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A kinesics (body language) expert who helps Rhyme in the Watchmaker investigation. She has her own spinoff novel series.
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A kinesics (body language) (BodyLanguage) expert who helps Rhyme in the Watchmaker investigation. She has her own spinoff novel series.
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* TheCameo: She corresponds with Rhyme in ''The Burning Wire'' while tracking the Watchmaker.
* LivingLieDetector: She can tell whether someone is being truthful just by looking at subtle cues, unless that person is a ConsummateLiar or a [[TheSociopath sociopath]] like the Watchmaker.
* NearRapeExperience: In ''The Cold Moon'', [[spoiler: this is subverted. Vincent corners her in an alley intending to subdue and rape her, but she in fact lured him there for the police to trap and arrest him.]]
* LivingLieDetector: She can tell whether someone is being truthful just by looking at subtle cues, unless that person is a ConsummateLiar or a [[TheSociopath sociopath]] like the Watchmaker.
* NearRapeExperience: In ''The Cold Moon'', [[spoiler: this is subverted. Vincent corners her in an alley intending to subdue and rape her, but she in fact lured him there for the police to trap and arrest him.]]
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!!Pam Willoughby
The daughter of Charlotte Willoughby, one of the Bone Collector's attempted victims [[spoiler: and the RightWingMilitiaFanatic who bombed the embassy after being rescued]]. After [[spoiler: her mother's arrest in ''The Cold Moon'']], Amelia recognizes her from when she was a little girl in the Bone Collector case and becomes a surrogate mother to her.
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* ActionSurvivor: In the climax of ''The Skin Collector'', [[spoiler: she manages to wound Seth / Billy Haven and evades him just long enough for the police to break in]].
* BrattyTeenageDaughter: Mostly subverted, but her DarkAndTroubledPast does make her lash out and rebel against Amelia on multiple occasions.
* DarkAndTroubledPast: [[spoiler: She was part of her mother's [[RightWingMilitiaFanatic right-wing militia]] and grew up abused and neglected as such. When she and her mother journeyed to New York, she was told not to tell anyone her mother's real name lest she be killed.]] [[FromBadToWorse And of course]], she was kidnapped by the Bone Collector and almost killed by a wild dog.
The daughter of Charlotte Willoughby, one of the Bone Collector's attempted victims [[spoiler: and the RightWingMilitiaFanatic who bombed the embassy after being rescued]]. After [[spoiler: her mother's arrest in ''The Cold Moon'']], Amelia recognizes her from when she was a little girl in the Bone Collector case and becomes a surrogate mother to her.
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* ActionSurvivor: In the climax of ''The Skin Collector'', [[spoiler: she manages to wound Seth / Billy Haven and evades him just long enough for the police to break in]].
* BrattyTeenageDaughter: Mostly subverted, but her DarkAndTroubledPast does make her lash out and rebel against Amelia on multiple occasions.
* DarkAndTroubledPast: [[spoiler: She was part of her mother's [[RightWingMilitiaFanatic right-wing militia]] and grew up abused and neglected as such. When she and her mother journeyed to New York, she was told not to tell anyone her mother's real name lest she be killed.]] [[FromBadToWorse And of course]], she was kidnapped by the Bone Collector and almost killed by a wild dog.
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* HoistByHisOwnPetard: He relies heavily on palm-striking the throats of his victims to subdue them, [[spoiler: which results in an ImpaledPalm for him when Amelia positions her knife the right way]].
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* CrazyPrepared: Half of his moves are made to plant the seeds for his escape or backup plans should his scheme somehow go awry.
* DangerouslyGenreSavvy: He has an extensive knowledge of forensic procedure, allowing him to truly match wits with Rhyme.
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* BewareTheNiceOnes: [[spoiler: This malevolent poisoner is Pam's charming boyfriend Seth.]]
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* BewareTheNiceOnes: AssholeVictim: [[spoiler: He's such a horrifically irredeemable monster, even by the standards of the series, that it's easy to cheer when he is hurt and killed.]]
* BitchInSheepsClothing: [[spoiler: Thismalevolent poisoner malevolent, bigoted SerialKiller is Pam's charming boyfriend Seth.]]
* BitchInSheepsClothing: [[spoiler: This
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* DangerouslyGenreSavvy: Thanks to studying the work of Rhyme's go-to forensic reference Edmund Locard, researching Rhyme's case history, and [[spoiler: being trained by the Watchmaker]], he knows exactly what procedures Amelia will follow on investigating crime scenes and where Rhyme's mind will make connections.
* EvilMentor: He was trained by an old foe of Rhyme's: [[spoiler: the Watchmaker. His resemblance to the Bone Collector is part intentional taunting and part coincidence]].
* FaceOfAnAngelMindOfADemon: On the outside, he's [[spoiler: a handsome, perfectly friendly gentleman who cares for his girlfriend]]. On the inside, he's a demented murderer with twisted views on the way people should be.
* EvilMentor: He was trained by an old foe of Rhyme's: [[spoiler: the Watchmaker. His resemblance to the Bone Collector is part intentional taunting and part coincidence]].
* FaceOfAnAngelMindOfADemon: On the outside, he's [[spoiler: a handsome, perfectly friendly gentleman who cares for his girlfriend]]. On the inside, he's a demented murderer with twisted views on the way people should be.
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* PsychopathicManchild: For all of his intelligence, he isn't nearly as composed and mature as the Bone Collector. [[spoiler: When his militia's grand plan is stopped, he tries to force Pam to run away with him, essentially throwing a temper tantrum when she resists.]]
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* SelfHarm: [[spoiler: He "attacks" and drugs himself so that nobody will suspect him.]]
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* AssholeVictim: [[spoiler: No tears are shed when the Coffin Dancer kills him.]]
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* ColdBloodedTorture: He never kills his victims with straight stabbing, instead [[ThroatPunchSilencing subduing them with blows to the throat]] before [[FlayingAlive flaying layer after layer of their skin away]].
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* ColdBloodedTorture: He never kills his victims with straight stabbing, instead [[ThroatPunchSilencing subduing them with blows to the throat]] throat before [[FlayingAlive flaying layer after layer of their skin away]].away.
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* ThroatPunchSilencing: The first part of his MO, followed by extended period of FlayingAlive.
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A young tattoo expert with a fixation on skin reminiscent of the Bone Collector's anatomical obsession. Like his predecessor, he prowls the dark tunnels and alleys of New York and ambushes his victims, drugging them to subdue them. Unlike his predecessor, rather than set up a RaceAgainstTheClock for Rhyme and the other police, he tattoos messages on his victims' chests with poisoned ink, resulting in agonizing death.
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* BewareTheNiceOnes: [[spoiler: This malevolent poisoner is Pam's charming boyfriend Seth.]]
* CriminalMindGames: Like the Bone Collector, he is trying to directly engage Rhyme with his kills. However, unlike the RaceAgainstTheClock structure of the Bone Collector's kills, he doesn't intend for Rhyme to decipher his message until the very end.
* HumanNotepad: His victims become this when he scrawls his messages on them.
* KarmicDeath: [[spoiler: Cut by Pam's box cutter and shot to death by the police.]]
* MalevolentMaskedMen: He wears a ski mask like the Bone Collector, as well as a face guard used by tattoo artists.
* MasterPoisoner: He is an expert with poisonous plants and chemicals, and he favors the use of them in his kills. This extends to his ultimate goal: [[spoiler: poisoning New York City's water supply with botulin.]]
* RightWingMilitiaFanatic: [[spoiler: He belongs to a fanatical conservative militia, and his skin obsession is a reflection of his racist worldview.]]
* StayInTheKitchen: He is shown to harbor archaic views on gender roles [[spoiler: when he is describing to Pam what their life together will be like]].
* VillainousIncest: [[spoiler: He was coerced into a sexual relationship with his aunt at a young age and has kept it up well into his twenties.]]
* {{Yandere}}: He has a perverse obsession with "Lovely Girl", aka [[spoiler: Pam Willoughby, whom he is dating. In the end, when his poisoning plot has been foiled, he tattoos Pam to mark her as his property and tries to force her into traveling the world with him.]]
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[[folder:Jim Bell]]
[[/folder]]
[[folder:Kara]]
[[/folder]]
[[/folder]]
[[folder:Kara]]
[[/folder]]
* OneManArmy: As a former soldier, he can effectively kill numerous people by himself, wield all manner of firearms and explosives, and escape unscathed from the most pitched firefights.
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* PsychoSoldier: He used to be a soldier and uses his extensive training with all varieties of weaponry to accomplish his hits. He is also insanely imbalanced and has vivid delusions about worms in his skin.
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* PsychForHire: He may be quite competent, but he has vivid delusions about worms in his skin and pale faces watching him from the shadows.
* PsychoSoldier: He used to be a soldier and uses his extensive training with all varieties of weaponry to accomplish his hits. He is also insanely imbalanced andhas vivid delusions about worms in his skin.delusional.
* PsychoSoldier: He used to be a soldier and uses his extensive training with all varieties of weaponry to accomplish his hits. He is also insanely imbalanced and
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A ProfessionalKiller with an extreme penchant for [[KnifeNut knives]]. Shreve Metzger assigns him to eliminate the witnesses to a government assassination in the Bahamas.
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* {{Badass}}: In the climax, he [[spoiler: outruns a police sting, smashes through a glass door, and enters a [[GoodOldFisticuffs fist fight]]-turned-KnifeFight with Amelia that doesn't end even when he gets his hand stabbed.]]
* ColdBloodedTorture: He never kills his victims with straight stabbing, instead [[ThroatPunchSilencing subduing them with blows to the throat]] before [[FlayingAlive flaying layer after layer of their skin away]].
* EvilChef: The one thing he loves more than killing is cooking, and he often uses techniques common in preparing meat dishes to torture his victims.
* FlayingAlive: He kills by shredding the skin from peoples' bodies with his assorted collection of knives.
* ImpaledPalm: [[spoiler: Amelia runs his hand through with her knife during their KnifeFight. It barely slows him down.]]
* KnifeFight: [[spoiler: With Amelia in the climax.]]
* KnifeNut: He almost exclusively uses knives whenever possible and spends a lot of time thinking fondly about blades penetrating flesh.
* ProfessionalKiller: Although contrary to what is initially believed, [[spoiler: he is neither a government asset nor an independent contractor.]]
* PsychoForHire: He may be doing his job for money, but his love of causing pain and his obsessive fixation on knives is abnormal even for an assassin.
* SupremeChef: His dishes are apparently considered uniformly delicious. [[WordOfGod Jeffrey Deaver mentions]] in a note that he spent time researching gourmet recipes for him to mention.
* ThroatPunchSilencing: The first part of his MO, followed by extended period of FlayingAlive.
* WeaponOfChoice: [[KnifeNut Knives]], obviously.
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* BigBad: The best candidate for the main villain of the series.
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* BigBad: The best candidate Of ''The Cold Moon'', and is shaping up to be this for the main villain of the series.series as a whole.
* ManBehindTheMan: In ''The Skin Collector'', [[spoiler: he trained [[RightWingMilitiaFanatic Billy Haven]] and directed the militia toward their most efficient means of achieving their goals in exchange for them smuggling tetrodotoxin into his cell.]]
* BigBad: Of ''The Stone Monkey''.
* BigBad: Of ''The Vanished Man''.
* BigBad: Of ''The Broken Window''.
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* ForTheEvulz: He doesn't have any particular reason for killing and framing whom he chooses to -- he just likes to see people squirm. Even his [[FreudianExcuse dark past]] doesn't explain the depths to which he sinks.
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* FakingTheDead: [[spoiler: He destroyed his life as tech genius Peter Gordon and took on John Rollins's identity to work with Andrew Sterling.]]
* ForTheEvulz: He doesn't have any particular reason for killing and framing whom he chooses to -- he just likes to see people squirm. Even his [[FreudianExcuse dark past]] doesn't explainthe certain depths to which he sinks.sinks, such as stalking Robert Jorgensen -- a total stranger -- and systematically destroying everything he wants from life over the course of years.
* FrameUp: After killing someone, he takes evidence from the crime scene and plants it at the home of an unsuspecting fall guy in such a way that the police have no reason to suspect anyone else.
* ForTheEvulz: He doesn't have any particular reason for killing and framing whom he chooses to -- he just likes to see people squirm. Even his [[FreudianExcuse dark past]] doesn't explain
* FrameUp: After killing someone, he takes evidence from the crime scene and plants it at the home of an unsuspecting fall guy in such a way that the police have no reason to suspect anyone else.
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* KarmicDeath: [[spoiler: The police burst into his Closet and shoot him just as he's about to kill Amelia.]]
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* RoaringRampageOfRevenge: Near the end, [[spoiler: he acquires the information of all of his investigators and sets about methodically ruining them: Lon Sellitto gets positive drug test results and is suspended from active duty, Amelia has her beloved car repossessed and scrapped, and the electricity Rhyme relies on to function is cut off. He would have started doing even worse if Amelia hadn't found him.]]
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A maniacal electrician who uses his knowledge of electricity to [[ShockAndAwe commit horrific murders]], aiming to get his former employers to shut down New York's power grid. [[spoiler: In reality, this is all a ruse by the Watchmaker, and Galt has been dead for some time.]]
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* BigBad: Of ''The Burning Wire'', [[spoiler: making the Watchmaker the direct BigBad of two books thus far.]]
* DeadPersonImpersonation: [[spoiler: Galt was killed by the Watchmaker.]]
* EvilLuddite: He aims to blackmail the electricity company into depriving New York City of power in hopes that people will realize they don't need it to survive. [[spoiler: Of course, it's all a cover.]]
* FreudianExcuse: Working on the power lines gave him cancer that is slowly killing him. [[spoiler: That's what the Watchmaker wants everyone to think, at least.]]
* LightningGun: His first act of electrical terrorism sees him use a severed high-powered wire and creative sabotaging and redirection to create a massive arc flash, which shoots out and almost strikes a city bus.
* ShockAndAwe: His kills harness electricity in various ways, from creating a LightningGun out of a prepared arc flash to [[spoiler: frying an entire hotel lobby's worth of people out of nowhere.]]
* WalkingSpoiler: It's extremely difficult to discuss his character because [[spoiler: he's not a character, but a stolen identity for the Watchmaker.]]
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* FakingTheDead: [[spoiler: He escapes prison by tricking a cop into thinking he's been shot in the head.]]
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A tech-savvy sadist who uses personal information found in Internet databases to frame people for his thefts, rapes, and murders. When he frames Rhyme's brother Arthur, he draws the scrutiny of the detective.
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* AbusiveParents: [[spoiler: His parents abused him and neglected to address his clear mental problems, which eventually spiraled from compulsive hoarding into murderous sociopathy.]]
* BigBrotherIsWatching: He can see virtually everything and get anyone's personal information to suit his goals. [[spoiler: This is because he works at SSD, who maintain a comprehensive database on every American citizen's private information in collaboration with the government.]]
* TheCracker: He hacks for the sole purpose of destroying lives and making his easier.
* CreepySouvenir: His hoarding tendencies lead him to take property or body parts from his victims, which he then stores in his "Closet".
* DeadPersonImpersonation: [[spoiler: He murdered John Rollins and stole his identity so he would be allowed to work with Andrew Sterling.]]
* ForTheEvulz: He doesn't have any particular reason for killing and framing whom he chooses to -- he just likes to see people squirm. Even his [[FreudianExcuse dark past]] doesn't explain the depths to which he sinks.
* FreudianExcuse: [[spoiler: His parents and the foster children they took in both abused him, exacerbating his already problematic hoarding tendencies and causing him to distance himself from other people.]]
* HeroWorshipper: [[spoiler: He sees Andrew Sterling as the pinnacle of technological innovation, and went so far as to fake his own death and create a new identity just to work in the same building as him.]]
* PsychopathicManchild: He has an incredibly selfish, childlike outlook on life. When he finds that he is being investigated, his only worry is for his collection, and he lashes out in uncontrollable rage when he feels like this might be threatened.
* TrashOfTheTitans: 522 is a compulsive hoarder, and his beloved "Closet" is a labyrinth of trophies and junk, much of which is taken from his victims. [[spoiler: Fittingly, this is where he dies.]]
* TrophyRoom: The Closet, a sprawling maze of junk and souvenirs from his crimes.
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[[folder:Vernon Griffith]]
!!Vernon Griffith
[[/folder]]
!!Vernon Griffith
[[/folder]]
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* LaserGuidedKarma: [[spoiler: After arresting him, Rhyme narrowly prevents him from being extradited back to his corrupt home country and forces him to rot in prison for the rest of his life.]]
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!!Thompson Boyd
An emotionless ProfessionalKiller tasked with killing a girl for mysterious reasons.
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* SmallRoleBigImpact: He is just another single-book villain, but his attack on Pulaski resonates in every book to come and continues to cause him problems.
* TapOnTheHead: Brutally deconstructed when he clubs Ron Pulaski in the head to knock him out. The attack gives Pulaski a crippling brain injury that he barely recovers from and still continues to plague him with headaches and disorientation.
An emotionless ProfessionalKiller tasked with killing a girl for mysterious reasons.
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* SmallRoleBigImpact: He is just another single-book villain, but his attack on Pulaski resonates in every book to come and continues to cause him problems.
* TapOnTheHead: Brutally deconstructed when he clubs Ron Pulaski in the head to knock him out. The attack gives Pulaski a crippling brain injury that he barely recovers from and still continues to plague him with headaches and disorientation.
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!!The Conjurer, aka Erick Weir, aka [[spoiler: Arthur Loesser]]
An insane magician who comes to New York just as a popular circus is setting up in the city and starts murdering people with techniques based on famous magic tricks. His mastery of illusion, [[MasterOfDisguise disguises]], and escape artistry make him one of Rhyme's slipperiest foes.
An insane magician who comes to New York just as a popular circus is setting up in the city and starts murdering people with techniques based on famous magic tricks. His mastery of illusion, [[MasterOfDisguise disguises]], and escape artistry make him one of Rhyme's slipperiest foes.
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!!The Conjurer, aka Erick Weir, Malerick, aka [[spoiler: Arthur Loesser]]
An insane magician who comes to New York just as a popular circus is setting up in the city and starts murdering people with techniques based on famous magic tricks. His mastery of illusion, [[MasterOfDisguise disguises]], and [[EscapeArtist escapeartistry artistry]] make him one of Rhyme's slipperiest foes.
An insane magician who comes to New York just as a popular circus is setting up in the city and starts murdering people with techniques based on famous magic tricks. His mastery of illusion, [[MasterOfDisguise disguises]], and [[EscapeArtist escape
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* BoomHeadshot: [[spoiler: Using prosthetics and other special effects, he fakes being shot in the head during a struggle with a cop and escapes from prison before the medical examiners arrive.]]
* DeadPersonImpersonation: [[spoiler: He is actually Arthur Loesser, Erick Weir's talented apprentice.]]
* DoubleSubversion: [[spoiler: Rhyme believes the magic-based revenge killings were all a distraction from Weir's job as a ProfessionalKiller. In fact, the ProfessionalKiller setup was organized to distract from the magic-based revenge killings.]]
* EscapeArtist: So good at setting up elaborate escapes that he often appears to vanish into thin air as the police are cornering him.
* HalfTheManHeUsedToBe: One of his victims is sawn in half to echo the classic "sawing a woman in half" illusion. Mercifully, it's implied that the blow to the head the Conjurer used to subdue this victim killed him before the sawing started.
* HoistByHisOwnPetard: He is a master of lavish illusions and redirects his pursuers multiple times. [[spoiler: Rhyme, Amelia, and Kara trick him by making it seem like his gas bomb detonated in the circus tent, causing him to drop his guard.]]
* KillItWithFire: It quickly becomes apparent that he was seriously burned in a magic accident that also killed his wife. [[spoiler: It actually killed Weir too, or at least sent him on the way to death.]]
** He also tries to [[spoiler: burn Rhyme alive in his room, or at least makes it seem like this is what he wants]].
* MasterOfDisguise: He can make himself look like virtually anyone, even an old woman, with a bit of makeup and a change of clothing. [[spoiler: Even his burn scars and wrinkles are part of a disguise.]]
* ProfessionalKiller: [[spoiler: He sets himself up to look like one when Rhyme figures out his connection to Jeddy Barnes. However, this is all a distraction, and he never cared about assassinating his target.]]
* {{Revenge}}: He appears to be killing in revenge against the circus for his scarring and his wife's death. [[spoiler: Loesser is actually getting revenge for the loss of his beloved mentor.]]
* DeadPersonImpersonation: [[spoiler: He is actually Arthur Loesser, Erick Weir's talented apprentice.]]
* DoubleSubversion: [[spoiler: Rhyme believes the magic-based revenge killings were all a distraction from Weir's job as a ProfessionalKiller. In fact, the ProfessionalKiller setup was organized to distract from the magic-based revenge killings.]]
* EscapeArtist: So good at setting up elaborate escapes that he often appears to vanish into thin air as the police are cornering him.
* HalfTheManHeUsedToBe: One of his victims is sawn in half to echo the classic "sawing a woman in half" illusion. Mercifully, it's implied that the blow to the head the Conjurer used to subdue this victim killed him before the sawing started.
* HoistByHisOwnPetard: He is a master of lavish illusions and redirects his pursuers multiple times. [[spoiler: Rhyme, Amelia, and Kara trick him by making it seem like his gas bomb detonated in the circus tent, causing him to drop his guard.]]
* KillItWithFire: It quickly becomes apparent that he was seriously burned in a magic accident that also killed his wife. [[spoiler: It actually killed Weir too, or at least sent him on the way to death.]]
** He also tries to [[spoiler: burn Rhyme alive in his room, or at least makes it seem like this is what he wants]].
* MasterOfDisguise: He can make himself look like virtually anyone, even an old woman, with a bit of makeup and a change of clothing. [[spoiler: Even his burn scars and wrinkles are part of a disguise.]]
* ProfessionalKiller: [[spoiler: He sets himself up to look like one when Rhyme figures out his connection to Jeddy Barnes. However, this is all a distraction, and he never cared about assassinating his target.]]
* {{Revenge}}: He appears to be killing in revenge against the circus for his scarring and his wife's death. [[spoiler: Loesser is actually getting revenge for the loss of his beloved mentor.]]
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* [[UsefulNote/{{Taoism}} Taoism]]: He practices ''feng shui'' and prays to Yi
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* [[UsefulNote/{{Taoism}} Taoism]]: He believes in extreme patience and self-discipline, practices ''feng shui'' religiously, and prays to Yithe archer god Yi when he needs support.
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An insane magician who comes to New York just as a popular circus is setting up in the city and starts murdering people with techniques based on famous magic tricks. His mastery of illusion, [[MasterOfDisguise disguises]], and escape artistry make him one of Rhyme's slipperiest foes.
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A sadistic human trafficker notorious in the Chinese criminal underworld for being inhumanly skilled at his job. At the start of ''The Stone Monkey'', he is located by Coast Guard forces directed by Rhyme and forced to blow up his ship; he then sets about tracking down and killing the surviving passengers on shore.
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A sadistic human trafficker trafficking snakehead notorious in the Chinese criminal underworld for being inhumanly skilled at his job. At the start of ''The Stone Monkey'', he is located by Coast Guard forces directed by Rhyme and forced to blow up his ship; he then sets about tracking down and killing the surviving passengers on shore.
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* ColdBloodedTorture: His MO is viciously cutting people up with a razor and letting them scream for a while before [[MercyKill mercy-killing]] them with a pistol.
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* ColdBloodedTorture: His MO is viciously cutting people up with a razor and letting them scream for a while before [[MercyKill mercy-killing]] them with a pistol. [[KickTheDog Sometimes he doesn't use the pistol at all.]]
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* DeathOfAThousandCuts: The cuts he and his men make are small and painful, and there are many, many of them.
* TheDragon: He has a personal assistant known as his ''bangshou'', who hides out in the hold of his ship and acts as TheMole with the immigrants. Said ''bangshou'' is initially suspected to be Sonny Li, but is actually [[spoiler: long dead by the time the Ghost gets to shore.]]
* TheDragon: He has a personal assistant known as his ''bangshou'', who hides out in the hold of his ship and acts as TheMole with the immigrants. Said ''bangshou'' is initially suspected to be Sonny Li, but is actually [[spoiler: long dead by the time the Ghost gets to shore.]]
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* KnifeNut: Usually uses a razor blade or another suitably sharp, small knife.
* LeaveNoWitnesses: His ultimate goal is finding and killing the immigrants who survived the explosion. [[spoiler: Not because they're witnesses to the crime, but because he always meant for them to die.]]
* LeaveNoWitnesses: His ultimate goal is finding and killing the immigrants who survived the explosion. [[spoiler: Not because they're witnesses to the crime, but because he always meant for them to die.]]
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* [[UsefulNote/{{Taoism}} Taoism]]: He practices ''feng shui'' and prays to Yi
* TheTriadsAndTheTongs: He is affiliated with them.
* TheTriadsAndTheTongs: He is affiliated with them.
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* BeeAfraid: He is linked to deaths involving beehives bursting and releasing swarms of bees on hapless victims. At one point, he was even spotted throwing one into a girl's face. [[spoiler: It turns out that all of these sans the girl's murder, which was a FrameUpJob by the police, were random accidents.]]
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* BeeAfraid: He is linked to deaths involving beehives bursting and releasing swarms of bees on hapless victims. At one point, he was even spotted throwing one into a girl's face. [[spoiler: It turns out that all of these sans the girl's murder, which was a FrameUpJob FrameUp by the police, were random accidents.]]
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A sadistic human trafficker notorious in the Chinese criminal underworld for being inhumanly skilled at his job. At the start of ''The Stone Monkey'', he is located by Coast Guard forces directed by Rhyme and forced to blow up his ship; he then sets about tracking down and killing the surviving passengers on shore.
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* ColdBloodedTorture: His MO is viciously cutting people up with a razor and letting them scream for a while before [[MercyKill mercy-killing]] them with a pistol.
* DeadPersonImpersonation: [[spoiler: He takes up the identity of Dr. John Sung, the man he executed on the beach just after landing.]]
* FreudianExcuse: A mob of students killed his family during Mao's revolution, and he spent years afterward tracking down everyone involved and slowly killing them.
* GovernmentConspiracy: [[spoiler: He is at the center of one; see ProfessionalKiller.]]
* HeroKiller: Toward the end, he fights and murders [[spoiler: Sonny Li]], whose death Rhyme memorializes in a way that is occasionally brought up in future books.
* IHaveYouNowMyPretty: [[spoiler: He would have raped Amelia after killing his targets if Rhyme hadn't figured out who he was and called her.]]
* ProfessionalKiller: [[spoiler: The government of his home province is paying him to kill Chinese dissidents under the guise of a botched transport. [[SpannerInTheWorks Rhyme]] just made him detonate the bomb further from shore than he planned.]]
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* ColdBloodedTorture: His MO is viciously cutting people up with a razor and letting them scream for a while before [[MercyKill mercy-killing]] them with a pistol.
* DeadPersonImpersonation: [[spoiler: He takes up the identity of Dr. John Sung, the man he executed on the beach just after landing.]]
* FreudianExcuse: A mob of students killed his family during Mao's revolution, and he spent years afterward tracking down everyone involved and slowly killing them.
* GovernmentConspiracy: [[spoiler: He is at the center of one; see ProfessionalKiller.]]
* HeroKiller: Toward the end, he fights and murders [[spoiler: Sonny Li]], whose death Rhyme memorializes in a way that is occasionally brought up in future books.
* IHaveYouNowMyPretty: [[spoiler: He would have raped Amelia after killing his targets if Rhyme hadn't figured out who he was and called her.]]
* ProfessionalKiller: [[spoiler: The government of his home province is paying him to kill Chinese dissidents under the guise of a botched transport. [[SpannerInTheWorks Rhyme]] just made him detonate the bomb further from shore than he planned.]]
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* DecoyAntagonist: [[spoiler: He's presented as the BigBad for the first third of the book, but then the real threats start to emerge.]]
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* ImaginaryEnemy: One of his many recurring hallucinations is a pale face in a nearby window, which he imagines to be someone stalking him and witnessing his kills. [[spoiler: It turns out the sighting that spawned this was of the Coffin Dancer monitoring him for use as a potential decoy.]]
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[[folder:Garret Hanlon]]
!!Garret Hanlon
!!Garret Hanlon
to:
!!Garret Hanlon
!!The Insect Boy, aka Garret Hanlon
An insect-obsessed teenager and the town pariah where he lives. After several suspicious deaths he was implicated in, he suddenly kidnaps two women -- his crush and a local nurse -- and spirits them away into the forest.
----
* AbhorrentAdmirer: Toward Mary Beth. [[spoiler: Even after she finds out he's not such a bad guy, his behavior is still somewhat creepy and disturbing.]]
* ADateWithRosiePalms: Being a teenage boy, he does this every so often.
* BeeAfraid: He is linked to deaths involving beehives bursting and releasing swarms of bees on hapless victims. At one point, he was even spotted throwing one into a girl's face. [[spoiler: It turns out that all of these sans the girl's murder, which was a FrameUpJob by the police, were random accidents.]]
* BugCatching: He has a massive collection of insects in his room.
* CloudCuckoolander: He's definitely not all there.
* DarkAndTroubledPast: His family died in a car accident when they slid off an icy road, and he watched them drive off without him for unknown reasons, giving him an additional sense of abandonment and survivor's guilt to contribute to his rage. [[spoiler: However, his memories of the incident were actually distorted by a dose of toxic pesticide he accidentally inhaled. Said pesticide was used by Jim Bell's forces to poison his family's car, which was why they were shivering and refusing to open the door for him.]]
* GoodAllAlong: [[spoiler: While he is guilty of kidnapping and several other petty crimes, he is not responsible for any of the murders being pinned on him by the corrupt police.]]
* ShovelStrike: Just before kidnapping Mary Beth, he beat a fellow student to death with a shovel. [[spoiler: It was actually one of Jim Bell's cronies who did this.]]
* StalkerWithACrush: Toward Mary Beth, leading to her abduction.
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* CriminalMindGames: At each crime scene, he purposefully leaves specific evidence that, if deciphered and interpreted correctly, will lead to the location of the next victim.
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A psychotic mercenary and main villain of ''The Coffin Dancer''. An ex-soldier turned ProfessionalKiller, he ventures to New York with a list of targets related to an airline company and sets about methodically eliminating them with bombs and high-powered weaponry. [[spoiler: However, in reality, he is not the Coffin Dancer that is being searched for, and is merely a puppet of the other assassin.]]
----
* AbusiveParents: His father was a strict military man who physically and verbally abused him on a regular basis. [[spoiler: Eventually, Stephen lashed out and caused his death.]]
* ArmoredClosetGay / BadassGay: [[spoiler: It turns out that he is a closeted gay man, and he develops an attraction to Jodie as the novel goes on. This gets him killed when he drops his guard.]]
* BigBad: Of ''The Coffin Dancer''. [[spoiler: Except not really.]]
* ColdSniper: He favors the use of a sniper rifle, and is anything but warm and friendly.
* DiscOneFinalBoss: [[spoiler: He is disposed of just before the climax reveals who the real Coffin Dancer is.]]
* FreudianExcuse: See RapeAsBackstory. He also [[spoiler: tied up his father and left him for dead in the woods, coming back to find him covered in maggots, which is why he is so fixated on "worms".]]
* KilledOffscreen: [[spoiler: Jodie, the real Coffin Dancer, lures him in and dismembers him just before he rides out to the safehouse.]]
* {{Patricide}}: [[spoiler: He accidentally killed his father with what was meant to be a harmless bit of revenge.]]
* ProfessionalKiller: The first encountered in the series, and still ranks among the most formidable antagonists Rhyme has faced.
* PsychoSoldier: He used to be a soldier and uses his extensive training with all varieties of weaponry to accomplish his hits. He is also insanely imbalanced and has vivid delusions about worms in his skin.
* RapeAsBackstory: If a secondhand account is to be believed, [[spoiler: Stephen was raped by his father or the boys at his military school, or even both.]]
* RedHerring: [[spoiler: He never does mention that tattoo the Dancer is known for, does he?]]
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A SerialKiller obsessed with bones and manners of death which expose them. Beginning his killing spree just as Rhyme is in danger of killing himself, his brutality ultimately pulls the detective out of retirement to stop him. He is the first killer faced in the series and the main villain of his titular book.
----
* BigBad: Of ''The Bone Collector'', obviously.
* FreudianExcuse: [[spoiler: A mistake Rhyme made while examining a crime scene led to the perp getting away and shooting Stanton's family to death in front of him.]]
* JackTheRipoff: It quickly becomes clear that his murders are based off those perpetrated by a killer from the 1800s who was also obsessed with bones. [[spoiler: This killer also lost his family because of the police, and he feels kinship with him.]]
* KarmicDeath: [[spoiler: His throat gets chewed out while he's trying to kill Rhyme.]]
* KillItWithFire: His second victim is handcuffed in front of an opened steam pipe that, when activated, essentially boils her to death.
* KillItWithWater: Another victim is chained somewhere where he will be repeatedly slammed with waves and drown when the tide comes in.
* MadDoctor: Of a sort - [[spoiler: in his identity as Peter Taylor, he serves as Rhyme's doctor.]]
* MalevolentMaskedMen: Wears a dark blue ski mask.
* ManBitesMan: [[spoiler: Rhyme bites his throat out.]]
* NiceJobFixingItVillain: [[spoiler: Stanton's goal is to get Rhyme out of his suicidal depression so that killing him will be satisfying. However, it's Rhyme's newfound urge to fight for his life that gets Stanton killed, and Rhyme goes on to put away or help kill dozens more dangerous killers.]]
* RaceAgainstTheClock: He rarely kills anyone directly, instead leaving them in positions where they will die in bone-exposing agony unless Rhyme figures out where they are within a set amount of time.
* {{Revenge}}: [[spoiler: The basis for his motive.]]
* SerialKiller
* StrippedToTheBone: He wants his victims to end up this way.
* SwarmOfRats: Utilizes the rats infesting New York's older areas in one of his attempted kills, cutting his victim open and letting the blood attract them.
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A ProfessionalKiller who uses rigid timing and numerous distractions to accomplish his goals. The first killer to outsmart Rhyme and get away scot-free in ''The Cold Moon'', he has become Rhyme's [[ArchEnemy worst nemesis]].
----
* ArchEnemy: Rhyme's, no contest.
* BigBad: The best candidate for the main villain of the series.
* TheChessmaster: His intellect and planning skills are on par with Rhyme's, and they often even surpass his.
* ClockKing: Befitting his name, he runs on a strict timetable and always knows where and when another piece of his plot has to slip into place. In his Gerald Duncan persona, he even leaves clocks by his victims.
* FakingTheDead: [[spoiler: ''The Skin Collector'' sees him escape prison by using tetrodotoxin to fake his death.]]
* LateArrivalSpoiler: The fact that Gerald Duncan isn't his real name and that he is a ProfessionalKiller is only revealed at the end of ''The Cold Moon'', but following books are not shy about giving it away, and it would be impossible to talk about his character otherwise.
* MasterOfDisguise: Not quite to the level of the Conjurer, but he regularly changes his appearance with prosthetics and basic plastic surgery techniques. Notably, in ''The Skin Collector'', [[spoiler: he manages to disguise himself as his own lawyer after faking his death]].
* ProfessionalKiller: The most scarily competent one in the series.
* ThemeSerialKiller: In ''The Cold Moon'', his theme is clocks and time, which is where he comes up with and starts sticking with the Watchmaker persona. In ''The Burning Wire'', [[spoiler: he switches to [[ShockAndAwe electricity-based kills]] under the guise of Raymond Galt]].
* TheSociopath: He is willing to take the lives of absolutely anyone with no remorse, as long as he gets paid, and to what degree he has real emotions is up for debate. However, he does feel some kind of personal connection to Rhyme.
* VigilanteMan: He sets the Gerald Duncan identity up as a vigilante in ''The Cold Moon'' to distract from his real goal.
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The leader of a racist, nationalist [[RightWingMilitiaFanatic right-wing milita]].
----
* TheManBehindTheMan: [[spoiler: Appears to be this for the Conjurer.]]
* KarmaHoudini: [[spoiler: He receives no punishment for his crimes.]]
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Jeddy Barnes's dedicated enforcer, responsible for a number of slayings over the years. In ''The Vanished Man'', he is assigned to [[spoiler: take out Charles Grady if the Conjurer fails to]].
----
* BeardOfEvil: Has a thick beard and is part of a racist, murderous [[RightWingMilitiaFanatic milita]].
* TheDragon: To Jeddy Barnes.
* HoistByHisOwnPetard: [[spoiler: The instant he tries to shoot Charles Grady, his own bullets ricochet and kill him.]]
* ObfuscatingStupidity: He may look and act like a DeepSouth meathead, but he has an extensive knowledge of weaponry and has gotten away with multiple murders.
* SelfDisposingVillain: [[spoiler: His burst fire ricochets off the reinforced glass window, tearing him apart.]]
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* MasterOfDisguise: Chances are, if a hitherto-unknown African-American character is introduced in a side segment dealing with criminals or a suspect, it's Dellray seamlessly blending in.
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* MasterOfDisguise: Chances are, if a hitherto-unknown African-American character is introduced in a side segment dealing with criminals or a suspect, it's Dellray seamlessly blending in.
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!!Kathryn Dance
A kinesics (body language) expert who helps Rhyme in the Watchmaker investigation. She has her own spinoff novel series.
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A kinesics (body language) expert who helps Rhyme in the Watchmaker investigation. She has her own spinoff novel series.
----
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* ActionGirl
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!!Roland Bell
A police detective who meets Rhyme during their pursuit of Stephen Kall. His remarkable performance in that case has led to Rhyme specifically calling up his service during particularly difficult investigations.
----
* {{Badass}}: ''And how''. He knows how to accurately fire [[GunsAkimbo two pistols at once]] (and carries two holsters specifically for this). In ''The Coffin Dancer'', he even manages to fire two submachine guns in a close-quarters gunfight with Stephen Kall -- who is an expertly trained ProfessionalKiller with countless victims -- ''in the middle of a burning building''.
* CowboyCop: Not literally (usually), but he looks and acts like a classic cowboy.
* GunsAkimbo: His specialty.
* SouthernGentleman
A police detective who meets Rhyme during their pursuit of Stephen Kall. His remarkable performance in that case has led to Rhyme specifically calling up his service during particularly difficult investigations.
----
* {{Badass}}: ''And how''. He knows how to accurately fire [[GunsAkimbo two pistols at once]] (and carries two holsters specifically for this). In ''The Coffin Dancer'', he even manages to fire two submachine guns in a close-quarters gunfight with Stephen Kall -- who is an expertly trained ProfessionalKiller with countless victims -- ''in the middle of a burning building''.
* CowboyCop: Not literally (usually), but he looks and acts like a classic cowboy.
* GunsAkimbo: His specialty.
* SouthernGentleman
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!!Fred Dellray
An undercover expert and MasterOfDisguise with the FBI, capable of assuming any role he needs to in the criminal underworld. While initially a thorn in Rhyme's side, he has since become a valued ally.
----
* HeroAntagonist: In ''The Bone Collector'', where he tries to bring the case out of Rhyme's hands and into the FBI's jurisdiction.
* JiveTurkey: He speaks with a stereotypical gangster dialect even when on official business.
* MasterOfDisguise: Chances are, if a hitherto-unknown African-American character is introduced in a side segment dealing with criminals or a suspect, it's Dellray seamlessly blending in.
* ObstructiveBureaucrat: In ''The Bone Collector''.
An undercover expert and MasterOfDisguise with the FBI, capable of assuming any role he needs to in the criminal underworld. While initially a thorn in Rhyme's side, he has since become a valued ally.
----
* HeroAntagonist: In ''The Bone Collector'', where he tries to bring the case out of Rhyme's hands and into the FBI's jurisdiction.
* JiveTurkey: He speaks with a stereotypical gangster dialect even when on official business.
* MasterOfDisguise: Chances are, if a hitherto-unknown African-American character is introduced in a side segment dealing with criminals or a suspect, it's Dellray seamlessly blending in.
* ObstructiveBureaucrat: In ''The Bone Collector''.
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[[folder:Thompson Boyd]]
[[/folder]]
[[/folder]]
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* SoBeautifulItsACurse: She has supermodel-good looks and [[HeroesWantRedheads distinctive red hair]], but this tends to draw the killers she pursues in her direction.
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!!Mel Cooper
Rhyme's go-to forensic examiner.
----
* TheSmartGuy: Just under Rhyme's intellectual level.
Rhyme's go-to forensic examiner.
----
* TheSmartGuy: Just under Rhyme's intellectual level.
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* TapOnTheHead: Brutally subverted and deconstructed with his injury. Thompson Boyd merely knocked him out with a club, but the damage still lingers with him and causes him all manner of confusion, inconvenience, and general pain.
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Rhyme's caretaker, and his closest companion other than Amelia.
to:
Rhyme's caretaker, and his closest companion other than Amelia. Usually only involved in the investigation to the degree of writing down notes on the board, but wherever Rhyme goes and whatever situation he's in, Thom will follow.
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* BadassGay: Thom is gay. In the first book where that's made explicit (''The Empty Chair''), he
to:
* BadassGay: Thom is gay. In the first book where that's made explicit (''The Empty Chair''), hehe [[spoiler: sprints through a hail of gunfire from Rich Culbeau's gang with Rhyme in tow, despite being shot himself, and only collapses from his gaping wound when Rhyme is safe.]] He also dives unhesitatingly into a bay full of toxic runoff [[spoiler: to save a drowning Rhyme]] in ''The Kill Room'', coming out with little more than irritated eyes.
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* StraightGay: His homosexuality is hinted, but not explicitly confirmed until ''The Empty Chair'', and he displays very few stereotypical mannerisms.
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* MrFanservice: Described as exceptionally handsome and [[IncompatibleOrientation has drawn the gaze of more than a few women]].
* ServileSnarker: He has a sarcastic quip for just about every occasion, mostly in response to Rhyme's ridiculous demands.
* StraightGay: His homosexuality is hinted, but not explicitly confirmed until ''The Empty Chair'', and he displays very few stereotypicalmannerisms.mannerisms before or after that point.
* ServileSnarker: He has a sarcastic quip for just about every occasion, mostly in response to Rhyme's ridiculous demands.
* StraightGay: His homosexuality is hinted, but not explicitly confirmed until ''The Empty Chair'', and he displays very few stereotypical
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!!Lon Sellitto
A longtime friend of Rhyme's, Lon is an aging police official with dozens of cases under his belt. Whenever Rhyme needs a police sting coordinated or evidence brought to him, Lon is the man he turns to.
----
* CowboyCop: Downplayed significantly, as he wouldn't be able to keep his job if he didn't follow the rules and regulations, but when Rhyme needs something done that bends the law, Lon is perfectly willing to look the other way. Sometimes, he even helps.
* HardboiledDetective: Has a few shades of this.
* NearDeathExperience: In ''The Skin Collector'', [[spoiler: he drinks coffee that was poisoned by the Watchmaker and spends the remainder of the book passing in and out of critical condition at the hospital. He barely recovers by the end.]]
A longtime friend of Rhyme's, Lon is an aging police official with dozens of cases under his belt. Whenever Rhyme needs a police sting coordinated or evidence brought to him, Lon is the man he turns to.
----
* CowboyCop: Downplayed significantly, as he wouldn't be able to keep his job if he didn't follow the rules and regulations, but when Rhyme needs something done that bends the law, Lon is perfectly willing to look the other way. Sometimes, he even helps.
* HardboiledDetective: Has a few shades of this.
* NearDeathExperience: In ''The Skin Collector'', [[spoiler: he drinks coffee that was poisoned by the Watchmaker and spends the remainder of the book passing in and out of critical condition at the hospital. He barely recovers by the end.]]
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* FireForgedFriends: With Rhyme and the rest of the team.
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* CharacterDevelopment: Grows from an inexperienced rookie whom Rhyme has to verbally guide through crime scenes to a master of forensic examining who mentors rookies herself.
!!Thom Reston
Rhyme's caretaker, and his closest companion other than Amelia.
----
* BadassGay: Thom is gay. In the first book where that's made explicit (''The Empty Chair''), he
* BerserkButton: Anything that endangers Rhyme infuriates him.
** BerserkerRage: In ''The Burning Wire'', when he comes back to find out that the person he thought was interviewing Rhyme about an award is really an assisted suicide advocate drilling Rhyme for information about his depression, he flies into an uncharacteristic rage and almost physically carries the man out. It's the first time in the series that he actually shouts.
* StraightGay: His homosexuality is hinted, but not explicitly confirmed until ''The Empty Chair'', and he displays very few stereotypical mannerisms.
Rhyme's caretaker, and his closest companion other than Amelia.
----
* BadassGay: Thom is gay. In the first book where that's made explicit (''The Empty Chair''), he
* BerserkButton: Anything that endangers Rhyme infuriates him.
** BerserkerRage: In ''The Burning Wire'', when he comes back to find out that the person he thought was interviewing Rhyme about an award is really an assisted suicide advocate drilling Rhyme for information about his depression, he flies into an uncharacteristic rage and almost physically carries the man out. It's the first time in the series that he actually shouts.
* StraightGay: His homosexuality is hinted, but not explicitly confirmed until ''The Empty Chair'', and he displays very few stereotypical mannerisms.
A young rookie cop who joins the investigative team in ''The Twelfth Card'', during which he sustains a severe brain injury courtesy of the killer. Since his recovery, he has become a permanent fixture of Rhyme's team and, in spite of the problems his injury sometimes causes, one of the most dependable people on the police force.
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* TheSixthRanger
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* TheSixthRanger{{Foil}}: Inexperienced where Rhyme is a veteran and psychologically damaged where Rhyme is physically crippled.
* NewMeat: A rookie to the [=NYPD=] when he's introduced.
* TheSixthRanger: Unlike the rest of Rhyme's team, he was not introduced until ''The Twelfth Card'' (the sixth book, coincidentally), but he has gone on to become one of the stars and sometimes even a proper {{Deuteragonist}}.
* NewMeat: A rookie to the [=NYPD=] when he's introduced.
* TheSixthRanger: Unlike the rest of Rhyme's team, he was not introduced until ''The Twelfth Card'' (the sixth book, coincidentally), but he has gone on to become one of the stars and sometimes even a proper {{Deuteragonist}}.
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** ''The Bone Collector'':
** ''The Coffin Dancer'':
** ''The Empty Chair'':
** ''The Vanished Man'':
** ''The Burning Wire'':
** ''The Coffin Dancer'':
** ''The Empty Chair'':
** ''The Vanished Man'':
** ''The Burning Wire'':
to:
** ''The Bone Collector'':
** ''The Coffin Dancer'':
Collector'': [[spoiler: The killer walks into his room, kills the police captain he was talking to, and tries to murder him. Rhyme only survives by faking a dysreflexia attack to lure him in and biting his throat out.]]
** ''The EmptyChair'':
Chair'': [[spoiler: Once Jim Bell realizes Rhyme has the conspiracy figured out, he locks all of the doors and pours toxic pesticide on Rhyme's face. [[SubvertedTrope Subverted]] when it turns out that the whole thing was a prepared police sting on Bell and the "pesticide" was a decoy.]]
** ''The VanishedMan'':
Man'': [[spoiler: The Conjurer sneaks into his room, torments him with magic tricks and fools him into thinking he's been stabbed before setting the room on fire and escaping.]]
** ''The BurningWire'':Wire'': [[spoiler: The Watchmaker finally makes a direct attempt to kill Rhyme by waiting for everyone else to leave, entering Rhyme's house, and setting up an electrical circuit on his wheelchair.]]
** ''The Coffin Dancer'':
** ''The Empty
** ''The Vanished
** ''The Burning
* TheChessmaster
* ManBitesMan: [[spoiler: How he dispatches Colin Stanton]] in ''The Bone Collector''.
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* AloneWithThePsycho: Less frequently than Rhyme, but it happens.
**
**
to:
* AloneWithThePsycho: Less frequently Being able-bodied, she is usually in less danger than Rhyme, Rhyme when it happens, but it happens.
does happen nonetheless.
** ''The Bone Collector'': [[spoiler: The killer ambushes her in her home as she's getting undressed, knocks her out, and [[BuriedAlive buries her]] in a shallow grave in her backyard.]]
** ''The Coffin Dancer'': [[spoiler: The Dancer traps her and his targets in a safehouse with all of the staff dead and stalks them with a hunting rifle.]]
** ''The Stone Monkey'': [[spoiler: Every time she's with John Sung counts as this, since Sung is really the Ghost.]]
** ''The Broken Window'': [[spoiler: After she accidentally finds 522's house, the killer knocks her out and drags her down to his hoarder maze with the intent to rape, torture, and kill her.]]
** ''The Bone Collector'': [[spoiler: The killer ambushes her in her home as she's getting undressed, knocks her out, and [[BuriedAlive buries her]] in a shallow grave in her backyard.]]
** ''The Coffin Dancer'': [[spoiler: The Dancer traps her and his targets in a safehouse with all of the staff dead and stalks them with a hunting rifle.]]
** ''The Stone Monkey'': [[spoiler: Every time she's with John Sung counts as this, since Sung is really the Ghost.]]
** ''The Broken Window'': [[spoiler: After she accidentally finds 522's house, the killer knocks her out and drags her down to his hoarder maze with the intent to rape, torture, and kill her.]]
* FairCop: Everyone describes her as stunningly beautiful, and she worked as a model before joining the police force.
[[folder:Mel Cooper]]
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[[folder:Mel Cooper]]
[[/folder]]
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** ''The Bone Collector'':
** ''The Coffin Dancer'':
** ''The Empty Chair'':
** ''The Vanished Man'':
** ''The Burning Wire'':
** ''The Coffin Dancer'':
** ''The Empty Chair'':
** ''The Vanished Man'':
** ''The Burning Wire'':
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* HeroesWantRedheads: He admits as much when he tells Amelia, who is a redhead, that he was attracted to another girl with red hair in college.
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* OfficialCouple: With Amelia Sachs.
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!!Amelia Sachs
The {{Deuteragonist}} of the series. A beautiful [=NYPD=] officer who meets Rhyme while pursuing the Bone Collector and goes on to [[RelationshipUpgrade become his lover]] and most trusted compatriot.
----
* AloneWithThePsycho: Less frequently than Rhyme, but it happens.
**
* {{Deuteragonist}}: Each book is split roughly evenly between Rhyme's perspective and hers, and she takes on the brunt of the actual field work.
* FieryRedhead: Downplayed, but she's definitely passionate and slightly HotBlooded. Her EstablishingCharacterMoment is ''stopping a train'' by herself to preserve a crime scene.
* ImprobableAimingSkills: Her marksmanship abilities border on superhuman; she's placed first in most contests and tends to make every shot she takes. Best demonstrated at the end of ''The Coffin Dancer'', when she [[spoiler: puts a pistol round straight through the scope of the Dancer's rifle from across a darkened field with little time to properly line up the shot]].
The {{Deuteragonist}} of the series. A beautiful [=NYPD=] officer who meets Rhyme while pursuing the Bone Collector and goes on to [[RelationshipUpgrade become his lover]] and most trusted compatriot.
----
* AloneWithThePsycho: Less frequently than Rhyme, but it happens.
**
* {{Deuteragonist}}: Each book is split roughly evenly between Rhyme's perspective and hers, and she takes on the brunt of the actual field work.
* FieryRedhead: Downplayed, but she's definitely passionate and slightly HotBlooded. Her EstablishingCharacterMoment is ''stopping a train'' by herself to preserve a crime scene.
* ImprobableAimingSkills: Her marksmanship abilities border on superhuman; she's placed first in most contests and tends to make every shot she takes. Best demonstrated at the end of ''The Coffin Dancer'', when she [[spoiler: puts a pistol round straight through the scope of the Dancer's rifle from across a darkened field with little time to properly line up the shot]].
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!!Ron Pulaski
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* TheSixthRanger
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* TheSixthRanger
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!!Rich Culbeau
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!!Jeddy Barnes
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!!Hobbs Wentworth
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!!Vincent Reynolds
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!!Shreve Metzger
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!!Supporting Protagonists
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!!Supporting Protagonists
Characters
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[[folder:Pamela
!!Notable Antagonists
[[folder:The Watchmaker]]
!!Notable Antagonists
[[folder:The Watchmaker]]
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!!Notable Antagonists
[[folder:The Watchmaker]]
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[[folder:The Bone Collector]]
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[[folder:The Coffin Dancer]]
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[[folder:Garret Hanlon]]
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[[folder:The Watchmaker]]
!!The Watchmaker, aka Gerald Duncan, aka Richard Logan, aka [[spoiler: Charles Vespasian Hale]]
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[[folder:The Ghost]]
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[[folder:The Ghost]]Bone Collector]]
!!The Bone Collector, aka [[spoiler: Dr. Peter Taylor]], aka [[spoiler: Colin Stanton]]
!!The Bone Collector, aka [[spoiler: Dr. Peter Taylor]], aka [[spoiler: Colin Stanton]]
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[[folder:The Conjurer]]
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!!Stephen Kall
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[[folder:522]]
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!!Garret Hanlon
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[[folder:Raymond Galt]]
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!!The Ghost, aka [[spoiler: John Sung]], aka Kwan Ang
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[[folder:Jacob Swann]]
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!!The Conjurer, aka Erick Weir, aka [[spoiler: Arthur Loesser]]
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[[folder:The Skin Collector]]
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!!522, aka [[spoiler: John Rollins]], aka [[spoiler: Peter Gordon]]
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!!Supporting Antagonists
[[folder:The Bomber]]
[[folder:The Bomber]]
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[[folder:The Bomber]]
!!Raymond Galt, aka [[spoiler: The Watchmaker]]
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!!Jacob Swann
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!!The Skin Collector, aka [[spoiler: Seth [=McGuinn=]]], aka Billy Haven
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!!The Bomber, aka [[spoiler: Carol Ganz / Charlotte Willoughby]]
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!!Joe D'Oforio, aka Jodie
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[[folder:Shreve Metzger]]
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!!Supporting Antagonists
[[folder:The Bomber]]
[[/folder]]
[[folder:Jodie]]
!!Joe D'Oforio
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[[folder:Rich Culbeau]]
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[[folder:Jeddy Barnes]]
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!!Lincoln Rhyme
The titular character and main protagonist of the series. Once the most brilliant detective in New York and one of the top minds in the country, Rhyme was crippled from the neck down when a support beam collapsed on him while he was running a crime scene. He makes up for his complete immobility with [[GeniusCripple his unmatched intellect]], allowing him to think five steps ahead of all but his most prepared opponents.
----
* TheAlcoholic: Drinking is his favorite pastime, even after he's no longer doing it to shield himself from suicidal pain.
* AloneWithThePsycho: His condition gives killers a free pass to walk right into his room and threaten his life.
* CharacterDevelopment: In ''The Bone Collector'', he's actively seeking euthanasia and the doctor who's secretly practicing it frequently interacts with him. By ''The Burning Wire'', he is able to shoot down an assisted suicide advocate without batting an eye while Thom throws him out. In the same book, perhaps not coincidentally, [[spoiler: he regains the use of his right arm.]]
* DrivenToSuicide: Throughout ''The Bone Collector'', he is considering assisted suicide. [[LateArrivalSpoiler Obviously]], he ultimately declines and seeks healthier ways to overcome his burdens.
* GeniusCripple: A given. Jeffery Deaver created him with the intent to write someone who could "[[Franchise/SherlockHolmes out-Sherlock Sherlock.]]"
* HandicappedBadass: He's stared down hardened killers in both protected and [[AloneWithThePsycho unprotected]] situations without breaking a sweat, and in the climax of ''The Bone Collector'', [[spoiler: he even manages to rip the killer's throat out with his teeth]].
* NonActionGuy: With a few exceptions, such as [[spoiler: ripping a man's throat out]] in ''The Bone Collector'' and [[spoiler: briefly holding a crew of assassins at gunpoint]] in ''The Kill Room'', he is rendered completely helpless by his disability and has to rely on his wits and the help of his allies.
The titular character and main protagonist of the series. Once the most brilliant detective in New York and one of the top minds in the country, Rhyme was crippled from the neck down when a support beam collapsed on him while he was running a crime scene. He makes up for his complete immobility with [[GeniusCripple his unmatched intellect]], allowing him to think five steps ahead of all but his most prepared opponents.
----
* TheAlcoholic: Drinking is his favorite pastime, even after he's no longer doing it to shield himself from suicidal pain.
* AloneWithThePsycho: His condition gives killers a free pass to walk right into his room and threaten his life.
* CharacterDevelopment: In ''The Bone Collector'', he's actively seeking euthanasia and the doctor who's secretly practicing it frequently interacts with him. By ''The Burning Wire'', he is able to shoot down an assisted suicide advocate without batting an eye while Thom throws him out. In the same book, perhaps not coincidentally, [[spoiler: he regains the use of his right arm.]]
* DrivenToSuicide: Throughout ''The Bone Collector'', he is considering assisted suicide. [[LateArrivalSpoiler Obviously]], he ultimately declines and seeks healthier ways to overcome his burdens.
* GeniusCripple: A given. Jeffery Deaver created him with the intent to write someone who could "[[Franchise/SherlockHolmes out-Sherlock Sherlock.]]"
* HandicappedBadass: He's stared down hardened killers in both protected and [[AloneWithThePsycho unprotected]] situations without breaking a sweat, and in the climax of ''The Bone Collector'', [[spoiler: he even manages to rip the killer's throat out with his teeth]].
* NonActionGuy: With a few exceptions, such as [[spoiler: ripping a man's throat out]] in ''The Bone Collector'' and [[spoiler: briefly holding a crew of assassins at gunpoint]] in ''The Kill Room'', he is rendered completely helpless by his disability and has to rely on his wits and the help of his allies.
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'''Spoiler Warning: All trope names and book titles are unmarked.'''
[[foldercontrol]]
!!Main Characters
[[folder:Lincoln Rhyme]]
[[/folder]]
[[folder:Amelia Sachs]]
[[/folder]]
[[folder:Thom Reston]]
[[/folder]]
[[folder:Lon Sellitto]]
[[/folder]]
[[folder:Ron Pulaski]]
[[/folder]]
[[folder:Mel Cooper]]
[[/folder]]
!!Supporting Protagonists
[[folder:Roland Bell]]
[[/folder]]
[[folder:Fred Dellray]]
[[/folder]]
[[folder:Kathryn Dance]]
[[/folder]]
!!Notable Antagonists
[[folder:The Watchmaker]]
[[/folder]]
[[folder:The Bone Collector]]
[[/folder]]
[[folder:The Coffin Dancer]]
[[/folder]]
[[folder:Garret Hanlon]]
[[/folder]]
[[folder:The Ghost]]
[[/folder]]
[[folder:The Conjurer]]
[[/folder]]
[[folder:522]]
[[/folder]]
[[folder:Raymond Galt]]
[[/folder]]
[[folder:Jacob Swann]]
[[/folder]]
[[folder:The Skin Collector]]
[[/folder]]
[[foldercontrol]]
!!Main Characters
[[folder:Lincoln Rhyme]]
[[/folder]]
[[folder:Amelia Sachs]]
[[/folder]]
[[folder:Thom Reston]]
[[/folder]]
[[folder:Lon Sellitto]]
[[/folder]]
[[folder:Ron Pulaski]]
[[/folder]]
[[folder:Mel Cooper]]
[[/folder]]
!!Supporting Protagonists
[[folder:Roland Bell]]
[[/folder]]
[[folder:Fred Dellray]]
[[/folder]]
[[folder:Kathryn Dance]]
[[/folder]]
!!Notable Antagonists
[[folder:The Watchmaker]]
[[/folder]]
[[folder:The Bone Collector]]
[[/folder]]
[[folder:The Coffin Dancer]]
[[/folder]]
[[folder:Garret Hanlon]]
[[/folder]]
[[folder:The Ghost]]
[[/folder]]
[[folder:The Conjurer]]
[[/folder]]
[[folder:522]]
[[/folder]]
[[folder:Raymond Galt]]
[[/folder]]
[[folder:Jacob Swann]]
[[/folder]]
[[folder:The Skin Collector]]
[[/folder]]
