July 2026 Voting > Likes and Comments
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My votes are for the Anti-Mary Exposed and Light in Darkness.
My votes are for Conversation With Christ and With Two Eyes Into Gehenna.
Viper's tangleWith two eyes into Gehenna
My votes The Rifle and other stories
With the eyes into Gehenna
My votesConversations with Christ
In Pieces
The Secret of the Holy Face,please or Anti-Mary Exposed.
The secret of the Holy Face and Light from Darkness
Viper's tangleWith two eyes into Gehenna
Our Lady of the Sign by Abigail FavaleThe Rifle, and Other Stories by Tomás Carrasquilla
I vote forThe Secret of the Holy Face and
Light from Darkness
My votes: Anti Mary and Conversations with Christ
Viper's Tangle (Le noeud de vipères, par François Mauriac) - I will be reading the original French version.
The Anti-Mary Exposed and Reclaiming Quiet
With two eyes into GehennaViper's tangle
I vote for This Thing of Darkness and A Cardiologist Examina Jesus.
The Secret of the Holy Face: The Devotion Destined to Save SocietyAND
Burning Bush
The Holy Face of Jesus and Light from Darkness
I vote for "Execution of the Justice" by Elisabetta Sala and, "With Two eyes into Gehenna" by Jane Lebak.
A Cardiologist Examines Jesus: The Stunning Science Behind Eucharistic MiraclesConversation With Christ: The Teaching of St. Teresa of Avila About Personal Prayer
Conversations with Christ and Light from the darkness. Thank you.
The Theresa of Avila book by Rohrback.
The book(s) with the most votes will be our BOTM. If there is a tie, the moderator uses a random list generator to determine the order and they are all read over however many months. Books that receive fewer than 2 votes will be removed from the Voting List, with those that receive 1 vote being placed at the end of the Nominations List.
Voting will end at approximately 11:00 AM Eastern Time on Monday, May 18.
The Voting List for July is:
The Anti-Mary Exposed: Rescuing the Culture from Toxic Femininity by Carrie Gress, nominated by Emmy
In the late ’60s, a small group of elite American women convinced an overwhelming majority of the country that destroying the most fundamental of relationships—that of mother and child—was necessary for women to have productive and happy lives. From the spoiling of this relationship followed the decay of the entire family, and almost overnight, our once pro-life culture became pro-lifestyle, embracing everything that felt good. Sixty million abortions later, women aren’t showing signs of health, happiness, and fulfillment.
Voting History: November 2025: 4; January: 6; February: 4; April: 4
The Burning Bush by Sigrid Undset, nominated by Fonch
Second part to The Wild Orchid, which we read in December 2021. See discussion here: https://www.goodreads.com/topic/group...
Voting History: April: 2
A Cardiologist Examines Jesus: The Stunning Science Behind Eucharistic Miracles by Franco Serafini, nominated by John
The Gospels might not be “good enough” for modernity, and science is certainly its god. But neither is an impediment to the one, true God. Indeed, He is using methods of the twenty-first century — His twenty-first century — to show how our Faith can be proven through Eucharistic miracles with clinical scientific precision.
Voting History: NONE
Conversation With Christ: The Teaching of St. Teresa of Avila About Personal Prayer by Peter-Thomas Rohrbach nominated by Sebastian and Fonch
The practicality of St. Teresa's teaching about mental prayer shines through in this wonderful synopsis of her writings about it–something she said "the whole world could not purchase." Learn how we should pray, in order to grow in the spiritual life.
Voting History: February: 4; April: 2
The Execution of Justice, Elisabetta Sala, nominated by Susan and renominated by Fonch
When Jack Digby’s father is executed for high treason, the boy’s dream life turns into the worst of nightmares; and when he is forced into the murky, ruthless world of double agents and cowardly betrayals, his fate would seem to be already written. As he grows up, however, he discovers that something is wrong with the official narrative concerning his father’s tragic end. It will take time and suffering for him to discover that things are rarely as they seem, that the King’s Men – the greatest playing company of all time – are not just simple entertainers; that our most bitter enemies may turn into our best friends; that, at times, Fair is Foul and Foul is Fair.
Voting History: NONE
In Pieces by Rhonda Ortiz, nominated by Fonch
Beautiful and artistic, the only daughter of a prominent merchant, Molly Chase cannot help but attract the notice of Federalist Boston—especially its men. But she carries a painful secret: her father committed suicide and she found his body. Now nightmares plague her day and night, addling her mind and rendering her senseless. Molly needs a home, a nurse, and time to grieve and to find new purpose in life. But when she moves in with her friends, the Robbs, spiteful society gossips assume the worst. And when an imprudent decision leads to public scandal, Molly is tempted to take the easy way out: a marriage of convenience.
Voting History: NONE
Light From Darkness: Nine Times the Catholic Church Was in Turmoil- and Came Out Stronger Than Before by Steve Weidenkopf, nominated by John
Ask Catholics about the crisis in the Church today and you’ll often get one of two The end is upon us! or Everything’s fine—the Holy Spirit is in charge!Neither of those attitudes makes sense from the perspective of history, says Steve Weidenkopf (The Real Story of Catholic History). In his new book, Light from Darkness, Weidenkopf shows how the Church’s past ages were no less tumultuous than our own. Yet, whether it was decadent hierarchs selling out the Faith for pleasure and power, or hostile princes, heresies, or ideologies (sometimes all three at once) menacing Christendom, the Catholic Church not only persisted during hard times but came through them stronger than before.In each case, though, Weidenkopf demonstrates how the Church’s survival was not an accident or a last-minute miracle.
Voting History: NONE
Our Lady of the Sign by Abigail Favale nominated by Emmy
A successful college professor in her thirties, Simone Stark has achieved everything she has strived for—everything other than happiness. One winter day, in the face of unexpected news, Simone impulsively returns to her isolated hometown after a long absence. The snowy mountain landscape is meant to provide sanctuary, a sense of refuge, but instead awakens long-dormant desires and buried pain. When Simone reunites with her first love, a tantalizing future opens. But in the darkness of Simone’s childhood home, a series of unsettling encounters begins, revealing a presence that is both alluring and terrifying, a force she cannot decipher as good or evil, diabolic or divine. Is it a manifestation of her own inner demons or something far more real?
Voting History: NONE
Reclaiming Quiet: Cultivating a Life of Holy Attention by Sarah Clarkson, nominated by Jill
In a noisy world, the cultivation of quiet may feel like a luxury you do not have. But it is also vital to your spiritual life. When we spend our days distracted by social media, news, entertainment, and jam-packed schedules, we make it nearly impossible to experience the kind of thought life that allows us to grow into the people God created us to be--to become more and more like Jesus.
Voting History: April: 2
The Rifle, and Other Stories by Tomás Carrasquilla, nominated by Steven R.
The Rifle, and Other Stories collects eleven stories spanning the literary career of Tomás Carrasquilla, the "first Colombian novelist", whose work is widely known within the country, and a high-school standard in the department of Antioquia, home to the city of Medellín. His novels and short stories straddle the traditional stylings of Costumbrismo and an anti-Modernist, picaresque realism, with a consistent focus on manifestations of Catholicism in both domestic and communal spheres.
Voting History: April: 2
The Secret of the Holy Face: The Devotion Destined to Save Society by Fr. Lawrence Daniel Carney III, nominated by Sandralena
From the creation of man to the current ecclesial infiltration and world revolution, the devil and his minions have sought to destroy the human race made in the image of God. No longer attacking from without, they are now secretly laying siege from within the Holy Roman Catholic Church. But why is God allowing this? He loves to see souls heroically battle for the faith.
Voting History: April: 4
This Thing of Darkness by K.V. Turley and Fiorella De Maria, nominated by Emmy
Hollywood, 1956. Journalist and war widow Evangeline Kilhooley is assigned to write a "star profile" of the fading actor Bela Lugosi, made famous by his role as Count Dracula. During a series of interviews, Lugosi draws Evi into his curious Eastern European background, gradually revealing the link between Old World shadows and the twilight realm of modern horror films.
Voting History: June 2025: 4; July 2025: 4; August 2025: 4; November 2025: 3; January: 2; February: 4; April: 5
Vipers' Tangle by François Mauriac, nominated by Susan
The masterpiece of one of the twentieth century’s greatest Catholic writers, Vipers’ Tangle tells the story of Monsieur Louis, an embittered aging lawyer who has spread his misery to his entire estranged family. Louis writes a journal to explain to them—and to himself—why his soul has been deformed, why his heart seems like a foul nest of twisted serpents. Mauriac’s novel masterfully explores the corruption caused by pride, avarice, and hatred, and its opposite—the divine grace that remains available to each of us until the very moment of our deaths. It is the unforgettable tale of the battle for one man’s soul.
Voting History: NONE
Why Religion Went Obsolete: The Demise of Traditional Faith in America by Christian Smith nominated by Jill
Traditional religion in the United States has suffered huge losses in recent decades. The number of Americans identifying as "not religious" has increased remarkably. Religious affiliation, service attendance, and belief in God have declined. More and more people claim to be "spiritual but not religious." Religious organizations have been reeling from revelations of sexual and financial scandals and cover-ups. Public trust in "organized religion" has declined significantly. Crucially, these religious losses are concentrated among younger generations. This means that, barring unlikely religious revivals among youth, the losses will continue and accelerate in time, as less-religious younger Americans replace older more-religious ones and increasingly fewer American children are raised by religious parents.
Voting History: April: 2
With Two Eyes Into Gehenna, by Jane Lebak, nominated by Steven R.
A rosary in one hand. A dagger in the other. Sister Magdalena never heard of the Catherinite nuns until the day she faced her own death sentence. Rome, 1562. It’s the era of the Index of Banned Books and the Roman Inquisition. Kings still burn heretics. The worst threats come from within the Church itself. Only seventeen, Magdalena killed a priest who tried to rape her within the walls of her convent. His powerful family will see her executed, and then they’ll destroy her mother and young sister.
Instead, the pope makes an offer. To save her life and protect her family, Magdalena can disappear into a secret religious order, one with a demanding physical regimen to go along with the prayers.
Voting History: February: 2; April: 3