Barb's Book Reviews: Review of "The Broken Window: A Lincoln Rhyme Mystery" by Jeffery Deaver

Tuesday, March 29, 2016

Review of "The Broken Window: A Lincoln Rhyme Mystery" by Jeffery Deaver

	In this eighth book in the 'Lincoln Rhyme' series, the quadriplegic criminalist and his partner, detective Amelia Sachs, are drawn into the investigation when Lincoln's cousin is accused of murder. The book can be read as a standalone, but familiarity with the characters is a bonus. ***** When Lincoln Rhyme's cousin Arthur Rhyme is arrested for murder, Lincoln and his team soon discover that the real murderer is a serial rapist/murderer who uses personal information from a data mining company to lure his victims and to plant evidence so innocent people are arrested for the crimes. The source of the personal data used by the perpetrator seems to be an information collection company called Strategic Systems Datacorp (SSD). When Lincoln's team starts to investigate SSD, the murderer - dubbed "522" - realizes that his plan has been discovered. Enraged, he cooks up schemes to get the detectives off his trail so he can continue his crime spree. Deavers is a master at this type of story and the book zips along at a brisk pace and holds your interest. Aside from the plot I was very interested to learn how much information about us is collected and collated by professional "data collectors." They apparently itemize the kinds and brands of products we use, our educational history, what kind of vacations we take, what restaurants we favor, where we get our hair cut, etc. etc. Ditto for all our relatives, friends, and acquaintances. In the book, the murderer makes use of this kind of information to plot his crimes. Rating: 3 stars

In this eighth book in the 'Lincoln Rhyme' series, the quadriplegic criminalist and his partner, detective Amelia Sachs, are drawn into the investigation when Lincoln's cousin is accused of murder.

The book can be read as a standalone, but familiarity with the characters is a bonus.

*****

When Lincoln Rhyme's cousin Arthur Rhyme is arrested for murder, Lincoln and his team soon discover that the real murderer is a serial rapist/murderer who uses personal information from a data mining company to lure his victims and to plant evidence so innocent people are arrested for the crimes.

The source of the personal data used by the perpetrator seems to be an information collection company called Strategic Systems Datacorp (SSD).

When Lincoln's team starts to investigate SSD, the murderer - dubbed "522" - realizes that his plan has been discovered. Enraged, he cooks up schemes to get the detectives off his trail so he can continue his crime spree.

Deavers is a master at this type of story and the book zips along at a brisk pace and holds your interest.

Aside from the plot I was very interested to learn how much information about us is collected and collated by professional "data collectors." They apparently itemize the kinds and brands of products we use, our educational history, what kind of vacations we take, what restaurants we favor, where we get our hair cut, etc. etc. Ditto for all our relatives, friends, and acquaintances.

In the book, the murderer makes use of this kind of information to plot his crimes.

Rating: 3 stars

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Barb's Book Reviews

Tuesday, March 29, 2016

Review of "The Broken Window: A Lincoln Rhyme Mystery" by Jeffery Deaver

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