TrixieB Posted July 4, 2015 Share Posted July 4, 2015 I need book recommendations. Dd has been reading through a stack of Michael Crichton books we picked up at Goodwill last week. She wants more books like his -- suspense, somewhat believable sci-fi set in modern times. I'm more of a mystery person myself, so I thought I'd ask the Hive. Suggestions? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Grover Posted July 4, 2015 Share Posted July 4, 2015 maybe Robin Cook? Medically type thrillers? 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Elfknitter.# Posted July 4, 2015 Share Posted July 4, 2015 https://cplreaderscorner.wordpress.com/author-read-alikes/michael-crichton-read-alikes/ 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
*Lulu* Posted July 4, 2015 Share Posted July 4, 2015 Dean Koontz I'd start with Watchers or Seize the Night or Odd Thomas 5 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Onceuponatime Posted July 4, 2015 Share Posted July 4, 2015 Connie Willis. She would probably like a new book called The Martian by Andy Weir. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mama Geek Posted July 4, 2015 Share Posted July 4, 2015 I second Robin Cook and would add Tom Clancy. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
almondbutterandjelly Posted July 4, 2015 Share Posted July 4, 2015 Maybe Clive Cussler? I love his Oregon Files series. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chess Dad Posted July 4, 2015 Share Posted July 4, 2015 Dean Koontz I'd start with Watchers or Seize the Night or Odd Thomas :iagree: Excellent author! I have read most of his books and they are a great mixture of current times and Sci - fi. Dean Koontz book list is long but you mentioned a couple of his best. (though I loved most of them) :patriot: I also put in authors (read likes) simillar to Dean Koontz and it listed Michael Crichton. https://www.bookbrowse.com/read-alikes/index.cfm/author_number/260/dean-koontz Enjoy! 4 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wheres Toto Posted July 4, 2015 Share Posted July 4, 2015 I second (third) Robin Cook and Dean Koontz. 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stacia Posted July 4, 2015 Share Posted July 4, 2015 Not exactly like Crichton, but a couple of books she might like... Lexicon by Max Barry The Supernatural Enhancements by Edgar Cantero 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
*Lulu* Posted July 4, 2015 Share Posted July 4, 2015 My only caveat with Koontz is that some of his works are super dark, the Bad Place is absolutly not something I'd recommend for teens, and Lightning, Whispers, and Velocity all have some heavy topics that come into play including sexual abuse. He is absolutly one of my favorite contemporary authors, but I would not recommend all of his work for young adults. (Heck, as an adult I almost couldn't stomach The Bad Place. I'm just super stubborn and determined I was going to see it though to the end.) 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kareni Posted July 4, 2015 Share Posted July 4, 2015 She would probably like a new book called The Martian by Andy Weir. I was going to suggest this, too. My daughter liked Michael Crichton's Timeline. Some other books she enjoyed (which don't necessarily meet your criterion) include ~ Jumper: A Novel The Bourne Identity The Historian Regards, Kareni 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TrixieB Posted July 4, 2015 Author Share Posted July 4, 2015 My only caveat with Koontz is that some of his works are super dark, the Bad Place is absolutly not something I'd recommend for teens, and Lightning, Whispers, and Velocity all have some heavy topics that come into play including sexual abuse. He is absolutly one of my favorite contemporary authors, but I would not recommend all of his work for young adults. (Heck, as an adult I almost couldn't stomach The Bad Place. I'm just super stubborn and determined I was going to see it though to the end.) Thanks for the heads-up on this. I have never read any of Koontz's books -- can you tell me which of his would be less dark/heavy? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
*Lulu* Posted July 4, 2015 Share Posted July 4, 2015 Watchers Sieze the Night Fear Nothing Tick Tock Life Expectancy Phantoms Odd Thomas Winter Moon Icebound The Taking By the Light of the Moon Maybe Lightning, there is a child molester in that one, but I cannot remember how vivid or indepth his part of the story is. All of the stories have some variation of the good versus evil theme and suspense and darkness. In most of the books I listed above there is also a level of levity. Usually the main protagonist has a dark sense of humor that breaks up the intensity of the story. I would say if she is comfortable with the level of intensity in Crichton's work, she will be fine with most of Koontz. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wheres Toto Posted July 4, 2015 Share Posted July 4, 2015 My only caveat with Koontz is that some of his works are super dark, the Bad Place is absolutly not something I'd recommend for teens, and Lightning, Whispers, and Velocity all have some heavy topics that come into play including sexual abuse. He is absolutly one of my favorite contemporary authors, but I would not recommend all of his work for young adults. (Heck, as an adult I almost couldn't stomach The Bad Place. I'm just super stubborn and determined I was going to see it though to the end.) I would agree with this. He has many many many books but some are very dark. Odd Thomas is okay, Watchers as mentioned above. I don't remember anything bad in Phantoms (was a tv movie), I think the Frankenstein series was okay (very similar feel to a lot of Robin Cook). The Christopher Snow books are good - one is Fear Nothing. I can't remember the others - so many of his titles are so similar. In addition to those above, I'd avoid Intensity, which was also a movie but I found it very very disturbing. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Grover Posted July 4, 2015 Share Posted July 4, 2015 I don't like Koontz because of the supernatural aspects - just a head up in case she likes the more "nearly real" aspect of Crichton. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chris in VA Posted July 4, 2015 Share Posted July 4, 2015 Maybe John Grisham? I liked The Firm but read it very long ago--not sci-fi, but suspenseful. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
6packofun Posted July 4, 2015 Share Posted July 4, 2015 Amy Rogers: Petroplague and Reversion Michael Palmer (medical thrillers) has several that I've enjoyed! If she is OK with a bit of gore (I won't go so far as to say horror...mainly only in the first two books), she might LOVE the Pendergast series by Douglas Preston and Lincoln Child. Relic is the first one (the book is way better than the movie, although it's older) and goes to Reliquary, The Cabinet of Curiosities, Still Life with Crows and goes on from there. Some are better than others, but those first four are awesome! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ereks mom Posted July 6, 2015 Share Posted July 6, 2015 ER likes Michael Crichton, and he also likes Tom Clancy, Frank Peretti, and Ted Dekker. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
spudboy Posted July 11, 2015 Share Posted July 11, 2015 If she's into near-future biotech sci-fi , how about _Interface_ by Neal Stephenson and George Jewsbury? (Near-future when written, recent past now.) "Interface is a near-future thriller, set in 1996, in which a shadowy coalition bent on controlling the world economy attempts to manipulate a candidate for president of the United States through the use of a computer bio-chip implanted in his brain." Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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