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! 

The Fifth Gospel by Ian Caldwell

This is NOT another DaVinci Code, but it is so cleverly disguised as one it makes the perfect gift for your anti-Catholic friends and family.

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.

Prayer Journal by Flannery O’Connor

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

The Light of Christmas Morning by Susan Joy Bellavance, Illustrated by Anne Kissanne Engelhart

A cozy Christmas bed time story that puts Catholic traditions front and center

 

Pink Noise by Leonid Korogodski

A classic Martian adventure that plumbs the spiritual life of a future humanity.

The City Mother By Maya Sinha

She didn’t believe in good and evil, until she became a mother…

Worth Dying For By Marie C. Keiser

In the shady corporate-ruled galaxy, a man can acknowledge no god. Yet having nothing worth dying for frightens Mark more than death itself.

Extraordinary! by Jacqueline Brown, Illustrated by Katie Anne Ennis

Make your child feel secure and loved by God and their Catholic family.

The Catholic Origins of Dracula & Women’s Suffrage 

Did you know that Bram Stoker’s wife was a Catholic & he considered converting himself at one time?

Best Books of 2021

2021 brought many changes but the effects these books had on us remains as stalwart as the rock of Peter.

The Wrecker’s Daughter By G.M. Baker

When Hannah learns that the Bible verse she has lived by is not found anywhere in Scripture, she realizes that the culture that has formed her is completely corrupt.

Silence by Shusaku Endo

The story that introduced faith to one of the most secular nations on Earth

The Wish Thief by C.D. Verhoff

Glory steals an unusual gem to save her family but winds up threatening an entire world.

How Sweet the Sound by Courtney Guest Kim

Annette makes all the wrong decisions for her love life—but through Grace finds true wisdom.

Outlaws of Ravenhurst, by Sr. M. Imelda Wallace, S.L.

The 10-year-old heir of a noble Scottish family must choose between his inheritance and his Catholic faith.

All in Good Time by Carolyn Astfalk

A truly healthy romance that will STILL leave you up at night

A Changing of the Guard; Three Last Things Book 2 by Corinna Turner

A priest to Death Row inmates, Fr. Jacob must face the earthly consequences of ‘love thy enemy’

For Those Fleeing Their Country: June Books to Pray With Series

A reading list to reflect on the plight of migrants and refugees. We pray that migrants fleeing from war or hunger, forced to undertake journeys full of danger and violence, find welcome and new opportunities in the countries that receive them.

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.”

Silly Sophie’s Summer Sunday Morning By: Alexandra Sizemore

Keep holy the Lord’s Day—joyfully–with Silly Sophie the Spaniel.