As Strangers Here by Janet McNeill (Turnpike Books, £12). First published in 1960 and now republished in a paperback edition, this novel about a 1950s Belfast clergyman, Edward Ballater, records with sensitivity and honesty the human frailties and temptations behind the public role, We discover Ballater’s doubts about his faith, frustrations in his marriage and love for his family. McNeill, a prolific novelist, children’s author and writer of radio drama who died in 1994, has written a work worth resurrecting for its powerful prose and insight into a place “where a man might find ... the evidence of things unseen ... imperishable and good and full of glory”. Journey of Love by Eugene McCaffrey OCD (Teresian Press, £4). This slim volume will encourage those encountering the great Spanish mystic, St Teresa of Avila, for the first time. Written with love and insight into the saint’s classic work, the book has only three chapters: The Invitation, The Journey and Homecoming. Citing the poets WB Yeats, TS Eliot and Patrick Kavanagh, including references from St John of the Cross and quoting from St Thérèse of Lisieux, McCaffrey helps the reader to understand what it means to be transformed in Christ and to become “fully human, fully alive”. The Mystery of Everything by Hilary Brand (DLT, £5.99). This Lent course, by a well-known writer on Christian themes, provides a firm structure for these six weeks in the liturgical year. Brand discusses subjects such as suffering, the limits of reason, relationships, weakness and failure, alongside Bible readings for each week and “leader’s notes” designed for each group session. The book aims to invigorate the reader’s prayer life and to offer help for his spiritual journey. Excellent for those who seek guidance and group encouragement, it is enlivened with personal anecdotes. The Survival Guide for Young Catholics by John Chater (Redemptorist, £9.95). The author, who describes himself as having an “amateur’s understanding of what Catholicism is”, has written a stimulating guide to the faith, aimed at Catholics between the ages of 14 and 20. He doesn’t patronise or distort the Church’s teachings, but tries to present them in a digestible way for enquiring young minds. Chapters include a discussion of science and faith, morality and justice, and examining the Church’s historical record. Definitely to be recommended for teenage Confirmation candidates, Chater’s book is designed to help them understand their faith and deepen it. A Death in Sweden by Kevin Wignall (Thomas and Mercer, £9). Former CIA operative Dan Hendricks now works freelance solving other people’s problems. But when several of his erstwhile colleagues are murdered, Dan realises his time has come. In Sweden, a mystery man, the town hermit, gives up his own life in an extraordinary act of courage to save a teenager in a bus crash. But nothing is what it seems in Wignall’s clever, gripping and precise novel. Set in the dark Scandinavian forests, this is a tight and elegant novel, focusing on morality and identity.