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74th out of 1,069 books
—
1,565 voters
The Coffin Dancer (Lincoln Rhyme #2)
by
Jeffery Deaver (Goodreads Author)
NYPD criminalist Lincoln Rhyme joins his beautiful protégé, Amelia Sachs, in the hunt for the Coffin Dancer -- an ingenious killer who changes appearance even faster than he adds to his trail of victims. They have only one clue: the madman has a tattoo of the Grim Reaper waltzing with a woman. Rhyme must rely on his wits and intuition to track the elusive murderer through...more
Paperback, 532 pages
Published
March 1st 1999
by Pocket Books
(first published 1998)
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This is the book that hooked me into reading suspense novels. Back in 2002, I was at Super-Walmart waiting for my car to get an oil change so I decided to kill some time in the book aisle. I picked up a John Grisham book and was reading the plot summary when somebody said to me "if you want to read a good book then read that one". She was pointing to THE COFFIN DANCER so I took her advice and bought it. I have read about 120 novels since and nothing has topped it yet. I felt the first chapter wa...more
Aug 23, 2007
Zach Judkins
rated it
5 of 5 stars
Recommends it for:
thrill seekers:)
Shelves:
mystery
this is my favorite book by Deaver and the only one I would really give five stars. It is a great, creepy, fast paced thrill/mystery book, with all the twists and forensic tidbits one might expect from Deaver. What really makes the book is it's brilliantly sadist villians. The mindplay between the main character (lincoln rhyme) and those villians is enthralling, and adds about as much action and suspense to the book as any other in the series. for anyone who has not read the other lincoln rhyme...more
Typical Jeffery Deaver mystery involving two of my favorite characters- Lincoln Rhyme and Amelia Sachs. This time they are tracking a devious killer who has a tatoo of a snake dancing around the victims' coffin on his arm. I love the interplay of Lincoln and lover/partner Amelia as she acts as his legs at the crime scenes and learns to be a fantastic crime scene detective under his tutelage.
Read this during my (mentioned before) Jeffery Deaver/Lincoln Rhyme "period". In this outing an old enemy who has killed some of Lincoln's assistants in the past returns. Lincoln unfazed by this bravely sends Amelia after him anyway....:) (little dark humor there). (Let's you and him fight :))
The Dancer is one of Rhyme's deadliest foes...and I found one glitch in the story the conspicuous tattoo that figures so significantly in the story. I won't go into why here as that would be a huge spoiler,...more
The Dancer is one of Rhyme's deadliest foes...and I found one glitch in the story the conspicuous tattoo that figures so significantly in the story. I won't go into why here as that would be a huge spoiler,...more
1 like · like · see review
Jeffery Deaver simply does not disappoint. In fact, my cell got stolen from my pocket while I was reading the last few pages of this book in a bus station, totally absorbed in the story, eager to get to the end. (Well I sincerely hope that did not happen. I loved my phone. )
The plot is intricate and full of unexpected turns as usual. Don't get me wrong, I am all for the suspension and thrill of getting one surprise after another, but sometimes it almost feels like it is too complicated and trick...more
The plot is intricate and full of unexpected turns as usual. Don't get me wrong, I am all for the suspension and thrill of getting one surprise after another, but sometimes it almost feels like it is too complicated and trick...more
Dec 07, 2012
Jane Stewart
rated it
3 of 5 stars
·
review of another edition
Shelves:
crime-suspense-thriller,
quadriplegic
I was not magnetized and drawn in, but I was curious enough to keep reading.
When I finished the book my first thought was the killer’s abilities and actions were not believable. But I could accept them because it made an intricate and complicated puzzle for Lincoln to figure out. The killer was able to do too many things, too frequently, and get away too easily every time. And he always seemed to have full knowledge of everything the authorities were thinking and doing - so you need to suspend d...more
When I finished the book my first thought was the killer’s abilities and actions were not believable. But I could accept them because it made an intricate and complicated puzzle for Lincoln to figure out. The killer was able to do too many things, too frequently, and get away too easily every time. And he always seemed to have full knowledge of everything the authorities were thinking and doing - so you need to suspend d...more
I've read some Jeffery Deavers. Quite a few Jeffery Deavers. Quite a few Lincoln Rhymes.
To me, this is not only the best Lincoln Rhyme, but also the best book Deaver's ever written. (Ok, I've not read them all, but definitely my favorite among the 12-13 that I have read.)
Lincoln Rhyme and his counterpart Amelia Sachs is giving chase to the vicious Coffin Dancer, a killer so cunning that he's always managed to escape in the past.
If you've read some books by this author, you'll know what to expe...more
To me, this is not only the best Lincoln Rhyme, but also the best book Deaver's ever written. (Ok, I've not read them all, but definitely my favorite among the 12-13 that I have read.)
Lincoln Rhyme and his counterpart Amelia Sachs is giving chase to the vicious Coffin Dancer, a killer so cunning that he's always managed to escape in the past.
If you've read some books by this author, you'll know what to expe...more
The Coffin Dancer is a hired assassin that has fooled Lincoln before. A few years earlier the Coffin Dancer, named that because of a tatoo on his arm, had killed two of Lincoln’s techs and Lincoln was still incensed that he had gotten away. One of the two witnesses that Lincoln must protect is Percey, a woman pilot who has a lot in common with Lincoln. This closeness sparks Amelia’s jealousy and there is tension between Lincoln and Amelia as they race to catch a killer.
Lincoln is such a great ch...more
Lincoln is such a great ch...more
By far, Jeffery Deaver is the one author with that uncanny ability to develop plot twists and very complex characters that leave you stunned to the end. If you've seen the movie, trust me, the books are far more ingenious and developed as compared to what we were presented with on the silver screen. The Bone Collector is a series novel starring Lincoln Rhyme, our famous forensics expert bound to his bed and mobile wheelchair.
Reading this novel I am reminded to never commit a crime. The art of fo...more
Reading this novel I am reminded to never commit a crime. The art of fo...more
This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it,
click here.
Typical Deaver/Rhyme - chilling plot, relentless search for villain!
We're slowly catching up on some of the earlier Lincoln Rhyme stories, featuring his sidekick and "leg-man" Amelia Sachs, as well as a few other regular supporting cops from the NYPD. The elements are similar to Deaver's other tales in this set: a bombing murder gets things started, with a hired killer set on killing off the other key witnesses before they can testify in another high profile case. Thus begins the race between th...more
We're slowly catching up on some of the earlier Lincoln Rhyme stories, featuring his sidekick and "leg-man" Amelia Sachs, as well as a few other regular supporting cops from the NYPD. The elements are similar to Deaver's other tales in this set: a bombing murder gets things started, with a hired killer set on killing off the other key witnesses before they can testify in another high profile case. Thus begins the race between th...more
Jeffery Deaver- The Coffin Dancer (Pocket Books 1999) 4 Stars
As a dangerous and brilliant killer is hired by a rich criminal to hunt down witnesses in a federal case, criminalist Lincoln Rhyme and his associate Amelia Sachs are brought in to capture the assassin. Deception is the assassin’s game and it will take all of Rhyme’s skill to figure out each of these deceptions before it too late. For Rhyme this is personal as he has dealt with this assassin before and lost, the assassin is aptly named...more
As a dangerous and brilliant killer is hired by a rich criminal to hunt down witnesses in a federal case, criminalist Lincoln Rhyme and his associate Amelia Sachs are brought in to capture the assassin. Deception is the assassin’s game and it will take all of Rhyme’s skill to figure out each of these deceptions before it too late. For Rhyme this is personal as he has dealt with this assassin before and lost, the assassin is aptly named...more
In this, the second Lincoln Rhyme book, Lincoln and lover Amelia Sachs are called in to protect a female pilot who's husband has been murdered by the man now chasing her.
I adored The Bone Collector and could not wait to read this one, but unfortunately I was disappointed in The Coffin Dancer. The book for me just didn't get going until 3/4 of the way through. There was too much technical information about flying, not enough action and a lot of the chase-capture-oh no he's gone again scenes were...more
I adored The Bone Collector and could not wait to read this one, but unfortunately I was disappointed in The Coffin Dancer. The book for me just didn't get going until 3/4 of the way through. There was too much technical information about flying, not enough action and a lot of the chase-capture-oh no he's gone again scenes were...more
1 like · like · see review
A bomb used to murder a federal witness convinces criminologist Lincoln Rhyme that the Coffin Dancer has returned to New York. Rhyme would like nothing more than to arrest the Coffin Dancer, who murdered several of his team members years before. But the Coffin Dancer is a master of disguise and always seems to stay one step ahead of the police. The two remaining targeted federal witnesses are taken into protective custody but the killer manages to infiltrate their safe houses each time the witne...more
Whoooooooah. Deaver totally got me.
In an attempt to avoid spoilers, I shall make this review short. I spent most of the book thinking it was good, but not AS good as The Bone Collector. I saw some of the stuff Deaver was laying down, and I liked it, but it just didn't have that initial zing you get from first discovering a series. I got about 3/4 of the way through the book and was about to remark to my husband about an interesting... uh... "thing" I had noticed throughout the narrative.
And the...more
In an attempt to avoid spoilers, I shall make this review short. I spent most of the book thinking it was good, but not AS good as The Bone Collector. I saw some of the stuff Deaver was laying down, and I liked it, but it just didn't have that initial zing you get from first discovering a series. I got about 3/4 of the way through the book and was about to remark to my husband about an interesting... uh... "thing" I had noticed throughout the narrative.
And the...more
"Detective Lincoln Rhyme, the foremost criminals in the NYPD, joins his beautiful protege, Amelia Sachs, in the hunt for the Coffin Dancer -- an ingenious killer who changes his appearance even faster than he adds to his trail of victims. So far, they have only one clue: the assassin has a tattoo on his arm -- of the Grim Reaper waltzing with a woman in front of a coffin. Rhyme, a quadriplegic from a line-of-duty accident, must rely on his wits and Sachs's intuition to track the elusive murderer...more
A rough roller-coaster ride is what this book is, yeah.
Tune in to Jeffery Deaver and dance to his music! Oh, he likes a slow tune at first, sure. A bit of tap dancing to keep your feet warmed up. Maybe salsa for the emotional and romantic. Break-dancing? Well, we sure got a lot of that. Sometimes he cuts all the lights suddenly and lets you wander in the dark but don't you worry, he'll be back. And BAM! act-two twist, you book-reading smartass! Didn't see that coming, didcha? And BAM! again,...more
Tune in to Jeffery Deaver and dance to his music! Oh, he likes a slow tune at first, sure. A bit of tap dancing to keep your feet warmed up. Maybe salsa for the emotional and romantic. Break-dancing? Well, we sure got a lot of that. Sometimes he cuts all the lights suddenly and lets you wander in the dark but don't you worry, he'll be back. And BAM! act-two twist, you book-reading smartass! Didn't see that coming, didcha? And BAM! again,...more
The Coffin Dancer is the second book to feature the quadriplegic criminalist Lincoln Rhyme who has now firmly established himself as a consultant yo the NYPD. He is brought on board a task force, along with Amelia Sachs, in order to help protect three witnesses to a crime and to track down and apprehend a professional killer called the Coffin Dance, the man who has been hired to kill the witnesses.
Yet again Deaver has crafted an entertaining book full of twists and turns, the vast majority of wh...more
Yet again Deaver has crafted an entertaining book full of twists and turns, the vast majority of wh...more
Premetto che ho finito di leggere Lo scheletro che balla un pò di tempo fa e quindi non mi sento di scrivere una recensione accurata, comunque questo libro mi è piaciuto molto, adoro la coppia Rhyme e Sachs perchè hanno molta affinità e Jeffery Deaver in questo libro è riuscito a creare un'indagine pefetta ricca di suspance e colpi di scena.
Licoln Rhyme è un criminologo molto intelligente, la tua testa ragiona molto di più che le teste degli altri colleghi ed ammiro la sua determinazione e la su...more
Licoln Rhyme è un criminologo molto intelligente, la tua testa ragiona molto di più che le teste degli altri colleghi ed ammiro la sua determinazione e la su...more
This is the second Jeffery Deaver book I’ve read, and also the second of his Lincoln Rhyme series. (The Bone Collector was first). I think I enjoyed The Coffin Dancer even more than The Bone Collector, and I saw some real development in the characters, mainly Lincoln and Amanda Sachs, the primary protagonists.
I found the story very well constructed and the telling quite good. I also really liked the way the reader is drawn to a certain perspective regarding the antagonist, setting the stage for...more
I found the story very well constructed and the telling quite good. I also really liked the way the reader is drawn to a certain perspective regarding the antagonist, setting the stage for...more
The Coffin Dancer is the second of the Rhyme and Sachs series by Jeffery Deaver. It takes place a year after the first book, The Bone Collector. In this book Rhyme needs to find the notorious killer, The coffin dancer, before he kills the witnesses of a federal case.
I enjoyed how fast paced the book was. It had me on the edge of my seat, always wondering what else could happen. I enjoyed re-visiting the old characters, and the newly introduced ones were great. I liked Percey, found her to be a s...more
I enjoyed how fast paced the book was. It had me on the edge of my seat, always wondering what else could happen. I enjoyed re-visiting the old characters, and the newly introduced ones were great. I liked Percey, found her to be a s...more
Skipped The Bone Collector because I saw the movie when it was released. So, this is the second Lincoln Rhyme novel. Jeffery Deaver writes a good mystery book. Some things are dated, as this was written in the 90s (200 MHz computers, cell phone antennas, etc.) but that only takes you out of this page turner of a thriller two or three times throughout the 350 pages. My only other complaint might be the overuse of all the forensic and police acronyms. I understand Mr. Deaver did his research into...more
The second book in the Rhyme/Amelia series shows them facing a killer that is almost as smart as they are. The Coffin Dancer is an old nemesis of Lincoln Rhyme and the man he most desperately wants to catch for personal reasons as much as professional.
He is a hired killer and his next assignment is to kill two federal witnesses, who may testify against an arms dealer, and Rhymes is determined to stop him. As in The Bone Collector Amelia does the legwork and Rhymes analyses the information and d...more
He is a hired killer and his next assignment is to kill two federal witnesses, who may testify against an arms dealer, and Rhymes is determined to stop him. As in The Bone Collector Amelia does the legwork and Rhymes analyses the information and d...more
เดินเรื่องด้วยการเล่าเรื่องจากทั้งสองฝั่ง ใช้มุมมองความคิดของแต่ละฟากมาช่วย
จะได้รู้ว่านักฆ่าคิดอย่างไร รู้สึกอย่างไร
และก็ได้เห็นว่าทางฟากตำรวจนั้นมีมุมมองอย่างไร
เนื้อเรื่องชิงไหวชิงพริบกันสุดฤทธิ์ หักเหลี่่มเฉือนคมกันตลอดเวลา
บางจังหวะเหมือนฝั่งตำรวจจะเสียเปรียบ แต่ก็ เอ๊ะ ดันรู้ทันซะงั้น
บางทีก็เหมือนตำรวจดักทางคนร้ายได้ นักฆ่าน่าจะพลาดท่าเสียที
แต่ก็ไม่เป็นอย่างนั้น เพราะนักฆ่าก็ดันจับทางตำรวจได้อีก
โอ้วววว โดนหลอกกันเป็นระยะๆ ได้ลุ้นกันไปทั้งเรื่อง
การเดินเรื่องก็รวดเร็วกระชับ ไม่เยิ่นเย้อ ชนิดน้...more
จะได้รู้ว่านักฆ่าคิดอย่างไร รู้สึกอย่างไร
และก็ได้เห็นว่าทางฟากตำรวจนั้นมีมุมมองอย่างไร
เนื้อเรื่องชิงไหวชิงพริบกันสุดฤทธิ์ หักเหลี่่มเฉือนคมกันตลอดเวลา
บางจังหวะเหมือนฝั่งตำรวจจะเสียเปรียบ แต่ก็ เอ๊ะ ดันรู้ทันซะงั้น
บางทีก็เหมือนตำรวจดักทางคนร้ายได้ นักฆ่าน่าจะพลาดท่าเสียที
แต่ก็ไม่เป็นอย่างนั้น เพราะนักฆ่าก็ดันจับทางตำรวจได้อีก
โอ้วววว โดนหลอกกันเป็นระยะๆ ได้ลุ้นกันไปทั้งเรื่อง
การเดินเรื่องก็รวดเร็วกระชับ ไม่เยิ่นเย้อ ชนิดน้...more
This is the second in Deaver's 'Lincoln Rhyme' series of police procedural novels, following on from The Bone Collector. Rhyme is a forensic expert who, alas, is also a quadriplegic and mostly quite bitter about it. His genius is however that he is able to focus his mind, and his super-analytical skills on the evidence left at crime scenes. With this as a basic premise Rhyme is pitting his wits against a nasty hired hit man, nicknamed The Coffin Dancer after a tattoo he sports. Deaver has a tale...more
Deaver is a very good thriller writer. He moves the plot along and creates effective suspense.
The character interactions are okay, there is a lot of times you feel like saying "show don't tell" as the author frequently tells you exactly what the characters are feeling/thinking.
My biggest complaint is the "twist" ending. Deaver often has twist endings, some might compare him to Harlan Coben. But like some of Coben's endings, the twist comes completely out of left field, there have been no hints...more
The character interactions are okay, there is a lot of times you feel like saying "show don't tell" as the author frequently tells you exactly what the characters are feeling/thinking.
My biggest complaint is the "twist" ending. Deaver often has twist endings, some might compare him to Harlan Coben. But like some of Coben's endings, the twist comes completely out of left field, there have been no hints...more
Ok, so book two of Jeffery Deaver's 'Lincoln Rhyme' series has been read. Started this book a little worried that nothing could follow 'The Bone Collector' but good god it did that and so much more! This book is alot more character driven, with more back stories and more feeling, to 'The Bone Collector's more visceral and violent themes. I couldn't put this book down and when i did, reluctantly, i was thinking about what the hell would happen next and when could i find out? Honestly i'm blown aw...more
After reading this second book of Deaver's Lincoln Rhyme series I can confidently say
I'm hooked! The characters are varied, interesting and seem more human than some of their counterparts in other crime fiction novels. The plots are descriptive, tense and informative. Though I've learnt less about forensic science than I have from the likes of Kathy Reichs and Patricia Cornwell; this is still full of science that gets my thirst for leaning going. I'm surprised its taken me this long to read Dea...more
I'm hooked! The characters are varied, interesting and seem more human than some of their counterparts in other crime fiction novels. The plots are descriptive, tense and informative. Though I've learnt less about forensic science than I have from the likes of Kathy Reichs and Patricia Cornwell; this is still full of science that gets my thirst for leaning going. I'm surprised its taken me this long to read Dea...more
Oh, I just love Jeffery Deaver’s craftsmanship. He does his background research thoroughly and makes a trustworthy impression of various areas of expertise displayed in his books - in this one aviation, weapons and explosives.
Rhyme is an incredibly fascinating person with his analytical skills and Sachs is so brave and inspiring.
One great advantage with Deaver’s books is his use of English in that I expand my vocabulary immensely with every read. A couple of examples of newly acquired words: r...more
Rhyme is an incredibly fascinating person with his analytical skills and Sachs is so brave and inspiring.
One great advantage with Deaver’s books is his use of English in that I expand my vocabulary immensely with every read. A couple of examples of newly acquired words: r...more
A STATE OF THE ART ENDING
A very well conceived plot, a chess game between two masters, Lincoln Rhyme and the Dancer. The story is quite average until the ending which starts with a outstanding master twist, skyrocketing the tension to a point that instead of reading I was just sort of skimming, the pages of my book turned like a whirlpool without interruption, my whole world focused on the plot and it was so gripping that I forgot about my surroundings. Once again, thank you for the fun Mr. Dea...more
A very well conceived plot, a chess game between two masters, Lincoln Rhyme and the Dancer. The story is quite average until the ending which starts with a outstanding master twist, skyrocketing the tension to a point that instead of reading I was just sort of skimming, the pages of my book turned like a whirlpool without interruption, my whole world focused on the plot and it was so gripping that I forgot about my surroundings. Once again, thank you for the fun Mr. Dea...more
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Jeffery Deaver was born outside of Chicago in 1950. His father was an advertising copywriter and his mother was a homemaker. Deaver worked as a magazine writer, then, to gain the background needed to become a legal correspondent for The New York Times or Wall Street Journal, he enrolled at Fordham Law School. In 1990 he started to write full time. Deaver has been nominated for six Edgar Awards fro...more
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