My library doesn’t have NoveList, so I used a combination of other sources to answer the questions on this prompt.
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!
Laurell K. Hamilton’s website has a great list of her series books in order! The fourth book is “The Lunatic Café.” GoodReads is also a good resource for series information.
I read a lot of series, so I’ve found a lot of resources to figure out which book is next. Usually authors’ websites have it listed, and lot of them have extra goodies, too. GoodReads also lists series information, though it’s not always as intuitive to find as the authors’ websites.
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.
Since you liked Kingsolver’s grasp on language, you might enjoy her “Animal Dreams” and “Bean Trees,” both of which have a stronger focus on plot. I would also suggest trying “Dinner at the Homesick Restaurant” by Anne Tyler. It is written in language that you may find appealing, with a strong focus on characters as well. You might also enjoy “Cold Sassy Tree” by Olive Ann Burns, which has a similar setting to “Prodigal Summer” but is more story-driven.
I looked up “Prodigal Summer” in The Readers Advisor Online Database. I read a little bit about Kingsolver’s other books, and thought “Animal Dreams” and “Bean Trees,” which include an appeal element of plot, might be a good choice. In the “Related Reads” section, “Dinner at the Homesick Restaurant” was mentioned, and it has, as one of its appeal elements, language, along with characters. “Cold Sassy Tree” was also mentioned in the “Related Reads” section, and although it doesn’t have language as an appeal factor, it appears to be more story-driven.
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!
A few historical fiction books set in Japan are “The Gift of Rain,” by Tan Twang Eng, set in 1939; “The Typist” by Michael Knight, set immediately after World War II in occupied Japan; “The Thousand Autumns of Jacob De Zoet,” by David Mitchell, set in 1799; “The Commoner,” by John Burnham Schwartz, set in 1959; “The Great Fire” by Shirley Hazzard, set in 1947; and “The Snow Fox,” by Susan Fromberg Schaeffer, set in the 12th century.
I used The Readers Advisor Online Database to look for historical fiction under several subgenres, taking place in Asia. I then filtered my search by place to find books that take place in Japan. I focused mostly on books that had setting as an appeal element as well.
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?
Some books that you may enjoy are “A Share in Death” by Deborah Crombie and “The Man with a Load of Mischief” by Martha Grimes.
John Sandford writes thrillers, while Elizabeth George writes more detective mysteries that are a bit softer. The Readers Advisor Online Database suggests Deborah Crombie and Martha Grimes. Grimes’ Andi Oliver series sounded a bit grittier, but her British-based Richard Jury/Melrose Plant series sounded similar to the George book.
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?
Your husband might enjoy “The Reapers are the Angels” by Alden Bell, “Carrion” by Gary Brandner, “Allison Hewitt is Trapped” by Madeleine Roux, “Dead Heat” by Del Stone, and “Dust” by Joan Frances Turner.
First, I browsed Zombies in the Topic or Theme section of The Readers Advisor Online Database. Then, I narrowed my search, looking for just subgenres of “golems, mummies, zombies” and “comic horror.” Then, I began looking through to find books that were pretty straightforward zombie apocalypse stories, since that is what “The Walking Dead” and “World War Z” are.
Click here for Part 2 of my response to the prompt.
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