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! 

Our Lady of the Artilects by Andrew Gillsmith

Robots, Souls, Muslim & Catholic Friendships, and the sacramental reality that binds them all together.

Sunrise on the Icewolf by Colleen Drippe

Helen grew up on a world ruled by women where showing interest in your father is taboo, but she will journey across planets to save him.

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!

June & July Book Releases

The hottest new books in Catholic fiction

Tortured Soul by Theresa Linden

Looking for a book that puts Christ not just back into Christmas but into Halloween too? Throw in a dash of ghost story, mystery, and romance and you have A Tortured Soul.

Wanderings of an Ordinary Pilgrim by Tim Bete

Poetry that will take you deeper into Scripture and help you see the extraordinary in the simple.

Dex’s Way by Karina Fabian

Surviving the Black Hole was only the first part, now Dex will have to survive the far future and reunite with Santiago.

Three Last Things or The Hounding of Carl Jarrold, Soulless Assassin by Corinna Turner

The last day of a convicted murderer’s life: Can he save his soul in time?

Hidden: Don’t Fear the Unseen by Verity Lucia

Clare Thomson wasn’t sure she believed in angels and demons – until she could see them.

The Little Mermaid by Hans Christian Anderson

Discover the far deeper, more salvific tale that Disney turned into romantic fluff.

Minding Mom: A Caregiver’s Devotional Story By Lisa Livezey

A fifty-two-day devotional book for caregivers.

Pilgrim River: A Spiritual Memoir by Kenneth Garcia 

“I see a small-time scholar and a semi-autistic loner, a flawed man who has persistently sought the Holy. The Quiet One.”

Siren Spell by Karina Fabian

Immortal dragon Vern can handle anything—until a curse turns him human…

The Exile by Allison Ramirez

Is there hope beyond the Island of Mirror?

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.

My Name is Philomena By Fr. Peregrine Fletcher, O. Praem

Who was St. Philomena, daughter of light?

Best of 2023 Book Awards

Our favorite books that we reviewed in 2023. If you want Catholic literature but don’t know where to start this, (and previous award winners) is the list for you.

Prayer Journal by Flannery O’Connor

An intimate window into the mind of a great artist and honest Christian

PANIC! (unSPARKed #3) by Corinna Turner

It’s a three hour drive unSPARKed, and for city-folk, anything might cause PANIC!

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.