustrated by Denise Plumlee-Tadlock

A young nun teaches children how to offer up their daily irritations to God.

Life Choices The Gift By Pat Wiedemer, Neil Thompson, Philip Kosloski

Casey’s birthday present to Josh is a little more than they bargained for.

Where to begin with J. R. R. Tolkien?

Beyond the adventure, the way to read The Lord of the Rings is not as an allegory but as a meditation on the human Story we are each caught up in, and in which we each have our part to play, our temptations to resist, and our task to accomplish.

Editor’s Choice Awards 2025

2025 Our Favorite Books we Read this Year

The World is Awake By Linsey Davis

An adventure of daily joy, inspired by the Psalm, “This is the day the Lord has made.”

The Last Monks of Skellig Michael by Philip Kosloski

The Christian monastic roots of Star Wars’ Jedi Knights.

Saint Magnus: The Last Viking by Susan Peek

A young Viking Prince evades a warlord while finding his own harrowing path to sainthood.

Murder Most Picante by Karina Fabian

The government can’t decide whether he is an illegal immigrant or invasive species. God expects a respectable dragon to find justice for others. This Dragon is not having a good time of it!

Where to Begin with Flannery O’Connor

Flannery O’Connor dissected the Devil for a generation that was busy explaining evil away. She perceived God at work in grotesque places. Was she right?

Will Wilder and the Relic of Perilous Falls

Follow Will Wilder as he discovers a hidden world, fights demons and rescues a hidden treasure!