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! 

North Pacific: A Story of Life, Love, Suffering, and Grace by Michael Steffan

Joseph & Miku’s love was already illegal. Then WWII began. Now home, disabled, and questioning God’s love, he still searches for her.

Books to Pray With: April, For the Role of Women

A book list with prayerful reflection on the gift of women in the church. Pray and read along with us and the Pope’s monthly reflections for 2024.

The Light of Tara by John Desjarlais

As the power of Rome crumbles, a teenage St. Patrick must decide between his home and sacrificing himself for those who had enslaved him.

The Singer not the Song by Audrey Erskine Lindop (AKA The Bandit and the Priest)

A priest and a bandit king face off for the fate of a small Mexican town in this thrilling western adventure.

Broken and Blessed: An Invitation to My Generation By Fr. Josh Johnson

Fr. Josh addresses some of the common misconceptions people have about God and what getting to actually know him actually means.

Shooting At Heaven’s Gate, by Kaye Park Hinckley

How does an ordinary boy become a mass murderer?

Celtic Crossing by Len Mattano

Relic lost, and faith found.

Shadow of the Bear by Regina Doman

An intriguing story that will enchant with a sweet romance and take you on a thrill ride through the Gothic version of modern-day New York City.

Kiss Me Goodnight By Maurice Prater, Illustrated by Cecilia Lawrence

A sweet story bedtime story about familial love.

The City Mother By Maya Sinha

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

House of War by Carlos Carrasco

With the government on the verge of outlawing Christianity, a group of Catholics launch a new Crusade.

The Lucky Diamond By Valinora Troy

An exciting Middle Grade magical fantasy quest, full of monsters, witches, and adventure

I, Claudia By Lin Wilder

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

Unlikely Witnesses by Leslea Wahl

When four boys glimpse a crime in their Colorado town they end up in an interrogation cell of the FBI.

Prayer Journal by Flannery O’Connor

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

Lying Awake by Mark Salzman

A cloistered nun confronts her faith when she realizes that the private revelations she has been given might be the product of epilepsy.

My Son, The Father by Jim Moore

The story of a young priest through the eyes of his father and friends.

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.

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.