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! 

When Headlines Hurt: Do We Have a Prayer? by Bill Schmitt

The Pope’s Words of Hope for Journalism

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’

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.

December Books to Pray With: Pilgrims of Hope

A Catholic book list focused on the theme of hope and sense of journey as we look toward the jubilee year of 2025. Use these entertaining fiction stories to deepen your prayer life and renew the virtue of hope.

End of Year Releases

The newest stories in Catholic literature! End your year with a good book.

I, Claudia By Lin Wilder

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

King of the Shattered Glass by Susan Joy Bellavance

An orphan maid braves the wrath of the King when she breaks his precious glassware but realizes true beauty of forgiveness and broken glass.

The Silence of Bones by June Hur

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

Absence by Kaye Park Hinckley

Absence will chill you with the stark reminder that human beings are not just bodies, but souls whose spiritual influence cannot be suppressed, even when the bodies have gone missing.

September Books to Pray With: For the Cry of the Earth

Let us pray that each of us listen with our hearts to the cry of the Earth and of the victims of
environmental disasters and the climate crisis, making a personal commitment to care for the world
we inhabit.

Help from Heaven by Andrea Jo Rodgers

In this year of tragedy, Rodgers reminds us of the miracle of human kindness.

Vote in the Catholic Reader’s Choice Award!

Make your voice heard & champion good Catholic literature

Defend the Tabernacle by Deacon Patrick Augustin Jones

Catherine and Bernard get whisked away to do battle on the Soulscape, where the true nature of things is revealed.

Saint Magnus: The Last Viking by Susan Peek

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

In Whom I Am Well Pleased By Edward T. Byrne

A father recounts the highs and lows of his beloved son who took his own life.

Angel of Death by Brian O’Hare

A murdered archbishop launches DCI Sheehan on the track of a sectarian serial killer, as well as on a journey back to the faith of his childhood.

Battle for his Soul by Theresa Linden

Bereft of a mother & betrayed by his twin, Jarret fights for a place to call home, unaware a supernatural war threatening to damn him to hell itself.

Best of 2020

Yes some good things DID happen this year- Catholic creators have not let turmoil stop their mission.

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.