Secret Shopper

    For this assignment I went to my local library and asked the librarian at the reference desk if she could recommend a romance book to me. She first asked me whether I generally read more historical fiction or contemporary fiction. I told her that I usually read contemporary fiction. I also told her that I was in a bit of a reading slump so I didn't want anything too long right now. Around 300-350 pages or less would be preferred. She then asked me what all I like when reading a romance book. My favorite tropes are grumpy/sunshine trope and forced proximity. Once I told her that, she recommended the author Sarah Hogel. She said that author writes a lot of humor into her characters and even though that wasn't one of the things I told her that I enjoyed, I really do like when the book that I'm reading can make me laugh. There were three Sarah Hogel books on their shelf: You Deserve Each Other, Twice Shy, and Just Like Magic. 

    The librarian that I was getting recommendations from didn't use any online resources but I think that was simply because she didn't need to. She thought of an author that had books that contained the things that I liked and told me about her. Because she was able to think of that author off the top of her head it makes me think that she regularly reads these types of romance novels. If I were to ever need another recommendation I would seek her out first just because I know that she was familiar with that genre. This library worker was super nice and seemed happy to help. Finding someone with a good attitude makes interactions like this so much more enjoyable and I was really happy with my experience for this assignment.