My mother-in-law loves to read, but she has a hard time reading a book where she can't picture the main character.

She loved the Alex Cross books, because she loves Morgan Freeman and pictured him as Cross. Same with the Bosch novels, since we showed her a picture of Titus Welliver. Same with the Lincoln Lawyer novels and Matthew McConaughey.

I'd like some suggestions as to what she can read next. She loved Game of Thrones, but has no interest in the books. She tends to enjoy mystery novels.

The Reacher series by Lee Child. Alan Ritchson is a better fit for the character than Tom Cruise.

The Prey Series by John Sandford. There are 35 books in the Prey series and another 12 in the Virgil Flowers series that is linked. The main protagonist is Luca Davenport. He is a Clint Eastwood kind of guy in my mind's eye. The USA Network made a movie with Mark Harmon in the Lucas Davenport role, I haven't seen the movie. I have read all Sandford's books. He spins a good yarn and is accurate with firearm details. Davenport started the series with modified Colt Gold Cup as his EDC.

Clive Cussler has a series with Dirk Pitt as the main character. Clint Eastwood played Pitt in Raise the Titanic. Mathew McConaughey played Pitt in Sahara.

The Da Vinci Code, show her the beginning and then switch to the book. Re-watch the movie afterward.

Sir Arthur Conan Doyle's Sherlock Holmes,
But you'll have to choose between Jeremy Brett and Basil Rathbone.

Agatha Christie,

Several novels from both Tom Clancy and Michael Crichton were adapted to film.

The Bond 007 movies. Not all were based on the novels, but I suppose they'd count.

Band of Brothers and The Pacific, if she can stomach the intensity.

Interesting suggestions so far.

She wouldn't like Reacher. She hasn't seen Reacher on Prime, and doesn't particularly like Tom Cruise, but liked the movies.

The Prey series sounds promising.

She might like Cussler.

I'm a huge fan of Sherlock Holmes and Jeremy Brett in particular. Brett was Sherlock Holmes. I always thought Jeremy Irons would make a great Holmes. That might work.

Clancy will be way too dense for her; she's not into a lot of technical or military stuff. I have read them up through Rainbow Six and loved them.

Bond is definitely a possibility.

Band of Brothers, etc., would be a big no. She prefers fiction, and her brother died in a helicopter crash in Vietnam in 1966.

Keep them coming!

Oh, I have enjoyed the Agatha Christie novels I have read. I'll mention that series to her.

No on The DaVinci Code.

The issue with Crichton is that there's not one character that threads through all the novels. I have loved the Chrighton I've read, though.

Kinda funny (at least to me), just watched The Gray Man movie based on the Mark Greaney novel of the same name. Unfortunately, I can’t recommend it; like watching a cartoon, just stupid. I also read the novel. It’s been a long time, so I don’t recall exactly what I thought about it, but I do know I haven’t read another of his books.

Books I have read that I like very much- The Godfather by Mario Puzo, One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest by Ken Kesey, Jurassic Park by Michael Crichton, all spawned big movies. Cormac McCarthy has been covered by Para, and No Country For Old Men is a great read (and great film).

Bosch is my current, maybe halfway through the books. There's some parallel series, but don't think they are in the show that I can recall [McCaleb & McEvoy].
The Expanse for sci-fi
Game of Thrones, I only read the first 2 books, after watching the series

quote:

Originally posted by SPWAMike0317:
Clive Cussler has a series with Dirk Pitt as the main character. Clint Eastwood played Pitt in Raise the Titanic. Mathew McConaughey played Pitt in Sahara.

Richard Jordan played Dirk Pitt in Raise the Titanic.
https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0...%2520the%2520Titanic

For Westerns: Louis Lamour Or Clair Huffaker.

The best example I can give is the Longmire TV show and the book series.

I started watching the TV show first then moved over to the books.

When I read the books, I can visualize Lou Diamond Phillips talking as Henry Standing Bear in the show. The same for Longmire.

quote:

Originally posted by mrapteam666:
The best example I can give is the Longmire TV show and the book series.

I started watching the TV show first then moved over to the books.

When I read the books, I can visualize Lou Diamond Phillips talking as Henry Standing Bear in the show. The same for Longmire.

Longmire is on my list, enjoyed the show.

The Prey series by Sanford is great. I'm totally hooked on them and the Harry Bosch books. Joseph Wambaugh is a possibility with movies and books. For historical fiction, James Clavell with Shogun and the Hong Kong novels are good.

How about Sci-Fi? If so, maybe the Foundation series on Apple TV+?

Not a mystery, but Lonesome Dove. You couldn't ask for better main characters than Robert Duvall and Tommy Lee Jones in those roles. It's a good movie (mini-series), and the book is easily better; Larry McMurtry is a wonderful writer.

Back in the 80s, I loved the Spenser for Hire series. Then in the 90s, I started to read the books. I read all of them until Parker's passing, tried one with the new author but didn't continue after that one.

Have her watch the Spenser series and then read the books or vice versa.

Also, the Jesse Stone series by Parker and the made for TV movies with Tom Selleck.

quote:

Originally posted by AUTiger89:
Oh, I have enjoyed the Agatha Christie novels I have read. I'll mention that series to her.

No on The DaVinci Code.

The issue with Crichton is that there's not one character that threads through all the novels. I have loved the Chrighton I've read, though.

Poirot. David Suchet version.

quote:

Originally posted by AUTiger89:
She loved the Alex Cross books, because she loves Morgan Freeman and pictured him as Cross.

That's interesting. I know the films, but I've never read the books. From what I understand, Alex Cross in the books was more like a Denzel Washington-type (at that time) instead of Morgan Freeman. I believe in the books, Alex Cross had an affair with both the Ashley Judd and Monica Potter characters, whereas Freeman was deemed too old in the movies so he just had platonic relations with both.

Shogun. There are 2 movies/series that were made.

Not a mystery per se (although it has numerous plot twists, drama and surprises which she might like). Regardless it is a sweeping saga that she might enjoy.