Week Three Prompt Response

1. I am looking for a book by Laurell K. Hamilton. I just read the third book in the Anita Blake series and I can’t figure out which one comes next!
The fourth and next book in the series is titled "The Lunatic Cafe". If you like these books, then you are set for a while because the 26th book in the series was just released this last year! Happy reading!

2. What have I read recently? Well, I just finished this great book by Barbara Kingsolver, Prodigal Summer. I really liked the way it was written, you know, the way she used language. I wouldn't mind something a bit faster paced though.
I would recommend the book called Strong Motion by Jonathan Franzen. Similar to Prodigal Summer, this book has a love story nestled inside an exciting story--this one about earthquakes in Boston. Among the compelling plot lines, the author also creates complex and complicated characters that drive the story. 

3. I like reading books set in different countries. I just read one set in China, could you help me find one set in Japan? No, not modern – historical. I like it when the author describes it so much it feels like I was there!
I would recommend the book called Memoirs of a Geisha by Arthur Golden. This book is written from the perspective of a woman retelling the complex and emotional story of her youth in vivid detail. Starting in the year 1929, she grew up in Japan being raised and trained to become a Geisha, a Japanese woman who entertains through art, dance, and singing.

4. I read this great mystery by Elizabeth George called Well-Schooled in Murder and I loved it. Then my dentist said that if I liked mysteries I would probably like John Sandford, but boy was he creepy I couldn't finish it! Do you have any suggestions?
If you absolutely loved Elizabeth George and the main characters in Well-Schooled in Murder, then I have some good news for you: there are 20 books total in the Inspector Lynley series! So if all else fails, you have plenty to check out there. As far as other mystery books go, I would recommend checking out From Doon with Death by Ruth Rendell. The first of a many part series centered around Inspector Wexford, and instead of focusing on the creepy gory details of her death, this book focuses on the clues and past life of the seemingly simple housewife, who has fallen victim in this murder mystery.

5. My husband has really gotten into zombies lately. He’s already read The Walking Dead and World War Z, is there anything else you can recommend?
I would recommend him looking into the book called The Dust by Jonathan Lynch. Instead of the story being set in the heart of the zombie apocalypse like Walking Dead and World War Z, this story takes place at the beginning of the virus, right as the crap starts hitting the fan. Set in Ireland, the main character must rush to save his pregnant girlfriend and grandmother to get immunized and protected from the virus before the ones who have already succumbed reach them first. 
And if your husband enjoys stories about the undead in general, I would also recommend I Am Legend by Richard Matheson. This is a story about the last man on earth as he makes his last stand in New York City against the creatures of the night, who used to be the rest of humanity.

6. I love books that get turned into movies, especially literary ones. Can you recommend some? Nothing too old, maybe just those from the last 5 years or so.
I would recommend checking out Water for Elephants by Sara Gruen. The book was written in 2007 and the movie adaptation was released in 2011, which is just a bit outside your 5 year mark, but I think the literary value found in these will outweigh them not being brand new stories. It is a bestselling book about two people who fell in love working in a circus in 1932 and the complicated and twisted world that exists around them.

7. I love thrillers but I hate foul language and sex scenes. I want something clean and fast paced.
I would recommend the book called Thr3e by Ted Dekker. Written by a Christian author who is well known for this clean (not preachy) suspense, and thriller books, this book is a fast paced race to the end to find out who is threatening and blackmailing the main character into publicly confessing sins that he has never committed. 


In terms of finding my own books to read, I usually get lost in the world of Goodreads and often go down the rabbit hole of recommended reads. I have yet to be at a loss for what to read next because my "To-Read" list is growing at a rate faster than what I can read. Not the worst problem to have, especially for an aspiring librarian, but I haven't really felt the need to branch out to other resources because of all that Goodreads has to offer. After reading over Mary Chelton's list of tools, however, I am excited to start exploring some of the genre specific resources that made the cut!