History YMMV / LincolnRhyme

* AcceptableTargets: [[RightWingMilitiaFanatic Right-wing militia groups]] and their constituents. Any time they turn up, they're portrayed without any redeeming characteristics, harbor and enforce beliefs straight out of the Puritan era, and are usually trying to kill a lot of people for [[EvilIsPetty childishly petty reasons]]. So far, they've [[spoiler: bombed an embassy]] in ''The Bone Collector'', been annoying supporting antagonists in ''The Empty Chair'' (through Rich Culbeau's gang) and ''The Vanished Man'', [[spoiler: hired the Watchmaker to slaughter hundreds of soldiers and their families]] in ''The Cold Moon'', and [[spoiler: served as TheManBehindTheMan for Billy Haven]] in ''The Skin Collector''.
* BaseBreakingCharacter: The Watchmaker. Many readers love him for being Rhyme's ArchEnemy and a brilliant {{Foil}} capable of matching his wits like no other, and for the labyrinthine schemes he inevitably draws up. Others hate him for his Villain Sue traits and Deaver's tendency to have him take the place of potentially more interesting villains, and think it's time for the novels to finish up his story for good and move on. [[TakeAThirdOption Still others]] like him in moderation, but wish Deaver [[spoiler: hadn't brought him out of jail so quickly after his arrest and made him into TheManBehindTheMan in ''The Skin Collector'']].

* BaseBreaker: The Watchmaker. Many readers love him for being Rhyme's ArchEnemy and a brilliant {{Foil}} capable of matching his wits like no other, and for the labyrinthine schemes he inevitably draws up. Others hate him for his Villain Sue traits and Deaver's tendency to have him take the place of potentially more interesting villains, and think it's time for the novels to finish up his story for good and move on. [[TakeAThirdOption Still others]] like him in moderation, but wish Deaver [[spoiler: hadn't brought him out of jail so quickly after his arrest and made him into TheManBehindTheMan in ''The Skin Collector'']].

** The Watchmaker is the reigning champion of this trope, [[BaseBreaker to a divisive degree]] -- ''The Cold Moon'', where his grand scheme only [[LateArrivalSpoiler reveals him as the villain at the climax]], is barely scraping the iceberg. In ''The Burning Wire'', he [[spoiler: manages to set up a grand ruse to trick Rhyme and the police into thinking he was carrying out a hit in Mexico City, then makes his way to New York undetected and carries out a series of complex electricity-based attacks while planting evidence pointing first at deceased electrician Raymond Galt and then at the owners of the electricity company, ''and then'' distracts everyone with a purported attack on a convention center while heading to Rhyme's house to kill him]]. Think that's insane? In ''The Skin Collector'', [[spoiler: he sets himself up to be smuggled some tetrodotoxin while in jail, [[FakingTheDead fakes his own death]] with it, and reveals that he laid the groundwork for Billy Haven's schemes as one giant distraction while he disguises himself as his own lawyer in such a way that he fools Ron Pulaski on multiple occasions, ultimately slipping through Rhyme's grasp yet again just as people start to realize he might not be dead.]]

* TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodPlot / TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodCharacter: ''The Skin Collector'' sets up a distinct tie-in to the plot and central antagonist of ''The Bone Collector'', Lincoln Rhyme's debut novel and one of Jeffery Deaver's highest-regarded books, right down to the conceit of a [[MalevolentMaskedMan masked man]] stalking the darker areas of New York and killing people in heinous ways related to an obsession with an element of human anatomy. Many fans were therefore displeased [[spoiler: when the real component of ''The Bone Collector'' that tied into this plot turned out to be the RightWingMilitiaFanatic organization, with Billy Haven being little more than a psychotic henchman and his obsessions reflecting his petty prejudices rather than the Bone Collector's tragic revenge scheme. The Bone Collector himself, Colin Stanton, is given a few cursory mentions (never by his true name, despite the BigBadDuumvirate sharing the name Stanton) and otherwise treated like an afterthought in the grand scheme -- Rhyme and Sachs don't even experience a touch of angst over the traumatic case being brought back up. And to top it all off, the whole charade was enabled by [[BaseBreaker the Watchmaker]], who was FakingTheDead]]. Some view it as a well-done series of twists that keep the book from feeling like a retread of earlier material, while others see it as Deaver going overboard with his reliance on faking the reader out and wish [[spoiler: there had been a genuine reflection on Rhyme's first and most nostalgic case]].

* BaseBreaker: The Watchmaker. Many readers love him for being Rhyme's ArchEnemy and a brilliant {{Foil}} capable of matching his wits like no other, and for the labyrinthine schemes he inevitably draws up. Others hate him for his VillainSue traits and Deaver's tendency to have him take the place of potentially more interesting villains, and think it's time for the novels to finish up his story for good and move on. [[TakeAThirdOption Still others]] like him in moderation, but wish Deaver [[spoiler: hadn't brought him out of jail so quickly after his arrest and made him into TheManBehindTheMan in ''The Skin Collector'']].

** The Coffin Dancer [[spoiler: disguises himself as a bum and spends weeks peddling drugs on the streets to establish himself, coasts under the radar of suspicion by hiring ''another'' ProfessionalKiller -- Stephen Kall -- to go after the targets he himself was hired for, sets up a "coincidental" meeting with Kall to follow and monitor him as the police assume him to be the Coffin Dancer, and finally kills him under circumstances that cause the police to assume he was just another victim, all so he can get himself sent to a safe house with his targets.]]
** The Conjurer [[spoiler: disguises himself as his deceased mentor so expertly that Rhyme only realizes he isn't the same man at the end, sets up a DoubleSubversion to trick police away from his revenge plot by leaving evidence that said plot was the distraction from his job as a ProfessionalKiller, and thinks far enough ahead to wear undetectable makeup and prosthetics allowing him to [[BoomHeadshot fake being shot in the head]] during a struggle with his arresting officer.]]
** The Watchmaker is the reigning champion of this trope, [[BaseBreaker to a divisive degree]] -- ''The Cold Moon'', where his grand scheme only [[LateArrivalSpoiler reveals him as the villain at the climax]], is barely scraping the iceberg. In ''The Burning Wire'', he [[spoiler: manages to set up a grand ruse to trick Rhyme and the police into thinking he was carrying out a hit in Mexico City, then makes his way to New York undetected and carries out a series of complex electricity-based attacks while planting evidence pointing first at deceased electrician Raymond Galt and then at the owners of the electricity company, ''and then'' distracts everyone with a purported attack on a convention center while heading to Rhyme's house to kill him.]] Think that's insane? In ''The Skin Collector'', [[spoiler: he sets himself up to be smuggled some tetrodotoxin while in jail, [[FakingTheDead fakes his own death]] with it, and reveals that he laid the groundwork for Billy Haven's schemes as one giant distraction while he disguises himself as his own lawyer in such a way that he fools Ron Pulaski on multiple occasions, ultimately slipping through Rhyme's grasp yet again just as people start to realize he might not be dead.]]

* TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodPlot / TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodCharacter: ''The Skin Collector'' sets up a distinct tie-in to the plot and central antagonist of ''The Bone Collector'', Lincoln Rhyme's debut novel and one of Jeffery Deaver's highest-regarded books, right down to the conceit of a [[MalevolentMaskedMan masked man]] stalking the darker areas of New York and killing people in heinous ways related to an obsession with an element of human anatomy. Many fans were therefore displeased [[spoiler: when the real component of ''The Bone Collector'' that tied into this plot turned out to be the RightWingMilitiaFanatic organization, with Billy Haven being little more than a psychotic henchman and his obsessions reflecting his petty prejudices rather than the Bone Collector's tragic revenge scheme. The Bone Collector himself, Colin Stanton, is given a few cursory mentions (never by his true name, despite the BigBadDuumvirate sharing the name Stanton) and otherwise treated like an afterthought in the grand scheme -- Rhyme and Sachs don't even experience a touch of angst over the traumatic case being brought back up. And to top it all off, the whole charade was enabled by [[BaseBreaker the Watchmaker]], who was FakingTheDead]]. Some view it as a well-done series of twists that keep the book from feeling like a retread of earlier material, while others see it as Deaver going overboard with his reliance on faking the reader out and wish [[spoiler: there had been a genuine reflection on Rhyme's first and most nostalgic case.]]

* EarlyInstallmentWeirdness: ''The Bone Collector'' when compared to later installments of the series. [[OfficialCouple Rhyme and Sachs]] can't stand each other, Fred Dellray is an ObstructiveBureaucrat presented as a minor antagonist, the killer's M.O. centers around [[RaceAgainstTheClock races against time]] and is directly challenging Rhyme from the get-go, and not only does Rhyme [[spoiler: never properly deduce the killer's identity -- he focuses in on a wrong guess moments before the true BigBad stabs his suspect in front of him -- but he ends up taking out the killer himself by luring him in and biting his throat out, whereas later antagonists would always be shot or arrested in a sudden police ambush thanks to his deductions.]]

** [[spoiler:Garett Haldon]] from ''The Empty Chair'' definitely qualifies. [[spoiler: His parents were killed because they got involved in a pesticide conspiracy. Their murder also caused him to draw in some of the pesticide himself, making him lose his grip on reality and become a harsh CloudcuckooLander. He was then placed under the care of foster parents, who are implied to have hit him on occasion, and was also pitted as a scapegoat for several murders involving the same conspiracy.]]

* BaseBreaker: The Watchmaker. Many readers love him for being Rhyme's ArchEnemy and a brilliant {{Foil}} capable of matching his wits like no other, and for the labyrinthine schemes he inevitably draws up. Others hate him for his VillainSue traits and Deaver's tendency to have him take the place of potentially more interesting villains, and think it's time for the novels to finish up his story for good and move on. [[TakeAThirdOption Still others]] like him in moderation, but wish Deaver [[spoiler: hadn't brought him out of jail so quickly after his arrest and made him into TheManBehindTheMan in ''The Skin Collector''.]]

* VillainSue: Sometimes the [[GambitRoulette sheer preparedness]] and [[FinaglesLaw dumb luck]] of the antagonists can reach this level. [[ArchEnemy The Watchmaker]] is arguably the biggest example, being the only antagonist to effortlessly run circles around Lincoln in multiple books and pull off unbelievable schemes simply because he's ''just that good''. [[spoiler: He even manages to [[FakingTheDead fake his death]] and escape prison while organizing the whole plot of ''The Skin Collector'' as another diversion.]]

* TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodPlot / TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodCharacter: ''The Skin Collector'' sets up a distinct tie-in to the plot and central antagonist of ''The Bone Collector'', Lincoln Rhyme's debut novel and one of Jeffery Deaver's highest-regarded books, right down to the conceit of a [[MalevolentMaskedMan masked man]] stalking the darker areas of New York and killing people in heinous ways related to an obsession with an element of human anatomy. Many fans were therefore displeased [[spoiler: when the real component of ''The Bone Collector'' that tied into this plot turned out to be the RightWingMilitiaFanatic organization, with Billy Haven being little more than a psychotic henchman and his obsessions reflecting his petty prejudices rather than the Bone Collector's tragic revenge scheme. The Bone Collector himself, Colin Stanton, is given a few cursory mentions (never by his true name, despite the BigBadDuumvirate sharing the name Stanton) and otherwise treated like an afterthought in the grand scheme -- Rhyme and Sachs don't even experience a touch of angst over the traumatic case being brought back up. And to top it all off, the whole charade was enabled by [[BaseBreaker the Watchmaker]], who was FakingTheDead.]] Some view it as a well-done series of twists that keep the book from feeling like a retread of earlier material, while others see it as Deaver going overboard with his reliance on faking the reader out and wish [[spoiler: there had been a genuine reflection on Rhyme's first and most nostalgic case.]]

** Every single [[ShockAndAwe death by electricity]] in ''The Burning Wire'', from a makeshift LightningGun blowing up a bus station pole to [[spoiler: a whole hotel lobby getting fried out of nowhere]].
** Being skinned alive with a kitchen knife (''The Kill Room'').

** The Watchmaker is the reigning champion of this trope, [[BaseBreaker to a divisive degree]] -- ''The Cold Moon'', where his grand scheme only [[LateArrivalSpoiler reveals him as the villain at the climax]], is barely scraping the iceberg. In ''The Burning Wire'', he [[spoiler: manages to set up a grand ruse to trick Rhyme and the police into thinking he was carrying out a hit in Mexico City, then makes his way to New York undetected and carries out a series of complex electricity-based attacks while planting evidence pointing first at deceased electrician Raymond Galt and then at the owners of the electricity company, ''and then'' distracts everyone with a purported attack on a convention center while heading to Rhyme's house to kill him.]] Think that's insane? In ''The Skin Collector'', [[spoiler: he sets himself up to be smuggled some tetrodotoxin while in jail, [[FakingTheDead fakes his own death]] with it, and lays the groundwork for Billy Haven's schemes as one giant distraction while he disguises himself as his own lawyer in such a way that he fools Ron Pulaski on multiple occasions, ultimately slipping through Rhyme's grasp yet again just as people start to realize he might not be dead.]]

** The Watchmaker is the reigning champion of this trope, [[BaseBreaker to a divisive degree]] -- ''The Cold Moon'', where his grand scheme only [[LateArrivalSpoiler reveals him as the villain at the climax]], is barely scraping the iceberg. in ''The Burning Wire'', he [[spoiler: manages to set up a grand ruse to trick Rhyme and the police into thinking he was carrying out a hit in Mexico City, then makes his way to New York undetected and carries out a series of complex electricity-based attacks while planting evidence pointing first at deceased electrician Raymond Galt and then at the owners of the electricity company, ''and then'' distracts everyone with a purported attack on a convention center while heading to Rhyme's house to kill him.]] Think that's insane? In ''The Skin Collector'', [[spoiler: he sets himself up to be smuggled some tetrodotoxin while in jail, [[FakingTheDead fakes his own death]] with it, and lays the groundwork for Billy Haven's schemes as one giant distraction while he disguises himself as his own lawyer in such a way that he fools Ron Pulaski on multiple occasions, ultimately slipping through Rhyme's grasp yet again just as people start to realize he might not be dead.]]

* AcceptableTargets: [[RightWingMilitiaFanatic Right-wing militia groups]] and their constituents. Any time they turn up, they're portrayed without any redeeming characteristics, harbor and enforce beliefs straight out of the Puritan era, and are usually trying to kill a lot of people for [[EvilIsPetty childishly petty reasons]]. So far, they've been supporting antagonists in ''The Empty Chair'' (through Rich Culbeau's gang) and ''The Vanished Man'', and they serve as [[spoiler: TheManBehindTheMan]] in ''The Cold Moon'' and ''The Skin Collector''.

* EarlyInstallmentWeirdness: ''The Bone Collector'' when compared to later installments of the series. [[OfficialCouple Rhyme and Sachs]] can't stand each other, the killer's M.O. centers around [[RaceAgainstTheClock races against time]] and is directly challenging Rhyme from the get-go, and not only does Rhyme [[spoiler: never properly deduce the killer's identity -- he focuses in on a wrong guess moments before the true BigBad stabs his suspect in front of him -- but he ends up taking out the killer himself by luring him in and biting his throat out, whereas later antagonists would always be shot or arrested in a sudden police ambush thanks to his deductions.]]

* TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodPlot / TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodCharacter: ''The Skin Collector'' sets up a distinct tie-in to the plot and central antagonist of ''The Bone Collector'', Lincoln Rhyme's debut novel and one of Jeffery Deaver's highest-regarded books, right down to the conceit of a [[MalevolentMaskedMan masked man]] stalking the darker areas of New York and killing people in heinous ways related to an obsession with a component of human anatomy. Many fans were therefore displeased [[spoiler: when the real component of ''The Bone Collector'' that tied into this plot turned out to be the RightWingMilitiaFanatic organization, with Billy Haven being little more than a psychotic henchman and his obsessions reflecting his petty prejudices rather than the Bone Collector's tragic revenge scheme. The Bone Collector himself, Colin Stanton, is given a few cursory mentions (never by his true name, despite the BigBadDuumvirate sharing the name Stanton) and otherwise treated like an afterthought in the grand scheme -- Rhyme and Sachs don't even experience a touch of angst over the traumatic case being brought back up.]] Some view it as a well-done series of twists that keep the book from feeling like a retread of earlier material, while others see it as Deaver going overboard with his reliance on faking the reader out and wish [[spoiler: there had been a genuine reflection on Rhyme's first and most nostalgic case.]]

* NightmareFuel: [[CruelAndUnusualDeath Some of the more gruesome deaths in the series,]] including:
** Being cooked alive
** [[HalfTheManHeUsedToBe Being bisected with a saw]]
* VillainSue: Sometimes the [[GambitRoulette sheer preparedness]] and [[FinaglesLaw dumb luck]] of the antagonists can reach this level. [[ArchEnemy The Watchmaker]] is arguably the biggest example, [[spoiler: being the only antagonist to effortlessly run circles around Lincoln in multiple books and pull off unbelievable schemes simply because he's ''just that good''.]]

** [[spoiler: Garett Haldon from The Empty Chair definitely qualifies. His parents were killed because they got involved in a pesticide conspiracy. Their murder also caused him to draw in some of the pesticide himself, making him a harsher person on the surface. He was then placed under the care of foster parents who are implied to have hit him on occasions. He was also pitted as a scapegoat for several murders involving the same conspiracy that took place during the book.]]

** ''The Kill Room'' deals in part with using drones to kill people, including US citizens, while abroad.

* VillainSue: Sometimes the [[GambitRoulette sheer preparedness]] and [[FinaglesLaw dumb luck]] of the antagonists can reach this level. [[ArchEnemy The Watchmaker]] is arguably the biggest example, [[spoiler: being the only antagonist to effortlessly run circles around Lincoln in almost every book and get away with countless crimes.]]

* VillainSue: Sometimes the [[GambitRoulette sheer preparedness]] and [[FinaglesLaw dumb luck]] of the antagonists can reach this level. The Conjurer, with his endless layers of misdirections [[spoiler: so elaborate that he effortlessly pretends to be working toward a different EvilPlan for the latter half of the book and is able to [[FakingTheDead fake his own death]] in such a way as to flawlessly deceive every cop and technician on the scene]], is arguably the first notable example.

* CompleteMonster: The ghost from The Stone Monkey is a completely ruthless killer who does everything for [[spoiler: his]] own ends, and has no qualms about killing anybody.

** [[spoiler: Garett Haldon from The Empty Chair definitely qualifies. His parents were killed because they got involved in a pesticide conspiracy. Their murder also caused him to draw in some of the pesticide himself, making him a harsher person on the surface. He was then placed under the care of foster parents who are implied to have hit him on occasions. He was also pitted as a scapegoat for several murders involving the same conspiracy that took place during the book.]]

** [[spoiler: Garett Hanlon from The Empty Chair definitely qualifies. His parents were killed because they got involved in a pesticide conspiracy. Their murder also caused him to draw in some of the pesticide himself, making him a harsher person on the surface. He was then placed under the care of foster parents who are implied to have hit him on occasions. He was also pitted as a scapegoat for several murders involving the same conspiracy that took place during the book.]]

** [[Spoiler: Garett Hanlon from The Empty Chair definitely qualifies. His parents were killed because they got involved in a pesticide conspiracy. Their murder also caused him to draw in some of the pesticide himself, making him a harsher person on the surface. He was then placed under the care of foster parents who are implied to have hit him on occasions. He was also pitted as a scapegoat for several murders involving the same conspiracy that took place during the book.]]