Action packed novels with a keen science background. Michael Crichton used to be the writer that people read to get a feel for where science was taking us and the ethical questions we'd be facing when we got there.
I discovered Michael Crichton as a child when I found a script book of Westworld. I read that book cover to cover many times over the years and followed it up with the Andromeda Strain. Eventually, when Jurassic Park came out, his books became popular enough to become easy to get. That's when I read several others.
A lot of people think they know all about Jurassic Park because they've seen the films - that's sad. One of the parts in the novel I enjoyed the most was hacking the security system. There's a clever little C library trick in there.
Anything in boldface is still outstanding (I haven't read it).