There were times while reading Deaver's The Bone Collector that I started to think I was back in college. (I have my degree in criminal justice, emphasis crime scene work.) Deaver really did his homework on the vast and infinitely interesting world of forensics and crime scene investigations and it helped this novel come alive for me. However, it isn't the best book I've ever read but it's not anyplace near the bottom either. It's enjoyable, tense, and full of detail.
Lincoln Rhyme used to be a top forensic man for NYPD. After an accident while walking the grid at a scene, Rhyme has been left paralyzed. He only has use of his left ring finger, his head, and his neck. And of course his brain and lungs and such. He can't move or walk is what I'm saying. Anyway, Rhyme is pissed, he's lonely, and he's finished. He wants to die. Then his old colleague Lon Sellitto comes to visit him. It seems that someone driving a cab kidnapped a man and woman from the airport. Earlier that same day, the man was found buried by some train tracks. Only his arm was above ground and his ring finger had been stripped to the bone. Begrudgingly, Rhyme agrees to head the search for the suspect, The Bone Collector.
I don't think that I'd read any Deaver prior to this novel. I've seen the movie version of The Bone Collector with Denzel Washington and Angelina Jolie, but it differs in many ways from the book. Deaver is very detailed about most of the victims and makes you worry for their safety as much as the book's characters do. That can also be the downfall of Deaver. There are times when you just want him to get on with it, but we have to listen to a victim's thoughts about things that have happened in their life. In the end we see that at least one of the victim's backgrounds was relevant to the bigger world of Rhyme (he is a recurring character in Deaver's novels).
In conclusion, my husband just asked me if I liked the novel. I answered "Meh". Take from that what you will, fair readers.
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