The Bone Collector

The First Lincoln Rhyme Novel

By: Jeffery Deaver

Narrated by: Connor O'Brien

Length: 11 hrs and 22 mins

Publisher's summary

Don't miss the NBC television series Lincoln Rhyme: Hunt for The Bone Collector.

The first novel in the New York Times best-selling series featuring forensic detective Lincoln Rhyme - from the author of The Never Game.

Lincoln Rhyme was once a brilliant criminologist, a genius in the field of forensics - until an accident left him physically and emotionally shattered. But now a diabolical killer is challenging Rhyme to a terrifying and ingenious duel of wits. With police detective Amelia Sachs by his side, Rhyme must follow a labyrinth of clues that reaches back to a dark chapter in New York City’s past - and reach further into the darkness of the mind of a madman who won’t stop until he has stripped life down to the bone.

Includes the short story “A Perfect Plan” and a chapter from The Midnight Lock.

©2014 Jeffery Deaver (P)2014 Penguin Audio

Critic reviews

“Lightning-paced...a breakneck thrill ride.” (The Wall Street Journal)

“The Bone Collector is so dazzling, it makes your eyes water.” (The New York Times Book Review)

“The headlong narrative...never lets up, and there is plenty of genuine forensic knowledge in evidence. There are dramatic switcheroos up to the very last page, and a climactic battle to the death.” (Publishers Weekly)

I like Lincoln Rhyme. Connor O'Brien, I didn't.

The character of Lincoln Rhyme interested me because he was so unique. I loved that the author took a man who was disabled, made him angry and pathetic in many ways, but still intelligent and creative. I don't know if I have ever read another book where the protagonist is a quadriplegic, and I am so glad that I found this one. I hope that the author doesn't invent a miracle cure.

Like most of the other reviewers, I did not like the narration. It was monotone, slow and dull. It added nothing to the words on the page. I listened at 2.0 speed which made it slightly more tolerable.

Worst narration ever

I had read this book years ago and thought it would be fun to listen to it. I couldn’t get past 5 minutes of the narration. Worst ever, I hope they redo it.

Worst narrator I have ever heard

The narration was horrible and took away from a good story. Sounded like a text to speech computer program.

Didn’t Care for the Narration

I had read this book years ago, and I thought I’d download it for my husband and I to listen to on a road trip. The book is great. Deaver is an engaging author. However, it’s one on the worst narrations to which I’ve listened.

good story

good story the reader was very dry and monotone really enjoyed the story wished the teller would have been better.

Good Book

I'm usually the type that prefer the book over the movie, but I'm torn with this one. I think if I would have read the book first, my thoughts would have been different. the narrator was not my favorite and I think I would have been more intrigued if it was read by someone else. it started to get better around Chapter 18ish. Great descriptions and great characters!

Wonderful. If you like CSI read this

Would you recommend this audiobook to a friend? If so, why?

Anyone who gets a kick out of forensics and solving impossible cases should read all the Jeffrey Deaver Lincoln Rhyme novels.

What other book might you compare The Bone Collector to and why?

The Skin Collector (book 11)

What does Connor O'Brien bring to the story that you wouldn’t experience if you just read the book?

Movement and action. Good narrator.

If you were to make a film of this book, what would the tag line be?

I have no clue. That's why I am not a producer

hard to turn off😊

good narrator
I listened during housework, cooking and lunchbreak I listened to the unabridged version. Wow

Exactly as I suspected Great book!

Lincoln Rhyme is a modern day Sherlock Holmes.  I thought of the movie when I purchased this on Audible.com and although they were different from each other, there were times during the movie when the actor was just acting with no words and I wondered why they peered their eyes at certain times and why they did things in certain ways. The books answered these questions for me, it was great knowing what was going on in their heads.

Although I absolutely loved the movie, the book was even better. This is usually true and sometimes it's not. I was so relieved that it was true in this situation. I like the direction the book went as opposed to the movie. Don't get me wrong, the movie was great, but the book left room for future stories with these characters especially the aide.

The Narrator was not what I expected. He was a bit mechanical and seemed at times that he was angry to read this book. I want to avoid this Narrator in the future. Sorry, not Sorry.

Deaver creates characters in a way that they can write the story themselves. Meaning, you know what a character will and won't do so you come to expect certain things from them, and you know when they will get an attitude at certain people. I will be purchasing other audible books from Deaver.

Excellent story with a so-so narration

Spoiler warning - The Bone Collector is a tale of a former deceive set in his ways and set in his path. It is a grouping tale that follows the lives of three people, the detective, the policewoman, in the unsub. We are presented a well woven tale of a troubled mind and a broken mind and that is that of the former detective Lincoln rhyme. We are also given the disturbed mind of the bone collector. The problem that I have with this tale is the Narrator. His affect is flat and emotionless and robotic. When he talks about passion and seduction and any emotional value it sounds exactly the same as every other thing that he says. It almost sounds like a computer is reading the book. I appreciate the attempt at female and childish voices as well as the accents. My problem with the accents is, and this is a spoiler, SPOILERS, because of the accent that he provides for the unsub and Dr. Taylor even though one is more pronounced than the other it is immediately known who the unsub is.