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Books That Grab You By The Throat

B

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What books have you read that seemed to grab hold of you and hurtle you through them at breakneck speed? As for me:

1. Dean Koontz - Intensity

This book drew back and clocked me square in the jaw, sending me deep into the psychotic fringes of Koontz' mind. I didn't come to until I read the last word.

2. Dhalgren - Samuel Delaney

Strange book. Couldn't read it at first (too strange), but then forced my way through the first thirty pages and was helplessly sucked in.
 
the first and last freedom, by krishnamurti.

a slap in the face to all the philosophers, scientists, politicians and churchmen who think that just because they can read, bitch and write, that they deserve to conquer the universe.
 
Jose Saramago's Blindness; utterly harrowing, a rivetting experience!

Cheers, Martin :cool:
 
My to-read list has already swelled to monstrous proportions because of you guys.

My days are plumb full up.
 
I can tell this is a thread that will beef up my to-read list as well...as if it needs it...

Although I've had many great reads since it, I don't think any novel has pulled me in as strongly as A Simple Plan by Scott Smith.
I was so absorbed I felt like a co-conspiritor :cool:
 
Joe Haldeman - The Forever War
Alfred Bester - The Stars My Destination
Gene Wolfe - On Blue's Waters. GW is the master.
 
Bitten and Stolen by Kelley Armstrong... I just love re-reading.. wheni 1st bought them, i just couldn't put em down!
 
Vince Flynn
Read his first 4 novels. Fast paced action intigue spy terrorism books. Like Clancy. Real page turners, I had severe sleep loss when reading these, then depression when I finished them :) . Don't you hate it when a good book finishes?

I have not read his fifth novel yet, waiting for the small paperback.

Tom Clancy
Red Storm Rising.
 
In Cold Blood by Truman Capote. Read it straight through, was up reading until 4 in the morning.
 
wow martin i'm suprised you mentioned Blindness i've tried once to get into it, mustn't have been a very serious attempt (shall try harder next time), which reminds me i've got his jesus christ book lying around half finished somewhere.

hmm books that have grabbed me by the throat? i guess "Vurt" by Jeff Noon did that, i had to keep sneaking off during work hours to finish it! theres probably been a whole stack but that was the most memorable for me, ooh and when i was a teeny i stayed up till 6am to finish reading the Darwath trilogy by Barbara Hambly a most excellent fantasy series.

ksky
 
Let's see...

Ender's Game by Orson Scott Card

Bed of Nails by Michael Slade

Death's Door by Michael Slade

The Gunslinger by Stephen King

Thats all I can remember for now..
 
A Child Called "It" by Dave Pelzer. I spent the first chapter with a lump in my throat that I could hardly swallow past.
 
I can't remember the name of the story, or the collection, but there was a short story by Alfred Hitchcock that actually made me get up and turn on the lights, and jump (literally) back into bed...

The ending was the scariest part. Had to watch TV the rest of the night so I could get to sleep!

(will find name of story and repost)
 
The Darkfall series by Isobelle Carmody had me reading until the wee hours of the morning, as did the Earth's Children series of books (I've forgotten the author though :eek: . I'm not very good with names). I didn't put them down during the day except to eat practically!
 
'Blindness' by Jose Saramago's :eek: Awsome !

'The Great Stink' by Clare Clark
About Corruption and Murder beneath the streets of Victorian London
 
I would agree that in terms of fiction, Intensity was a very good book. It was certainly an eye-opener, one that seemed to be filled more with shock-power, than previous Koontz books. I can still vividly remember the book's characters and some key parts of the book verbatim. While I don't have the same book mentioned in regards to Krishnamurti, he really did have an incredible philosophy. I would perhaps call it an enlightened form of nihilism. Many criticize belief systems and various states of mind, Krishnamurti took dead aim at the pilgrim himself for making such lowly visits to shrines and blew the entire reason for searching for god or enlightenment out of the water.

Personally, I would have to say that the Communist Manifesto was a book that had me by the throat. From the beginning where Marx traced how oppressor and oppressed took on different titles but held the same roles throughout the epochs of history, was enthralling for me. I also was just floored at how Marx dealt with some of the more serious charges against his views. Keep in mind that this was at an early age and by no means do I claim to be a follower of his. As a matter of fact, I'm quite the opposite. It's just that at an earlier age, it was a powerful force that influenced me to study economics at a deeper level.
 
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