The Broken Window (8) (Lincoln Rhyme Novel)

Once again, Criminalist Lincoln Rhyme and Detective Amelia Sachs work together to solve one of their most difficult cases to date - a serial killer known only as "522" who preys on victims through their own electronic footprints of day to day life by expertly framing them for his horrific murders. Everything we do and buy is recorded and scrutinized for insidious criminals to prey upon. "The Broken Window" is truly a scary look into what could happen in the electronic world as the story builds great suspense and intrigue with every page. For those of you who haven't read any Lincoln Rhyme novels, he's a well-known crime scene detective that suffered a serious injury that left him a quadriplegic. This story also lets the reader in on a more personal side of Rhyme by introducing his cousin and his family life growing up.

Rhyme and Sachs are joined by solid, interesting characters along with a lengthy list of possible suspects. The story gets even more interesting the closer Rhyme gets to the "real" killer and then the tables turn on him and his crew. It's more of a cat and mouse "whodunit" thrill that will definitely keep you guessing until the end. If you think you know who the killer is - think again.

The story starts out great, but then gets a bit slow with all the related background information until about halfway into the book. Keep reading -- you won't be disappointed. I have been a big fan of Lincoln Rhyme Novels since "The Bone Collector" and this story is now one of my favorites. I highly recommend this book for anyone that enjoys high thrills and "whodunit" mysteries.

Lincoln Rhyme is back, currently working a case in London with Inspector Longhurst of the Metropolitan Police. The Reverend Samuel G. Goodlight, a protestant minister from Africa, is an informant in a drugs-for-arms scheme. A man named Richard Logan is hiding in London, and a snitch, Danny Kruger, who gave up selling arms to work with the police, is trying to track Logan.

In the middle of his case, Rhyme gets news that his cousin Arthur Rhyme has been arrested for the murder of a woman and the theft of her high-priced painting. Lincoln hasn't spoken to Arthur in years, and only a phone call from Arthur's desperate wife Judy causes him to grudgingly "look into it". Working the case with them is powerful NYPD Captain Joe Malloy, and young Officer Ron Pulaski returns to assist.

The evidence against Arthur is concrete, but Arthur insists it was planted to convict him. Working with the evidence, Rhyme needs to find out how the perp (who he nicknames "522"), could have gotten so much information on Arthur to plant such incriminating evidence. He turns to SSD (Strategic Systems Datacorp), a data mining corporation. CEO Andrew Sterling seems cooperative, opening up to Officer Pulaski the world of information - information you didn't know they were gathering about you. Once thing is for certain, "522", a serial rapist and killer, seems to have connection somehow with SSD, and its up to Lincoln to find out who he is, how he gets his information, and when he will strike next - before he strikes too close to home.

"522" is one of Deaver's most criminal villains to date. He's a shadow in the network, the man who calls the human race "sixteens" (you'll find out why). He's as sick and twisted - and intelligent - of a criminal you could ask for in a mystery/thriller. Deaver engages the reader with chapters told in first person by "522", giving us a glimpse into the twisted mind of a psycho. Lincoln and Sachs are in top form in their pursuits, and just when you think 522 is "made", he slips away once again. There's a surprise at the ending too, regarding Lincoln's London case. This is one of the better 'Lincoln Rhyme' books Deaver has written. The angle of Data Mining is very interesting, and Deaver provides some websites in the Afterward for those curious minds who wish to pursue more information on the subject. 'The Broken Window' kept me up late into the night, reading to find out what happens next. Highly recommended. Enjoy!

I am a big fan of Jeffery Deaver and specifically of his Lincoln Rhyme series, so I always look forward to reading one. I have read nearly all of the Rhyme series except for the newest books in the series, so I have seen Rhyme face some incredibly creepy villains (usually serial killers). This time, the killings may not have quite the shock value of, say, The Bone Collector, which was so graphically violent, but the killer and his methods are just as scary/creepy due to the insidiousness of the villain.

You see, this villain doesn't just kill people. First, he steals your identity, then he kills someone, then he plants evidence from his crime in YOUR home and gets YOU arrested for a murder you did not commit. No one will listen to you because, well, the evidence doesn't lie--nor does the computer, which the killer uses to manipulate the data to make the case seem air tight.

They call him "the man who knows everything" because he somehow knows that you bought a new pair of sneakers last week--what brand and what size--the prints of which will show up at a murder scene...or that you bought duct tape two days before a murder involving a victim being duct taped. You have no idea what he knows about you, and how he may use it to frame you for his crime.

How do you fight a villain who is always several steps ahead of you? That's what Lincoln Rhyme and his team must figure out. They've never faced a killer like this before and they'll have to rewrite the rulebook to catch him...before more innocent people end up dead--or in jail for a murder they did not commit.

I found the book very interesting but maddening--I guess it's the Libra in me that was more upset about innocent people being framed for the killer's murders than about the murders themselves. It definitely makes you think about how reliant our society has become on computer data and how there may be a lot more about you that is publicly available than you ever suspected.

I didn't find this book as exciting, perhaps, as some of the other Rhyme stories, but it was certainly interesting and I was invested in seeing this killer stopped and the people whose lives he had ruined vindicated. The very nature of the story created so much frustration in me, and perhaps that's why I wasn't quite as WOW'd by it as I often am by Deaver's books. Still, an excellent read.

I have been a fan of the Lincoln Rhyme books from day one. The brilliant Detective, who suffered the same type of injury as the late Christopher Reeve, has now gone through some experimental work that has more feeling in his fingers, and body, but is still dependant on his electric wheelchair. His lady, cop Amelia Sachs, is his feet and body as she searches for clues by 'working the grid' of crime scenes and their love for each other transcends a man who cannot walk and a young lady who can try to be part of helping and learning as well as loving this man. The Broken Window deals with Identity Theft. If you've never been touched by Identity Theft, count yourself lucky - it is a terrible violation and you have to spend a lot of time getting your life back in order. A brilliant villian, slowly takes over the lives of respectible men and women and he plays with them like a spider with a fly in her web. He can take their identities, ruin their credit, discredit professionals so they cannot practise their arts, even drive them to suicide. Oh yes, he also likes to kill them too. So starts a game of cat and mouse with Rhyme and co. and a brilliant mastermind. What we learn is maybe TMI - too much information about the subject - we are numbers - everything we purchase on the Internet can be accessed and information sold/given to others to contact you to be interested in their products. You get on mailing lists and then get really weird junk mail and you find it all ties back to a purchase you made on the Internet. It sounds like I'm talking about John Twelve Hawks, in the Traveler, but it's Deaver's crafty touch. He also does not let us forget 2 major projects of his - the continuing saga of The Watchmaker, and he gives us several healthy doses of references to Kathryn Dance, the kinesthics specialist in California that was introduced in a Rhyme book. The book was as always excellent, dealing with this person tossing, Lincoln's once close cousin into a tailspin accused of murder, and Rhyme's memories of their closeness, and what happened that makes Lincoln continually think - what might have happened if...? The reason I give it 4 stars is Deaver goes into SOOOOO much information on the subject that it is almost overwhelming. Yes you get the point. But I am not writing a paper on the subject. It is a fascinating, frightening subject, and again, another fine Lincoln Rhyme and Amelia Sachs adventure. Just keep an eye on your credit rating!