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! 

October Books to Pray With: For a Shared Mission

A list of books exploring the theme of solidarity between clergy and laity.

The Black Tulip by Alexandre Dumas

Would you die for a flower? Would you kill for one? Providence, romance, and danger rule in this tense, heart-warming prison romance.

Jennifer the Damned By Karen Ullo

A story of a teenage vampire without the glamorous tempting allure, trying to really live in the real world.

Shooting At Heaven’s Gate, by Kaye Park Hinckley

How does an ordinary boy become a mass murderer?

A Distant Prospect by Annette Young

Lucy has been broken by the horrors of polio and the war for Irish Independence. Can Australia offer her a new life and a new home?

Everything Old: Love in Anadauk Book 1 by Amanda Hamm

Two youth group leaders rekindle their friendship and find love with each other along the way.

Heaven’s Hunter By Marie C. Keiser

A man-hunt across space that forever changes both the criminal and the detective.

Welcome Courtney Guest Kim, Our New Classics Editor!

Courtney Guest Kim joins us to help readers figure out where to start in the long and renowned roster of Catholic Literary Classics!

Saving Mt. Rushmore by Andrea Jo Rodgers

John’s summer plans are ruined when he is recruited to a top-secret crime-fighting school, St. Michael’s Academy.

Freedom & Responsibility in “Citizen of the Galaxy” by Robert Heinlein

One of the masters of science fiction delivers a story exploring the limits of freedom and the ongoing battle against fallen human nature.

2021 Summer Reading List for Preteens

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

Treason by Dena Hunt

When the Queen Elizabeth’s agents are sent to investigate a small town, Protestant & Catholic alike must work together to avert tragedy.

Please Don’t Feed the Dinosaurs by Corinna Turner

A series of dino adventures that has been doing better what the mainstream Jurassic Park series only recently attempted.

Mark’s Noble Quest by Katherine Campbell

Can a twenty-first century guy survive an Arthurian quest—and keep his true love?

My Life’s Journey by Dr. Margaret P. Price

One Caribbean woman’s faith-filled rise from village to global health leadership in an age of segregation & prejudice

Odd Thomas by Dean Koontz

Odd Thomas is a fry cook who is haunted by Elvis, sees demons, fights evil and provides a remarkably grounded picture of a man on the path to sainthood.

The Silence of Bones by June Hur

A young slave girl in ancient Korea investigates a murder & meets real life Korean Catholic saints

How the Dragon Awards Could Uplift Catholic Fiction

If you don’t like current state of mainstream publishing and wish there were more widely available alternatives, this is your chance to help make that a reality.

Molly McBride and the Plaid Jumper by Jean Schoonover-Egolf

Molly doesn’t want to take off her purple habit the Children of Mary sisters wear but mom’s says she has to put on the school uniform.

Sisters of the Last Straw Book 1, 2 & 3: by Karen Kelly Boyce

Exploding kitchens, runaway goats, and ghosts in the chapel. Life in the Little Sisters of the Last Straw is never boring.