Twenty days into the new year, The Sower has a new award, a new 5-star review, and the author—yours truly—is booked for a podcast interview in one week!
If you’re following the news on my website, you know that my debut historical fiction novel, The Sower of Black Field, has been relaunched under the new Time’s Arrow Press imprint. I’m delighted to report that shortly after the relaunch, The Sower hit #1 in new releases for Historical Biographical Fiction (a relatively new category introduced on Amazon), and has been hovering in the top 10s and 20s in German Historical Fiction and other related categories. And, we’re just getting started! I attribute this success to The Book Whisperer, who has been handling the marketing on this second round.
The Sower of Black Field is available in paperback, eBook/Kindle, and audiobook (to date, we’re still coaxing Amazon to merge the audiobook format back into the fold). Find the novel at the links below:
NEW AWARD—Religious Fiction Category Winner in the 2025 Independent Press Awards!
It’s a new year, but the awards keep on coming. This latest award marks five major wins for the novel (or six, if you count the silver medal it won for historical fiction in the 2024 North American Book Awards).
It’s also worth mentioning that The Sower has risen to the finalist round in Chanticleer’s Goethe Awards (for historical fiction beyond the 1750s) and also in the Hemingway Awards (for wartime fiction). Category winners—and grand prize winners—will be announced during Chanticleer’s 2025 CIBA Awards Conference on April 5th.
I’ve submitted the book for a number of literary contests that announce results in March, April, May, and June. We’ll see what happens!
NEW 5-STAR REVIEW by Literary Titan
I love this review by Literary Titan. It’s striking to me that this is a literary organization, yet they find the religion in this novel compelling. Reviews like this strengthen my conviction that, even though this novel is religious in spirit (and that’s inescapable, given that the main character is a Passionist priest), the message beating at its heart—the charism of the Passionists—transcends religion itself. I’ve read countless reviews where readers say this story made them intensely reflective. My favorite excerpt:
“The depth of Koch’s storytelling is evident in her exploration of faith as a source of both solace and struggle. Through Viktor, the novel asks questions about the nature of suffering and the role of religion in confronting evil. I was particularly moved by the sermon on Sorrowful Friday, where Viktor ties human suffering to the Passion of Christ, challenging the congregation to see divinity in their shared pain. It’s moments like these that elevate the book from a historical narrative to a spiritual meditation, and they left me reflecting on my own beliefs.”
COMING UP: Watch Katherine on a Podcast!
Back in October I received an invitation to appear on a podcast, “Created in the Image of God,” hosted by Wade Fransson. A teaser for the episode will play starting on Wednesday, January 22. For all who are interested, you can watch the episode LIVE on YouTube on Wednesday, January 28th at 8-9PM CST. The episode itself will be recorded, so if you can’t attend in real time, you can watch at your convenience at a later time.
