There are a number of Reference books and sets on post-Biblical Christian authors. These include:
Patrology Quasten's compendium on the Church Fathers in four volumes. Comprehensive listing of their writings, author by author, with summaries and bibliography. Next to this set is a more recent addition, on the Eastern Fathers from the Council of Chalcedon (451) to John of Damascus (750).
Handbook of Patrology Patrick J. Hamell's bio-bibliography on the Church Fathers.
Check both the Encyclopedia of the Early Church and the Encyclopedia of Early Christianity for good information on the early Fathers.
Search LINUS by Keyword, Subject or Author to find additional monographs and sets on particular church Fathers, historical periods, and theological issues. Try using the Subject Heading Fathers of the Church, for a start. Look also at the list of variants on that subject heading, and the related subject headings in each book record.
Depending on your interests, you can also check the subject headings Apostolic Fathers , Cappadocian Fathers, Church history Primitive and early church, ca. 30-600, or Desert Fathers.
You can also check books to see which Fathers wrote about what topics or commented on what biblical books; for example, A Dictionary of Early Christian Beliefs: A Reference Guide to More Than 700 Topics Discussed by the Early Church Fathers.
Use article databases for additional information. Ask for help in identifying and locating the best resources for the materials you need.
For a little balance, in an unbalanced world ...
The Forgotten Desert Mothers: Sayings, Lives, and Stories of Early Christian Women by There have been many editions of the texts of the early Church Fathers over time. Some of the ones available at LMU:
The Routledge series Early Church Fathers includes monographs on specific Fathers and genres; 26 volumes to date.
The Fathers of the Church series (1947-1964 and Medieval Continuation) was a standard translation for the 20th century.
The Ante-Nicene Fathers is an older but very substantial set on the earliest Fathers.
If you read French and/or Latin, you can use the prestigious Sources Chretiennes series, which contain both Latin texts and new French translations.
If you know Latin, you can use the Patrologia Latina; if you know Greek, you can use the Patrologia Graeca. But don't be downhearted if you don't know Latin or Greek. Good translations work just fine for most purposes. And, if you like, you can take classes here at LMU to learn either or both of these languages, which are keys to opening centuries of Western and Eastern scholarship.
photo: T.Amodeo 2006
The earliest Councils are recognized by almost all Christians; later Councils are recognized by different branches of Christianity; and some Councils are specifically held by other denominations to be only of and for the Roman Catholic Church, though the Church thinks otherwise. Some of the tools available for this area are:
Decrees of the Ecumenical Councils A newer edition in 2 volumes of the Councils through Vatican II.
Encyclopedia of the Vatican and Papacy . Includes substantial information about Roman Catholic councils from the Renaissance onwards.
The Vatican Web site (The Holy See) has a page of links to the Documents of Vatican II in English -- and also in Byelorussian, Czech, French, German, Italian, Latin, Portuguese, Spanish and Swahili.
Both the first and second editions of the New Catholic Encyclopedia cover Church councils and synods. You can use the articles to get started, and for brief bibliographies of additional source materials.
To gain some background for medieval councils, check the Dictionary of the Middle Ages and its Supplement
For more books on the Councils, try using the Subject Heading Councils and synods, Ecumenical to get started.
For journal and magazine articles on specific topics, use keyword and/or subject searching in the Catholic Periodical & Literature Index (CPLI).
The General Councils: A History of the Twenty-one Church Councils from Nicaea to Vatican II by 
The Church of the Ancient Councils: The Disciplinary Work of the First Four Ecumenical Councils by Here are a couple of books covering the Church Councils. Check LINUS to find a lot more!