Trespasses Against Us - Coming April 2009!!

Yes, Book Two of John Paul 2 High is almost here: Trespasses Against Us was just sent to the publisher for proofing last night! We're still working on the cover photo, or I'd post it here for us. I really hope fans enjoy this book: Christian Frank has pulled it off again, and I think this book is even better than the first one! It chronicles George Peterson's "descent into darkness" as he starts seeking revenge against his enemy, Tyler Getz. Meanwhile, Celia Costain is trying to deal with the effects of dating as the school splits up into couples -- and she's not allowed to date. So more tension, more craziness, and more Catholic truth -- coming soon at John Paul 2 High!

Stay tuned for the cover and Chapter One -- coming soon!

No Delays for Book Two~!

BTW to answer some concerns, a message was accidentally sent out from Sophia Press to the effect that Book 2 will not be out for another six months. I am pleased to say that we plan to have the book out a lot sooner than that! But as for a firm date, I don't have that yet. Let's just say we will be working as hard as we can to get it into your hands around Eastertime. Pray for us!

CR Review!

Against-All-Heresies gave a cracking review of Catholic, Reluctantly, the first book in the John Paul 2 High series I created for Catholic teens. Though the book is not written by me, I am its proud midwife. Here's a section of that review....

You really should order it here. You will not be sorry.

...I enjoyed reading them just as much as my daughters did. This book does not shy away from real issues. There are no pollyannas here. The characters are so real that you want to reach out and text them. Or IM them. They are people you would like to have as friends. They are people we would like our teenagers to be and maybe people that we wish we had been. Read More...


BTW to answer some concerns, a message was accidentally sent out from Sophia Press to the effect that Book 2 will not be out for another six months. I am pleased to say that we plan to have the book out a lot sooner than that! But as for a firm date, I don't have that yet. Let's just say we will be working as hard as we can to get it into your hands around Eastertime. Pray for us!

Book Two

For all of you who've asked me: when's the next John Paul 2 High Book coming out?

Right now Book Two is written and it's at the publishers. I don't know yet when they will be bringing it out: but I know this much: if they hear from you readers, they'll probably speed up the process!

So please direct any and all inquiries about the release date for Book Two to: orders@sophiainstitute.com or call 1-800-888-9344.

Here's hoping for Book Two early in the New Year! Merry Christmas!

Review on Catholic Pondering!

Wow! Check out this great review of Book One on "Just another Pondering Catholic..."

My favorite aspect of this book was the fact that, despite having “Catholic” in its title, this book would be great for ANY teen or young adult. There’s no “secret Catholic stuff” included - you don’t have to be a Catholic or even understand anything about the Catholic Church to enjoy this book. One of the main characters isn’t a practicing Catholic and isn’t very familiar with things Catholic, and when the kids at her new school mention things - such as the Divine Mercy Chaplet - she doesn’t understand. And though she does sometimes feel like an idiot, we readers get a natural explanation (and a reminder of just how hard it is to be a teen, and to feel like you don’t fit in) that’s not ponderous or overly cerebral. Read more...

If you're an adult thinking about buying Catholic Reluctantly for your teen, you should read this one.

Interview with Time With Tannia

I forgot to mention earlier that I'm the featured author for September on the blog Time with Tannia by Tannia Ortiz-Lopes. It was a lot of fun to do the interview: she asked very thought-provoking questions! You can find it by clicking here. Here's an excerpt:

Are you working on new projects?
Right now I'm in the thick of launching the John Paul 2 High series for teens (www.johnpaul2high.com). It's a kind of fun "pulp fiction" series, about the adventures of seven kids in a new Catholic high school. I'm the overall editor for the series, and I love it. The first book, Catholic, Reluctantly is out on amazon now. It's not pious tripe: it's a pretty gritty story about real teens with real issues. I think Catholic teens from any kind of background will find it speaks to them where they're at.
Going back to missing Joshua, after he died, I found myself drawn to start writing another series of novels, which is now in the planning stages. Read more...

Catholic Reluctantly for Bookstores!

Up until now, Catholic, Reluctantly has been a print-on-demand book, but this week I learned that sales are such that Sophia Press is about to do a traditional print run on the book and enter it into their bookstore program: hooray! This means wider distribution for us and hopefully more sales! I'd like to encourage readers who liked the book to ask their local Catholic (or secular!) bookstore to consider stocking Catholic, Reluctantly. It's distributed through Ingram.

Bookstores not on Sophia Press's regular bookstore program can click here for terms of sale and wholesale prices. For bookstore terms, for our terms). And any youth ministers or teachers who want to order the book for use in their classroom can get a discount for orders of 5 or more books. Email Sophia Press if you're interested!