Genre

Fantasy, Comic fantasy, time-travel fantasy

Audience

Adult

Author’s Worldview

Catholic

Year Published

2024

Themes

Coming of age, romance, quest, heroism, self-discovery

 

Reviewed by

Corinna Turner

Mark Reid’s thirteenth century girlfriend thinks he’s a coward. She’s used to being courted by warriors, and he’s just an ordinary twenty-first century guy. Desperate to prove himself, Mark embarks on an Arthurian-style quest that will test him in multiple ways. If only he had the slightest idea how to ride a horse, swordfight, or (literally!) face his inner demons. Can he survive his quest—and keep his true love?

This short sequel to Rosaline’s Curse is definitely best read after the first book. Some readers might be frustrated by how short this story is, but it is clearly billed as a novelette at the beginning. Fans of Katherine Campbell’s series will not want to miss it. 

Mark’s Noble Quest explores an inevitable dilemma that is bound to develop between Rosaline and Mark with plenty of humor and adventure. Mark learns some important lessons—the ones about boundaries and about resentment being especially memorable. 

Although the values and lessons are things that will be valued by a Catholic or general Christian audience, there is little that is specifically Christian about the book, making it a good read for a secular audience as well.

A quick, light-hearted read that touches on serious moral lessons.

Hussar by Declan Finn (St. Tommy NYPD Book 8)

It’s been a few years since St. Tommy saved the world. Now his son Jeremy and ward Lena have joined the fight.

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.

Live and Let Bite Review by Declan Finn

The battle with the demons of San Francisco left Marco broken and now Amanda isn’t answering his messages.

A Bloody Habit by Eleanor Bourg Nicholson

An English lawyer runs afoul of necrotic vampires, and even worse things– Dominican Priests!

Gapman by Karina Fabian

Earth has its first superhero—and a dragon’s taking him under his wing.

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.

Vigil by Russell Newquist

“Big Trouble in Little China” meets Saint George and the Dragon

Elfling by Corinna Turner

Serapia Ravena is on a mission to find and keep her father, but he has transgressed a boundary that no creature has the right to cross. Only the mercy of God can resolve this tension.

Brother Wolf by Eleanor Bourg Nicholson

Swept into a werewolf hunt with two nuns, a dashing guardian and a jolly priest, Athene Howard applies her intellectual skills to unravel this mysterious new Papist world.

Best Books of 2018

2018 was a fantastic year for Catholic fiction! Check out our best picks of the year and let us know your favorites.

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.

Doctors, Assassins, and Other Tyrants by Katherine Campbell

Kidnapped princes, delusional assassins, and a dim-witted unicorn. What could possibly go wrong?

Christmas Books to Curl up With

Get into the Advent spirit with stories that entertain and don’t water down the holiday.

Shadowmancer by G.P. Taylor

A dark fantasy along the lines of Revelation itself.

The Glaston Secret by Donal Anthony Foley

Can three modern teens and a little black dog rescue a group of fleeing refugees in Nazi-occupied France?

Trapped in Time by Jerry J. Weis

Can a team of misfit teens save the day in this wholesome time-traveling romp?

November Books To Pray With: For Anyone Who Has Lost a Child

A book list for those who are grieving, and those praying for them.

Snares of the Nether World, by Mary C. Jones

A child and her guardian angel are sent out to rescue a man in danger.

Idol Speculations by Karina Fabian

Can a dragon take on a monster ten times his size?

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.