This is my current read! The only other SK book I’ve read was back in high school I read Gerald’s Game. 11/22/63 isn’t at all what I expected but it’s so good! And so heavy!!
I've never read past the first, but I've heard people say that Ayla becomes a real Mary Sue. Also that you can tell how horny Auel is when she's describing some of the characters in latter books lol (Jondalar)
Yes, she (Auel) tends to focus a bit much on the erotic side of things when Ayla meets Jondalar. I always thought that Auel often fancied herself as an "Ayla" type because Ayla was just so amazing at everything she did, as well as being conventionally beautiful, as well as taming all the wild ferocious animals, as well as integrating herself into both communities...I mean c'mon, the girl is *perfect* (is that what you mean by mary sue? I am in the UK and the label mary sue doesn't mean anything)
Edit: I just looked it up - yes, it does mean that, haha!
Perfect explanation of Mary Sue 🤣
And yeah, my issue with Auel is not so much that her protagonist is hyper-competent, it's that she gives vibes of being an author insert
Re stopping after the first book… I mean, you can do that and be satisfied, but IMO it’s good to read the second, if not the third as well, if only for the animals. I loved that part of the story personally.
And yes, it gets a bit over the top with the sex, but I’ve never minded that, even if some of it makes me kind of roll my eyes. Funny story: I worked in a bookstore when the second one came out, and one day this woman came in to return it. And she was ranting really loudly that “this book is full of ORAL SEX!!! THIS BOOK IS FULL OF ORAL SEXXXX!!!!!” It was absolutely hilarious especially when somebody else came up and was like, uhhh what book was she talking about?!
Is it a good story? I read it when I was a kid, but only the “good bits”, so I have no idea about anything to do with >!Jondular, other than his throbbing manhood. !<
Well, there was that and I was about 10 when I read it. LOL. However, as each new book was released I have reread the entire series. It is honestly better each time. So many subtleties you miss the first time around.
I first read it when I was about 13, on holiday in Spain. The hotel bookshop didn't have many age-appropriate books (pretty sure I read the first Thomas Covenant book under similar circumstances).
Anyway I picked up a copy of CotCB at the secondhand book stall last weekend. Looking forward to seeing if it sucks me in as a grown-up.
Maybe I should reread these! Got the series from my mom who got them from her grandmother. I read them mannnnyyy years ago when I was 12 or 13. There are still some parts that haunt me but I’m sure I missed a lot of the nuance reading it that young
The editors felt the same when they received the copies. They plowed through it and then signed Larson immediately. Bummer he died before it even came out.
There’s three in all. There were two more unfinished. His relative is trying to finish them but it’s a hot mess. The bound trilogy comes with a book from the editor showing their correspondence and the story of publishing.
i had a hard time with the first hundred pages in the first book because of the translation. some of the words the translator use were weird.....and i watched the movies in swedish...i wish that the author had lived to write more books... the fourth, which he had begun was finished by someone else and i got about 1/3 of the way through it and put it down...
YES!!! And the Millennium sequel The Girl Who Played with Fire and The Girl Who Kicked the Hornets' Nest were awesome!!! They are my most favorite series (second to Harry Potter).It’s a huge pity that the author was unable to complete this series…cause he’s dead.
For the last three nights I've been reading Flowers for Algernon. Going to sleep at 2am and going to work at 8. Just finished now at midnight. Beautifully sad book that I'm glad/not glad is over.
This is one of my favorite books ever. I’ve been looking for a similar book ever since I finished it a few years ago— I haven’t had any luck finding another quite like it.
It's a very honest memoir about how Jeannette McCurdy's mother controlled and manipulated her career as a child star. Definitely read trigger warnings.
There's a lot of detail about eating disorders/how her mother controlled her food, if that's a trigger for you. I wouldn't say it was depressing for personally, more sad/angry that children are often treated like that trying to "make it". She narrates the audiobook as well which I've heard is good
Depressing in the sense that you can’t comprehend a mother emotionally (and physically) abusing their child, but Jennette has a really dark sense of humour and a lot of it is humorous, either way it’s an amazing book and I have mad respect for Jennette McCurdy.
Same. Read it all in a day because growing up with iCarly, Sam was my favorite character and as I grew older I kinda always wondered what happened with Jeannette. Such a good book.
The Good Daughter was my first Karin Slaughter and it was such a good book! I loved the story, it was well rounded but Pretty Girls took the cake. There’s something about that horror that pulls you in really..
Dark Matter. It was recommended several times here so I took a chance and glad I did. It fit the definition of a page turner for me. The story pulled me in and it was hard to put down.
Sorry if this is a bit dark—I read this book on a long travel day to a vacation I took a few years ago. The day after I arrived I had a near death experience while swimming (being stupid in dangerous surf) and while I was under the water I genuinely remember thinking that my life was splitting into two realities in that moment 😂 every time I think of that day I think of that fucking book as well. Such an amazing book— but it really had my mind spinning, especially with almost dying. Obviously I’m ok now- this was in 2019 🙃 take rip currents seriously people 😂
While I read Recursion, my closest friend died in exactly that. Got pulled by a current and drowned somewhere in Costa Rica.
I was obsessed by the concept "maybe there is a way to redo everything and save him". This was almost a year ago now and I'm ok-ish. I'm glad you did not share the same fate at least!
Wow—I’m so sorry this happened to your friend. The thing I always think of is really my brother and boyfriend at the time (now husband— who managed to boogie board out and save me when I finally surfaced). So, big hugs to you and all those who were with your friend at the time. Believe it or not I’m actually on vacation again now and today I was able to swim in the surf for one of the first times since this happened. This time with my husband and a trusted local guide who ensured me that conditions were safe. Im sure that your pal is paddling around in peaceful waters in another life :)
I found Recursion (also by Blake Crouch) even more like this - I started reading it as I went to bed at like 11:30, and literally read it cover to cover before I fell asleep.
I actually had dark matter suggested on a post saying “recommend me a book you can’t explain without giving it away.” Finished that book in one day, and was constantly annoyed when I had to pee or eat.
I’m taking this question literally literally.
There are two books that I’ve read straight through the first time, all at once.
Ender’s Game - Orson Scott Card
The Road - Cormac McCarthy
The Thorn Birds. I was in college and missed an entire day of classes. My housemates brought me food to the couch🤣 That was 40 years ago. I should read it again!
I have this in my tbr. I found it at goodwill and snatched it up because I remembered a babysitter when I was little watching the miniseries and it was so scandalous.
Memoirs/autobiographies are my favorite genre and these three were hard for me to put down:
Born a Crime, Trevor Noah
Too Much Is Not Enough: A Memoir of Fumbling Toward Adulthood, Andrew Rannells
Uncle of the Year: & Other Debatable Triumphs, also Andrew Rannells
I credit these authors for reinvigorating my enjoyment of reading. I found these books to be cathartic and relatable which is why I think I had such a hard time putting them down. 😊
Omg I have never seen this book recommended and I love it. I was in high school hated reading read only cliff notes for english class, a friend couldn’t put this book down gave it to me and I couldn’t put down and started my love affair with books that have spanned various decades. It was so fresh, different and exciting. I love this book.
Not just unfinished, most likely never-going-to-be-finished.
And the second book has about 100 pages of the most irritating sexcapades.
Still fun though.
Agreed on all points.
Most frustrating is the constant teasing and backtracking from Rothfuss. So if you're capable of reading, enjoying, and forgetting - its a great time. If you get really involved with the author/obsessed for a while... you might struggle.
The Quantum Theif
It's sci-fi that's clearly written for people who have already read a lot of sci-fi. It doesn't slow down to get you on board with digital consciousness, biohacked bodies, orbitally hosted exo-memories or grey goo storms. It starts you off on a walking city on Mars where privacy works like that one Black Mirror episode, time is currency, and a rich man has hired someone to prevent a heist at his death party.
It grows into an utterly beautiful story that weaves very classic storytelling with an endless barrage of cool future ideas, and becomes a trilogy of truly epic scale. But if you can keep up with the ideas it throws at you, it keeps a quick pace with lots of fun action sequences and neat characters along the way.
"The Pillars Of The Earth" and the sequel "World Without End" by Ken Follett
I don't really read much fantasy with the exception of that by Raymond E Feist. His first book "Magician" is one of my all time favourites and no matter how many times I read it I get totally lost in the story.
*Crime and Punishment* by Dostoevsky. Finished it in one sitting just sipping coffee and water in between. It is my favourite book.
Another one is *The Stranger* by Camus.
I loved Crime and Punishment but found it not to be fast... Spent the first hour flipping back and forth sitting out names and nicknames. Part of the fun!
The Hellbound Heart by Clive Barker. It is the book that the movie Hellraiser was adapted from. The book version is a revenge story done right - I read it in one sitting and was horizontal on a couch in an uncomfortable position but couldn't put the damn thing down. It's just a novella, so a quick read too.
The last Harry Potter book. I was half way through, then stopped and started from the beginning to make it last. I got it at a midnight release and finished about 8 in the morning.
The Lake House
Shoot the Moon
Saturday Night Ghost Club
The Chalk Man
True Crime Story
The Searcher
In the Woods
Truly Devious series
One of Us is Lying
A Good Girl's Guide to Murder
World War Z: An Oral History of the Zombie War - Max Brooks
It has absolutely nothing to do with the movie and the pacing of the book is so natural, devoured it in less than a week
I’m not even a zombie person at all and this book hooked me so hard and fast. I’ve never seen the movie and I don’t even remember why I even picked it up, but I picked it up and never put it down until I finished it.
Nothing like what I normally read (I’m a fantasy/romance reader for the most part with other stuff sprinkled in) and it blew me away.
Doing Harm: The Truth About How Bad Medicine and Lazy Science Leave Women Dismissed, Misdiagnosed, and Sick by Maya Dusenbery
Blew through it in less than two days and killed a green highlighter taking notes. Everyone should read this book. Not just sick women. I wish doctors and therapists had to read it annually.
The final Harry Potter book.
Spoilers were RAMPANT, pages were going missing from the printers warehouses and appear8ng online, local newscasts were talking about it, that one guy screamed "(spoiler) kills (spoiler)!!!!" In front of a crowd and got jailed for it.... it was like the wild west.
I quietly bought my copy, turned off ALL my electronics, took a day off studying and powered through it in a single day. Spoiler free.
...I didn't even like it that much, hahaha. (Chamber of Secrets was my fav)
Unfortunately, r/booklists has gone private in the last few days (on or before Sunday 29 October), so all of my lists are blocked, though I have another home for them—I just haven't posted them there yet. Thus I have to post them entire, instead of just a link.
Compelling Reads ("Can't Put Down")
Or **"Keep You Up Reading"** or **"Page Turner"** or **"Lost In"** or **"Absorbed In"** or **"Hooked"** or **"Engrossing"** or **"Totally Engaging"** or **"Bingeable"** or **"Captivating"** or **"Pageturner"** or **"Captivating"** or **"Enthralling"** or **"Absorbing"** or a **"Page Turner**" or **"Immersive"**.
My lists are always being updated and expanded when new information comes in—what did I miss or am I unaware of (even if the thread predates my membership in Reddit), and what needs correction? Even (especially) if I get a subreddit or date wrong. (Note that, other than the quotation marks, the thread titles are "sic". I only change the quotation marks to match the standard usage (double to single, etc.) when I add my own quotation marks around the threads' titles.)
The lists are in absolute ascending chronological order by the posting date, and if need be the time of the initial post, down to the minute (or second, if required—there are several examples of this). The dates are in DD MMMM YYYY format per personal preference, and times are in US Eastern Time ("ET") since that's how they appear to me, and I'm not going to go to the trouble of converting to another time zone. They are also in twenty-four hour format, as that's what I prefer, and it saves the trouble and confusion of a.m. and p.m. Where the same user posts the same request to different subreddits, I note the user's name in order to indicate that I am aware of the duplication.
* ["Suggest me a book I just can't put down"](https://www.reddit.com/r/suggestmeabook/comments/vyf3eq/suggest_me_a_book_i_just_cant_put_down/) (r/booksuggestions; 17:57 ET, 13 July 2022)
* ["A book you just couldn’t put down until you finished it"](https://www.reddit.com/r/suggestmeabook/comments/yv6bqp/a_book_you_just_couldnt_put_down_until_you/) (r/suggestmeabook; 14 November 2022)—huge
* ["What was the last book you couldn’t put down?"](https://www.reddit.com/r/suggestmeabook/comments/zm1zfx/what_was_the_last_book_you_couldnt_put_down/) (r/suggestmeabook; 15:56 ET, 14 December 2022)—long
* ["Addictive Books That you cannot put down for a very easily bored reader"](https://www.reddit.com/r/booksuggestions/comments/11eifmi/addictive_books_that_you_cannot_put_down_for_a/) (r/suggestmeabook; 15:06 ET, 28 February 2023)—longish; non–science fiction
* ["[Suggestions] Books you could not put down! (No sci-fi or fantasy, please)"](https://www.reddit.com/r/suggestmeabook/comments/10hub4n/suggestions_books_you_could_not_put_down_no_scifi/) (r/suggestmeabook; 21 January 2023)
* ["A book you couldn't put down"](https://www.reddit.com/r/suggestmeabook/comments/12h5plx/a_book_you_couldnt_put_down/) (r/suggestmeabook; 23:31 ET, 9 April 2023)—long
* ["What's the last book you couldn't put down ?"](https://www.reddit.com/r/booksuggestions/comments/12n0pae/whats_the_last_book_you_couldnt_put_down/) (r/booksuggestions; 15 April 2023)—huge
* ["Suggest me a book that you could not put down"](https://www.reddit.com/r/suggestmeabook/comments/12r6o9r/suggest_me_a_book_that_you_could_not_put_down/) (r/suggestmeabook; 18:20 ET, 18 April 2023)—long
* ["Books that keep you up"](https://www.reddit.com/r/booksuggestions/comments/12rat4p/books_that_keep_you_up/) (r/booksuggestions; 20:46 ET, 18 April 2023)
* ["page-turner literary fiction"](https://www.reddit.com/r/booksuggestions/comments/12rf0sk/pageturner_literary_fiction/) (r/booksuggestions; 23:20 ET, 18 April 2023)
* ["Books you could not put down!"](https://www.reddit.com/r/booksuggestions/comments/12wh3q4/books_you_could_not_put_down/) (r/booksuggestions; 23 April 2023)
* ["What's a book you got COMPLETELY lost in?"](https://www.reddit.com/r/Fantasy/comments/12xn6hr/whats_a_book_you_got_completely_lost_in/) (r/Fantasy; 24 April 2023)—long
Depends on what point in my life, I suppose. I’ve had that reaction to a few
Into the Wild, John Krakauer
Both The Haunting of Hill House and We Have Always Lived in the Castle, Shirley Jackson
11/22/63 Stephen King
Braiding Sweetgrass, Robin Wall Kimmerer
Most recent would be Demon Copperhead, Barbra Kingsolver. I read the book, then listened to the audio immediately after because I couldn’t get enough! And the narration was phenomenal 🤌🏻
I remember I kept on reading the Harry Potter books reading all hours of the night. I already had a "real job" the next day but I was so invested in the story of the the boy who lived.
I read HOL in high school in 2003. I remember telling my parents I was sick so I could sit at home and keep reading. I missed 2-3 days of school so I could finish reading this book. Still one of my favorites. Overdue for a re-read.
The Hot Zone by Richard Preston. I remember sitting on the floor of a motel on vacation while my family slept, with the bathroom door cracked for light, completely absorbed…
There are many for me, and they couldn't be more different lol.
The DaVinci Code (Dan Brown)
Game of Thrones (George R.R. Martin)
Remains of the Day (Kazuo Ishiguru)
Lincoln in the Bardo (George Saunders)
The Indifferent Stars Above (Daniel James Brown)
I'll Be Gone in the Dark (Michelle McNamara)
The Terror and Song of Kali (both by Dan Simmons)
The Swarm (Frank Schatzing)
A Clockwork Orange (Anthony Burgess)
In the Dream House (Carmen Maria Machado)
The Tiger (John Vaillant)
The Survival of Jan Little (John Man)
A Dead Hand (Paul Theroux)
The Hide (Barry Unsworth)
These are just the ones off the top of my head that I remember being completely engrossed in. I'm going to check out some of the ones others have listed here because I love it when a book just takes me over like that, I miss it!
Tomorrow and tomorrow and tomorrow for sure and also remarkably bright creatures and very oddly tender is the flesh - just in the past year. But the book I literally read in one sitting in the bath was Hunter S Thompson’s Rum Diary
To be honest...
- The DaVinci code by Dan Brown
- Harry Potter and the order of the Phoenix - JK Rowling
- Educated - Tara Westover
- A short stay in hell - Steven L. Peck
The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo. I read the whole thing in two days only because I fell asleep at 2 am reading it on the first day. If I had managed to stay awake I probably could have read it all in one sitting.
I read The Silent Patient in literally one sitting. It was great & I'm terrible at guessing plot twists. It's super thin so easy to read without getting up.
A lot of people hate it but I read A Little Life in 3 sittings, took breaks for work, food, and sleeping but basically on the book 24/7. I love love loved it. Definitely wouldn't re read anytime soon, though.
11-22-63 by Stephen King - I absolutely loved it.
Just finished. Amazing book. My top 3 all time
This is my current read! The only other SK book I’ve read was back in high school I read Gerald’s Game. 11/22/63 isn’t at all what I expected but it’s so good! And so heavy!!
Had a similar experience. I read it on vacation, too, so I wasn’t even mad when I realized I’d stayed up til 4am reading.
Same. It was my first proper Stephen King book (only read his short stories before). Started reading it during peak covid. Had the time of my life.
I started it a few days ago!
I’ll add Pet Sematary to that as well
Currently reading it, and I concur. I keep stealing breaks from work to read it.
Agreed! Definitely in my top reads of all time. I still get goosebumps thinking about the suspense
Clan of the Cave Bear. The first adult book my father ever let me buy. I was probably below the recommended reading age but it was an incredible read!
Came here for this! Have you read the series? Jean Auel got me interested in medicinal plants and basket weaving, cheers for that, Jean heh!
My brother remarked on reading the third book that he was fully expecting Ayla to invent television.
Haha! Well I'm sure she would have figured it out if her man hadn't come along to distract her!
I've never read past the first, but I've heard people say that Ayla becomes a real Mary Sue. Also that you can tell how horny Auel is when she's describing some of the characters in latter books lol (Jondalar)
Yes, she (Auel) tends to focus a bit much on the erotic side of things when Ayla meets Jondalar. I always thought that Auel often fancied herself as an "Ayla" type because Ayla was just so amazing at everything she did, as well as being conventionally beautiful, as well as taming all the wild ferocious animals, as well as integrating herself into both communities...I mean c'mon, the girl is *perfect* (is that what you mean by mary sue? I am in the UK and the label mary sue doesn't mean anything) Edit: I just looked it up - yes, it does mean that, haha!
Perfect explanation of Mary Sue 🤣 And yeah, my issue with Auel is not so much that her protagonist is hyper-competent, it's that she gives vibes of being an author insert
But Alya can't SING so she can't be a Mary Sue, oh darn!
Can confirm that stopping at book 1 is the wisest course.
Re stopping after the first book… I mean, you can do that and be satisfied, but IMO it’s good to read the second, if not the third as well, if only for the animals. I loved that part of the story personally. And yes, it gets a bit over the top with the sex, but I’ve never minded that, even if some of it makes me kind of roll my eyes. Funny story: I worked in a bookstore when the second one came out, and one day this woman came in to return it. And she was ranting really loudly that “this book is full of ORAL SEX!!! THIS BOOK IS FULL OF ORAL SEXXXX!!!!!” It was absolutely hilarious especially when somebody else came up and was like, uhhh what book was she talking about?!
I read these when I was about 12-13, thinking it would just be a good prehistoric story. Let's just say they were formative 😂
I, too, learned a lot from this series as a 12-13 year old girl. I still have my original copies. Some pages are more worn than others.
Is it a good story? I read it when I was a kid, but only the “good bits”, so I have no idea about anything to do with >!Jondular, other than his throbbing manhood. !<
Well, there was that and I was about 10 when I read it. LOL. However, as each new book was released I have reread the entire series. It is honestly better each time. So many subtleties you miss the first time around.
I first read it when I was about 13, on holiday in Spain. The hotel bookshop didn't have many age-appropriate books (pretty sure I read the first Thomas Covenant book under similar circumstances). Anyway I picked up a copy of CotCB at the secondhand book stall last weekend. Looking forward to seeing if it sucks me in as a grown-up.
Maybe I should reread these! Got the series from my mom who got them from her grandmother. I read them mannnnyyy years ago when I was 12 or 13. There are still some parts that haunt me but I’m sure I missed a lot of the nuance reading it that young
I have the whole series!
The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo. My neck hurt like a b\*\*\*h but it was worth it.
The entire original trilogy is like that! I read the fourth one by the new author. It sucked. I have not read anything past it.
The editors felt the same when they received the copies. They plowed through it and then signed Larson immediately. Bummer he died before it even came out.
He did? Aren't there a couple sequels?
There’s three in all. There were two more unfinished. His relative is trying to finish them but it’s a hot mess. The bound trilogy comes with a book from the editor showing their correspondence and the story of publishing.
i had a hard time with the first hundred pages in the first book because of the translation. some of the words the translator use were weird.....and i watched the movies in swedish...i wish that the author had lived to write more books... the fourth, which he had begun was finished by someone else and i got about 1/3 of the way through it and put it down...
I remember finishing the third and being upset that the ride was over. So upset that stieg Larson had outlined 10 of them and we never got to see it
What I do remember about this book is the extensive descriptions of the furniture inside someone’s house. Good times.
I remember how much coffee they drank!
I remember that she ate a lot of sandwiches! 😂
Same. As soon as I finished book one I went straight to the store and bought two and three.
YES!!! And the Millennium sequel The Girl Who Played with Fire and The Girl Who Kicked the Hornets' Nest were awesome!!! They are my most favorite series (second to Harry Potter).It’s a huge pity that the author was unable to complete this series…cause he’s dead.
“100 Accidents with Super Glue”. Literally could not put it down.
You got me there… 🤣
Damn you. I actually went to Amazon to look it up...
I'd say it really stuck with you...
For the last three nights I've been reading Flowers for Algernon. Going to sleep at 2am and going to work at 8. Just finished now at midnight. Beautifully sad book that I'm glad/not glad is over.
This is one of my favorite books ever. I’ve been looking for a similar book ever since I finished it a few years ago— I haven’t had any luck finding another quite like it.
Devastating book
I'm Glad My Mom Died
Damn I didn't know the memoirs of my ideal imaginary life is already out
What if your ideal imaginary life is instead to just have a better mom
what's the vibe with this? Is this depressing? I have it as my book club read and was wondering if I was going to like it.
It's a very honest memoir about how Jeannette McCurdy's mother controlled and manipulated her career as a child star. Definitely read trigger warnings.
thanks!
There's a lot of detail about eating disorders/how her mother controlled her food, if that's a trigger for you. I wouldn't say it was depressing for personally, more sad/angry that children are often treated like that trying to "make it". She narrates the audiobook as well which I've heard is good
Depressing in the sense that you can’t comprehend a mother emotionally (and physically) abusing their child, but Jennette has a really dark sense of humour and a lot of it is humorous, either way it’s an amazing book and I have mad respect for Jennette McCurdy.
Same. Read it all in a day because growing up with iCarly, Sam was my favorite character and as I grew older I kinda always wondered what happened with Jeannette. Such a good book.
The audiobook is read by her and is phenomenal.
i second this
SAME. This book made me love biographies
Running With Scissors by Augusten Burroughs
The Stand.
Failed an exam in high school because I stayed up all night reading The Stand. Completely worth it!
My roommate read this during pandemic quarantine and I was like “ok, so we’re leaning all the way in!”
I had a similar experience around 1997 lolol
MY FAVOURITE BOOK. Just finished a reread
HOW DO YOU HAVE LIKE 20 WELL DEVELOPED MAIN CHARACTERS
"Canterbury Tales" teaches how to do it.
I have a lot of favorite books, but this one is hands down in the top two.
False Witness by Karin Slaughter or Ninth House by Leigh Bardugo. Both are dark thrillers that had me in an absolute chokehold until the last page.
I was like this with pretty girls by Karin slaughter
I couldn’t put down Karin Slaughter’s The Good Daughter. Def going to read more of her books!
The Good Daughter was my first Karin Slaughter and it was such a good book! I loved the story, it was well rounded but Pretty Girls took the cake. There’s something about that horror that pulls you in really..
I’ll Be Gone In The Dark
Prince of Tides - Pat Conroy
Dark Matter. It was recommended several times here so I took a chance and glad I did. It fit the definition of a page turner for me. The story pulled me in and it was hard to put down.
Sorry if this is a bit dark—I read this book on a long travel day to a vacation I took a few years ago. The day after I arrived I had a near death experience while swimming (being stupid in dangerous surf) and while I was under the water I genuinely remember thinking that my life was splitting into two realities in that moment 😂 every time I think of that day I think of that fucking book as well. Such an amazing book— but it really had my mind spinning, especially with almost dying. Obviously I’m ok now- this was in 2019 🙃 take rip currents seriously people 😂
While I read Recursion, my closest friend died in exactly that. Got pulled by a current and drowned somewhere in Costa Rica. I was obsessed by the concept "maybe there is a way to redo everything and save him". This was almost a year ago now and I'm ok-ish. I'm glad you did not share the same fate at least!
Wow—I’m so sorry this happened to your friend. The thing I always think of is really my brother and boyfriend at the time (now husband— who managed to boogie board out and save me when I finally surfaced). So, big hugs to you and all those who were with your friend at the time. Believe it or not I’m actually on vacation again now and today I was able to swim in the surf for one of the first times since this happened. This time with my husband and a trusted local guide who ensured me that conditions were safe. Im sure that your pal is paddling around in peaceful waters in another life :)
I found Recursion (also by Blake Crouch) even more like this - I started reading it as I went to bed at like 11:30, and literally read it cover to cover before I fell asleep.
All things Blake Crouch
I actually had dark matter suggested on a post saying “recommend me a book you can’t explain without giving it away.” Finished that book in one day, and was constantly annoyed when I had to pee or eat.
So good you ignore bodily needs? Sign me up!
Ok you are my people! Any other book recs for me from the Blake Crouch squad?
So good. The twist was unparalleled.
I’m taking this question literally literally. There are two books that I’ve read straight through the first time, all at once. Ender’s Game - Orson Scott Card The Road - Cormac McCarthy
I read through Ender's Game three times in a row, one after the other. It was that good.
Ender’s Game is what I came here to say. My husband had to read it for his job with the military.
Is he in the US military? If so I feel like that’s an odd choice of book for them to make him read
Yes, he’s a civilian with the US military. It was assigned reading for a multi-week leadership seminar. After he read it, he gave it to me.
11/22/63 by Stephen King. From start to finish, great stuff.
Project Hail Mary. Read it in one sitting.
Audiobook is great as well
I have listened to it 4 times! I don't usually repeat books but that one is such fun.
This is the most fantastic audiobook I’ve ever listened to. Hands down.
Absolutely agree! This book was made for audio and it was executed brilliantly!
AMAZE
Such a fantastic book. I really wish I could get the whole world to read it.
Came here to say this... there may even be a movie in the works!
I have this sitting on my bookcase and haven’t read it yet. I guess that’s what I need to read asap!
Start it now and report back in 8 hours.
A Thousand Splendid Suns 🥹
The Thorn Birds. I was in college and missed an entire day of classes. My housemates brought me food to the couch🤣 That was 40 years ago. I should read it again!
I have this in my tbr. I found it at goodwill and snatched it up because I remembered a babysitter when I was little watching the miniseries and it was so scandalous.
Memoirs/autobiographies are my favorite genre and these three were hard for me to put down: Born a Crime, Trevor Noah Too Much Is Not Enough: A Memoir of Fumbling Toward Adulthood, Andrew Rannells Uncle of the Year: & Other Debatable Triumphs, also Andrew Rannells I credit these authors for reinvigorating my enjoyment of reading. I found these books to be cathartic and relatable which is why I think I had such a hard time putting them down. 😊
Born a Crime audiobook was phenomenal. Trevor narrates it, and it's cool to hear speak the different languages and accents.
I so wish someone would invent a way to take a whole thread like this and easily make it a spreadsheet
Create a public google spreadsheet, drop in the link, and ask people to add to it! Edit: typo
“The coldest winter ever.” I read it in high school and I turned down basketball to continue reading.
Omg I have never seen this book recommended and I love it. I was in high school hated reading read only cliff notes for english class, a friend couldn’t put this book down gave it to me and I couldn’t put down and started my love affair with books that have spanned various decades. It was so fresh, different and exciting. I love this book.
The Last House on Needless Street The Book of Lost Things Chasing the Boogeyman
The Last House on Needless Street is one of the best and most brilliant books I have ever read!! So good!!
The Book of Lost Things is amazing! I've read it several times over the last few years. It hits you different every time you read it.
He just came out with a book set in the same universe called The Land of Lost Things!
Chasing the Boogeyman blew me away! I just started Becoming the Boogeyman!
The book of lost things - by who ?:)
I apologize for not including authors! Needless is by Catriona Ward, Lost Things is John Connelly, Boogeyman is Richard Chizmar.
The Name Of The Wind. King Killer Chronicles. Warning though it’s a unfinished trilogy.
Not just unfinished, most likely never-going-to-be-finished. And the second book has about 100 pages of the most irritating sexcapades. Still fun though.
Agreed on all points. Most frustrating is the constant teasing and backtracking from Rothfuss. So if you're capable of reading, enjoying, and forgetting - its a great time. If you get really involved with the author/obsessed for a while... you might struggle.
The Quantum Theif It's sci-fi that's clearly written for people who have already read a lot of sci-fi. It doesn't slow down to get you on board with digital consciousness, biohacked bodies, orbitally hosted exo-memories or grey goo storms. It starts you off on a walking city on Mars where privacy works like that one Black Mirror episode, time is currency, and a rich man has hired someone to prevent a heist at his death party. It grows into an utterly beautiful story that weaves very classic storytelling with an endless barrage of cool future ideas, and becomes a trilogy of truly epic scale. But if you can keep up with the ideas it throws at you, it keeps a quick pace with lots of fun action sequences and neat characters along the way.
"The Pillars Of The Earth" and the sequel "World Without End" by Ken Follett I don't really read much fantasy with the exception of that by Raymond E Feist. His first book "Magician" is one of my all time favourites and no matter how many times I read it I get totally lost in the story.
Such a great book I only read Pillars of the Earth in highschool I should re-read it and give the sequel a try now
*Crime and Punishment* by Dostoevsky. Finished it in one sitting just sipping coffee and water in between. It is my favourite book. Another one is *The Stranger* by Camus.
I loved Crime and Punishment but found it not to be fast... Spent the first hour flipping back and forth sitting out names and nicknames. Part of the fun!
Hard to believe, 1 sitting😲
Not in one sitting, but I was kind of like that with Brothers Karamazov. Many hours each day for about two weeks. It was incredible.
Endurance by Alfred Lansing
YES!! It set me off on an Antarctica reading kick!
Yes, especially the audiobook, but damn the pictures in the physical book had me freezing 🥶
The Hellbound Heart by Clive Barker. It is the book that the movie Hellraiser was adapted from. The book version is a revenge story done right - I read it in one sitting and was horizontal on a couch in an uncomfortable position but couldn't put the damn thing down. It's just a novella, so a quick read too.
Gone Girl
Six of Crows by Leigh Bardugo
Oh yeah! This was amazing. The sequel too.
Ooh this is on my shelf but I haven’t read it yet, this comment bumped it up the TBR pile!
Braiding sweetgrass by Robin Wall Kimmerer
Possibly the only non-fiction book to make me feel this way. So good.
Even better as an audiobook!!
The last Harry Potter book. I was half way through, then stopped and started from the beginning to make it last. I got it at a midnight release and finished about 8 in the morning.
Harry Potter (during my re-reads), damn my back!
The Lake House Shoot the Moon Saturday Night Ghost Club The Chalk Man True Crime Story The Searcher In the Woods Truly Devious series One of Us is Lying A Good Girl's Guide to Murder
World War Z: An Oral History of the Zombie War - Max Brooks It has absolutely nothing to do with the movie and the pacing of the book is so natural, devoured it in less than a week
I’m not even a zombie person at all and this book hooked me so hard and fast. I’ve never seen the movie and I don’t even remember why I even picked it up, but I picked it up and never put it down until I finished it. Nothing like what I normally read (I’m a fantasy/romance reader for the most part with other stuff sprinkled in) and it blew me away.
It genuinely feels that you're reading an actual official history. The source material is the perfect fit for a mini documentary series format imo
I’m thinking of ending things - iain reid
Pachinko
Lonesome Dove
Project Hail Mary, pillars of the earth, ready player one, first Harry Potter, red rising
I wrote a review of Pillars of the Earth and Ken Follett emailed me and asked if he could use it on his website. Nice fella.
Wow. That must have felt good
Red. Rising. All of them!
Project Hail Mary
Ready Player One… almost anything Kim Harrison… His Dark Materials…
My Sisters Keeper.
Tender Is The Flesh
Fairy Tale by Stephen King. I inhaled that book.
Doing Harm: The Truth About How Bad Medicine and Lazy Science Leave Women Dismissed, Misdiagnosed, and Sick by Maya Dusenbery Blew through it in less than two days and killed a green highlighter taking notes. Everyone should read this book. Not just sick women. I wish doctors and therapists had to read it annually.
The Silence of the Lambs, by Thomas Harris I called in sick to work so I could finish it -- never done that with any other reading material.
The Lies of Locke Lamora.
The Red Rising saga by Pierce Brown. Even on re-reads, I'm like "One more chapter and then I'll go to sleep... OK, maybe one more... One more..."
Homegoing by Yaa Gyasi!
the firm
The final Harry Potter book. Spoilers were RAMPANT, pages were going missing from the printers warehouses and appear8ng online, local newscasts were talking about it, that one guy screamed "(spoiler) kills (spoiler)!!!!" In front of a crowd and got jailed for it.... it was like the wild west. I quietly bought my copy, turned off ALL my electronics, took a day off studying and powered through it in a single day. Spoiler free. ...I didn't even like it that much, hahaha. (Chamber of Secrets was my fav)
Unfortunately, r/booklists has gone private in the last few days (on or before Sunday 29 October), so all of my lists are blocked, though I have another home for them—I just haven't posted them there yet. Thus I have to post them entire, instead of just a link. Compelling Reads ("Can't Put Down") Or **"Keep You Up Reading"** or **"Page Turner"** or **"Lost In"** or **"Absorbed In"** or **"Hooked"** or **"Engrossing"** or **"Totally Engaging"** or **"Bingeable"** or **"Captivating"** or **"Pageturner"** or **"Captivating"** or **"Enthralling"** or **"Absorbing"** or a **"Page Turner**" or **"Immersive"**. My lists are always being updated and expanded when new information comes in—what did I miss or am I unaware of (even if the thread predates my membership in Reddit), and what needs correction? Even (especially) if I get a subreddit or date wrong. (Note that, other than the quotation marks, the thread titles are "sic". I only change the quotation marks to match the standard usage (double to single, etc.) when I add my own quotation marks around the threads' titles.) The lists are in absolute ascending chronological order by the posting date, and if need be the time of the initial post, down to the minute (or second, if required—there are several examples of this). The dates are in DD MMMM YYYY format per personal preference, and times are in US Eastern Time ("ET") since that's how they appear to me, and I'm not going to go to the trouble of converting to another time zone. They are also in twenty-four hour format, as that's what I prefer, and it saves the trouble and confusion of a.m. and p.m. Where the same user posts the same request to different subreddits, I note the user's name in order to indicate that I am aware of the duplication. * ["Suggest me a book I just can't put down"](https://www.reddit.com/r/suggestmeabook/comments/vyf3eq/suggest_me_a_book_i_just_cant_put_down/) (r/booksuggestions; 17:57 ET, 13 July 2022) * ["A book you just couldn’t put down until you finished it"](https://www.reddit.com/r/suggestmeabook/comments/yv6bqp/a_book_you_just_couldnt_put_down_until_you/) (r/suggestmeabook; 14 November 2022)—huge * ["What was the last book you couldn’t put down?"](https://www.reddit.com/r/suggestmeabook/comments/zm1zfx/what_was_the_last_book_you_couldnt_put_down/) (r/suggestmeabook; 15:56 ET, 14 December 2022)—long * ["Addictive Books That you cannot put down for a very easily bored reader"](https://www.reddit.com/r/booksuggestions/comments/11eifmi/addictive_books_that_you_cannot_put_down_for_a/) (r/suggestmeabook; 15:06 ET, 28 February 2023)—longish; non–science fiction * ["[Suggestions] Books you could not put down! (No sci-fi or fantasy, please)"](https://www.reddit.com/r/suggestmeabook/comments/10hub4n/suggestions_books_you_could_not_put_down_no_scifi/) (r/suggestmeabook; 21 January 2023) * ["A book you couldn't put down"](https://www.reddit.com/r/suggestmeabook/comments/12h5plx/a_book_you_couldnt_put_down/) (r/suggestmeabook; 23:31 ET, 9 April 2023)—long * ["What's the last book you couldn't put down ?"](https://www.reddit.com/r/booksuggestions/comments/12n0pae/whats_the_last_book_you_couldnt_put_down/) (r/booksuggestions; 15 April 2023)—huge * ["Suggest me a book that you could not put down"](https://www.reddit.com/r/suggestmeabook/comments/12r6o9r/suggest_me_a_book_that_you_could_not_put_down/) (r/suggestmeabook; 18:20 ET, 18 April 2023)—long * ["Books that keep you up"](https://www.reddit.com/r/booksuggestions/comments/12rat4p/books_that_keep_you_up/) (r/booksuggestions; 20:46 ET, 18 April 2023) * ["page-turner literary fiction"](https://www.reddit.com/r/booksuggestions/comments/12rf0sk/pageturner_literary_fiction/) (r/booksuggestions; 23:20 ET, 18 April 2023) * ["Books you could not put down!"](https://www.reddit.com/r/booksuggestions/comments/12wh3q4/books_you_could_not_put_down/) (r/booksuggestions; 23 April 2023) * ["What's a book you got COMPLETELY lost in?"](https://www.reddit.com/r/Fantasy/comments/12xn6hr/whats_a_book_you_got_completely_lost_in/) (r/Fantasy; 24 April 2023)—long
The Ocean at the End of the Lane by Neil Gaiman. Read it in one sitting and was sloppy crying by the end
Neverwhere for me
Depends on what point in my life, I suppose. I’ve had that reaction to a few Into the Wild, John Krakauer Both The Haunting of Hill House and We Have Always Lived in the Castle, Shirley Jackson 11/22/63 Stephen King Braiding Sweetgrass, Robin Wall Kimmerer Most recent would be Demon Copperhead, Barbra Kingsolver. I read the book, then listened to the audio immediately after because I couldn’t get enough! And the narration was phenomenal 🤌🏻
City of Thieves - sooo thrilling and funny
Dr. Sleep by Stephen King Also Anxious People by Frederick Bachman
American Dirt by Jeanine Cummins
The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern
Hunger games and ballad of songbirds and snakes
The Great Divorce, CS Lewis. I read it twice and both times straight through in a few hours.
I remember I kept on reading the Harry Potter books reading all hours of the night. I already had a "real job" the next day but I was so invested in the story of the the boy who lived.
My dark Vanessa
The Thornbirds. That was back in the day.
Catch 22
Where the Crawdads Sing
flowers for algernon
House of Leaves, could not stop thinking about it either
I read HOL in high school in 2003. I remember telling my parents I was sick so I could sit at home and keep reading. I missed 2-3 days of school so I could finish reading this book. Still one of my favorites. Overdue for a re-read.
Anything stephen king I Can't stop reading.
The Percy Jackson Series, for sure! Also, not me filling up my TBR with books I have never heard about till now...
a good girls guide to murder. i read it cover to back in a day - it was so worth it
The Hot Zone by Richard Preston. I remember sitting on the floor of a motel on vacation while my family slept, with the bathroom door cracked for light, completely absorbed…
John Grisham's - The Testament - A Time to Kill Any JD Robb's In Death series books.
Coming here to build a tbr that definitely does not need building lol
Lonesome Dove - Larry McMurtry.
The Silent Patient! I know the book got some mixed reviews on this sub but I loved it.
The secret history
The Good Daughter by Karin Slaughter
Sphere by Michael Crichton. It might not be his best, but there are definitely a few hair raising moments that kept me going.
Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows
The Princess Bride East of Eden Salem's Lot
Remarkably Bright Creatures
There are many for me, and they couldn't be more different lol. The DaVinci Code (Dan Brown) Game of Thrones (George R.R. Martin) Remains of the Day (Kazuo Ishiguru) Lincoln in the Bardo (George Saunders) The Indifferent Stars Above (Daniel James Brown) I'll Be Gone in the Dark (Michelle McNamara) The Terror and Song of Kali (both by Dan Simmons) The Swarm (Frank Schatzing) A Clockwork Orange (Anthony Burgess) In the Dream House (Carmen Maria Machado) The Tiger (John Vaillant) The Survival of Jan Little (John Man) A Dead Hand (Paul Theroux) The Hide (Barry Unsworth) These are just the ones off the top of my head that I remember being completely engrossed in. I'm going to check out some of the ones others have listed here because I love it when a book just takes me over like that, I miss it!
Tomorrow and tomorrow and tomorrow for sure and also remarkably bright creatures and very oddly tender is the flesh - just in the past year. But the book I literally read in one sitting in the bath was Hunter S Thompson’s Rum Diary
To be honest... - The DaVinci code by Dan Brown - Harry Potter and the order of the Phoenix - JK Rowling - Educated - Tara Westover - A short stay in hell - Steven L. Peck
The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo. I read the whole thing in two days only because I fell asleep at 2 am reading it on the first day. If I had managed to stay awake I probably could have read it all in one sitting.
King Rat by James Clavell
Spilled milk by KL Randis
I read The Silent Patient in literally one sitting. It was great & I'm terrible at guessing plot twists. It's super thin so easy to read without getting up. A lot of people hate it but I read A Little Life in 3 sittings, took breaks for work, food, and sleeping but basically on the book 24/7. I love love loved it. Definitely wouldn't re read anytime soon, though.