hey everyone. i've just discovered how captivating reading can be so i've been reading frequently for the past months. at the moment i am reading "dreamcatcher" by Stephen King. im in the middle part of the book and i find it very suspenseful and dramatic,however, i also find the book to be boring at times and i just want to quit reading. anyway the reason i made this topic was for someone to recommend me a great, absorbing book that won't bore me. i'm into almmost everything: sci-fi,horror,non-fict.,war,philosophy. And nothing exceeding 500pgs please.

Hmmm. You started off pretty badly. I have yet to read that one but heard similar stories regarding "Dreamcatcher." Some of my faves are "The Shining", "Eyes of the Dragon" by SK, "Jurassic Park" by MC. So many great books. Hard to spotlight just a few.

You gave 1 example of something you didn't like. It would greatly help people to give you suggestions if you give us a list of things that you've read in the last few months that you considered great and absorbing.

Dan brown is good (Divinci Code, Angels and Deamons). James Patterson is a great read (numbers of books). Harry Potters are great as well. Oh and older Stephen King ie Pet Cemetary, Shining, Cujo etc

hmm...the story line just gets..boring i guess. the book would gradually get suspenseful and then all of the sudden, you get lost. i don't know how to explain it clearer. anyway thanks for the suggestions guys. im thinking of starting "the marines of autumn" by James Brady. does anyone have books they recommend that's in the "philosophy" genre?

I think Dean Koontz book Watchers would be a good read for you.

Stephen King: The Stand
Robert McCammon: Swan Song

any recommendations on conspiracy theories/fantasy/sci-fi books? thanks

I recommend Jurassic Park and Sphere by Crichton,you defintately won't get bored during either of those.

I wasn't trying to get a better explanation of what you like -- I was asking if you could give me some titles of things you've read and liked. I love giving recommendation lists, but it's hard for me when it's unclear what you like.

Anyway, some good suggestions have been made here. Micheal Crichton, even when he's "off", is certainly fast reading. The same with Dan Brown. If you like horror, I love Robert McCammon -- especially his 80s classics (like Wolf's Hour, Swan Song, Boy's Life, They Thirst, Stonger). Dean Koontz is good, though I've tired of his formula recently. But if you're new to him, it should be good -- especially his older books like Watchers, Phantoms, Strangers, The Bad Place, Shadowfire, Twilight Eyes. He's big on conspiracy sci-fi stories too. Richard Laymon is fast paced horror, though he's not for hte faint of heart or easily offended. I like F Paul Wilson -- especially The Keep and his "Repairman Jack" novels. For thrillers, I like the books of Lincoln Child and Douglas Preston (Relic, Thunderhead, Riptide, Cabinet of Curiousities, Brimstone) -- I have yet to read one I didn't like. My favorite active fantasy authors are George R.R. Martin (Song of Ice and Fire), Tad Williams (Memory, Sorrow, and Thorn; Otherland), and Robin Hobb (Assasin and Liveship Traders trilogy)-- but they'd be disqualified for you if you don't want anything longer than 500 pages. Fantasy tends towards epic stories, so it tends to be long (or at least a series of books). But there are few better reading joys for me than to completely get into a great epic story.

^ oh. lol. well some books that i enjoyed were "The Giver" "Black Hawk Down" and "5 people you meet in heaven"

If you're still reading this, here are two more:

One of the most absorbing non-fiction books I've ever read is "Into Thin Air" by Jon Krakauer. He was a writer for Outside magazine who was part of an extremely ill-fated expedition to climb Mt. Everest.

For fiction I found "The Amazing Adventures of Kavalier & Clay" by Michael Chabon to be completely engrossing. In a nutshell it's about two cousins who build a comic book empire, but there's so much more. It's an excellent story.

I recently read Conquistador by S. M. Stirling. It is about a group of people who discover a portal to a parallel. I got it at B&N for like 5$ (which is good if you by a lot of books)
I am also reading The World is Flat by Thomas Friedman right now which is like an economic/technology book. A bit dry at times but very interesting.

Some all time greats are Stand by SK, Ender's Game or Ender's Shadow by Orson Scott Card , Dragonriders of Pern by Mccaffrey or Guns, Germs, and Steel by J. Diamond

If you want something really short, I'd recommend Another Fine Myth by Robert Asprin. The library should have the reprints of them.

Myself, I've only read mainly Stephen King - all time fave is 'the shining', 'it', 'bag of bones'. Or the harry potter books. There is a second handbook store and I was able to purchase a early edition of 'Misery', 'Tommy Knockers'... not sure if they were first editions or not, but they look it.

I should try other books, but nothing has jumped out at me, guess the old saying of "never judge a book by it's cover" comes into it.

well, i would like a relatively short book(around 200-400) pgs. i don't have as much time as i used to. i guess i read anything interesting.