Books you cannot put down

Terry Pratchett books are almost certain to grab me like that, even ones I've read a few times before.

A few startrek ones have done that as well of late. There have been some Mirror Universe books which grip you because you don't know quite how it's going to end. There have also been a couple of series of the normal universe ones of late which have done the same thing.

The reason for this is because post-Nemesis the StarTrek world has changed a bit. One of the main things about the universe was the core characters where pretty safe and there wasn't too much death or much of a body count. Then Nemesis came along, killed off Data and since then the body count in StarTrek books has gone crazy and at times you honestly don't know if the main characters will survive.

I think it's great, much like the new film gave it a nice hard kick on the big screen so this new direction the books have taken have made things more intresting and certainly more gripping to read.

I picked up Ender's Game about 8PM one evening in college. I finished it just in time for my 8AM calculus class. I just couldn't stop.

Terry Pratchett cheats by not having chapters in his books. You get going and figure you'll stop when you get to a good stopping point. But you never get a new chapter.

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Original post by BeanDog Terry Pratchett cheats by not having chapters in his books. You get going and figure you'll stop when you get to a good stopping point. But you never get a new chapter.

To be fair his more recent books have done, at least in hard back. You'll often get a break and some stuff at the top which gives you a strange look a head to what is coming up in this segment. Going Postal is a good example of this.

My current, regular suggestion is Lies of Locke Lamora. From the wiki:

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[The book] follows the adventures of a group of con artists known as the Gentlemen Bastards. They live in a city called Camorr, heavily based on late medieval Venice. The book is divided into two interspersed stories. In the present time, the Gentlemen Bastards must contend with the Grey King, a powerful figure terrorizing Camorr's criminal community. Every other chapter, however, delves into the history and mythology of Camorr, the Gentlemen Bastards, and especially the protagonist Locke Lamora.

Being an insomniac whos reads 2-4 books a week already, I dont want a book that 'I cant put down'
Though A recent one was
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/I_Clavdivs
got the sequel out of the library a couple of days ago, since I finished a book last night I may start it tonight.
Also just got the dvd out of the library 650minutes! so gonna keep me going a while

yes Ender's Game was good, check the sequel as well its even better

the others I read in the series though are crap
Speaker for the dead
Xenocide
Children of the mind
Enders shadow
Shadow of the hegemon
Shadow puppets
shadow of the giant

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Original post by ScintI was so hooked on Lord of the Flies that I took it with me to an orthodontist appointment and tried to keep reading it while having my braces adjusted.

Wow. I mean seriously? Lord of the Flies? The story about how some kids go insane and start killing kids. If you like books about people on an island that die go read both the Jurassic Park books.

Oh and a book I couldn't put down was Sphere. That book is awesome and it's better than the movie. I like Michael Crichton books.

I enjoyed Lord of the Flies, too. It wasn't a book I couldn't put down, but I enjoyed it nevertheless. Yet, my old high school English teacher once called it "trite." Apparently, her opinion is shared here. Maybe I'm just uncultured, but what is it about Lord of the Flies that makes it "trite"?

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Original post by Oberon_Command Maybe I'm just uncultured, but what is it about Lord of the Flies that makes it "trite"?

I don't think you're the uncultured one.

I don't read much, but I really enjoyed Joseph Heller's Catch-22. I was enjoying Leo Tolstoy's Anne Karenina a while back, but it was so long I never felt like I was making any progress and I eventually put it down. Which is sort of the opposite of what this thread is looking for, but still, the writing was fantastic and it was enjoyable to read.

On the lighter side, and I'll probably be made fun of for this, but I liked the Twilight series. The writing is pretty poor, but I think that made me like the series even more. The way Stephenie Meyer artlessly crafts a nearly plotless story about vampire lust and abstinence is fantastic. The series is literally a few thousand pages of middle school goth prose. It's a spectacle, really: you don't have to appreciate the writing or be engaged by the plot or identify with any of the characters to enjoy the books.

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I don't read much, but I really enjoyed Joseph Heller's Catch-22. I was enjoying Leo Tolstoy's Anne Karenina a while back, but it was so long I never felt like I was making any progress and I eventually put it down. Which is sort of the opposite of what this thread is looking for, but still, the writing was fantastic and it was enjoyable to read.

both good books but I thought the opposite,
with catch-22 (good film also btw) the 'joke' had worn off about halfway through the book thus it began to drag still a worthwhile read though
with anna kerenina even though longer didnt drag at all (one of the best 50 books Ive ever read IMO)

The Gap Series by Stephen Donaldson.

It's like everyone's a bad guy.

"Super Glue and You: a Hands-On Study"

I'm currently reading the third book in A Song of Ice and Fire. Excellent books so far.

I like most books based on dystopias (is that the word I'm looking for, a la Brave New World and other 'utopias gone wrong' type stroies?).

The Old Kingdom series, by Garth Nix.

Necromancy, conflicts between science and magic, good and evil, and bureaucracy. The first book is Sabriel.

Written for a high school age audience or younger, but its very difficult to put down until you finish the trilogy.

if you like Terry Pratchett you may enjoy the MythAdventures series. Extremely funny.

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Original post by Chokki The Old Kingdom series, by Garth Nix. Necromancy, conflicts between science and magic, good and evil, and bureaucracy. The first book is Sabriel. Written for a high school age audience or younger, but its very difficult to put down until you finish the trilogy.

excellent thanks.

I find it easier to just not pick books up to begin with.

@Sirisian: You totally missed the point of Lord of the Flies.

I read "The Catcher in the Rye" last month and finished in a record sitting. It has a very fluent proze that makes it easy to get hooked in.

I've found Robin Hobb's novels particularly difficult to put down.

Reading Magician also involved many overnight reading sessions!

In addition to the mention of Terry Pratchett above, I'll add a recommendation for the master of far fetched fiction, Robert Rankin.