The Twelfth Card (A Lincoln Rhyme Novel) [Audiobook, Unabridged] [Audio CD]

Jeffery Deaver (Author), Dennis Boutsikaris (Reader)

Book Description

Publication Date: April 18, 2006 | Series: Lincoln Rhyme Novels

Bestselling master of suspense Jeffrey Deaver is back with a brand-new Lincoln Rhyme thriller. To save the life of a young girl who's being stalked by a ruthless hit man. Lincoln and his protege, Amelia Sachs, are called upon to do the impossible: solve a truly "cold case" -- one that's 140 years old.

The Twelfth Card is a two-day cat-and-mouse chase through the streets of uptown Manhattan as quadriplegic detective Lincoln Rhyme and Amelia Sachs try to outguess Thompson Boyd a man whose past has turned him into a killing machine as unfeeling and cunning as a wolf. Boyd is after Geneva Settle, a high school girl from Harlem, and it's up to Lincoln and Amelia to figure out why.

The motive may have to do with a term paper that Geneva is writing about her ancestor, Charles Singleton, a former slave. Charles was active in the early civil rights movement, but was arrested for theft and disgraced. Lincoln and Amelia work frantically to figure out what actually happened on that hot July night in 1868 when Charles was arrested.

Deaver's inimitable plotting keeps this story racing at a lightening-fast clip. With breathtaking twists and multiple surprises, this is Deaver's most compelling Lincoln Rhyme audiobook to date.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

The popularity of Deaver's novels about quadriplegic police detective Lincoln Rhyme and his legwoman Amelia Sachs depends mightily on their personal stories (i.e., their romantic relationship, their struggles with depression and physical impairments) and the ingeniously twisted crimes they solve. Both elements have been served better in the past. While the plot is properly perplexing (why is a 16-year-old Harlem high schooler being stalked by a ruthless killer?), fans will be baffled by Deaver's decision to move series supporting player NYPD lieutenant Lon Sellitto closer to center stage, thus significantly limited Rhyme's presence in the story. Boutsikaris, an accomplished theater and film actor, and one of the better audio performers, provides a crisp narrative that moves the story quickly enough to build and maintain a fair amount of suspense, even through several lengthy plot recaps. He exhibits both versatility and imagination in finding the right voice for most of the characters, from the impatient, almost fussy Rhyme to the gruff and emotionally conflicted Sellitto.
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From Booklist

A new Lincoln Rhyme novel is cause for excitement among fans of twisty-turny thrillers. This time out, Rhyme, the quadriplegic forensic investigator, is trying to find out why a man was stalking a high-school student. Turns out it might have something to do with the death of one of the student's ancestors nearly 140 years ago. Deaver, who must have been born with a special plot-twist gene, somehow manages, in every book, to pull two or three big surprises out of his hat. He also has a knack for drawing us immediately into the story. For some readers, it's his detailed description of investigative techniques; for others, it's Rhyme himself, the crusty, bad-tempered (but secretly lovable) detective who, with the help of his protege (and lover), the beautiful Amelia Sachs, solves crimes that most other investigators couldn't begin to crack. The Rhyme novels are among the cleverest of contemporary detective fiction. It is disappointing, however, to report that this one has a rather noticeable flaw. He attempts to render the dialogue of an African American character, in a kind of written Ebonics ("'S'up, girl?") that is very distracting to read and pulls us right out of the story. One of Deaver's strong points has always been his ability to write flowing dialogue; the awkward effort here to translate oral idiom into written language is an unfortunate slipup. Aside from that, though, it's a typically well-written, suspenseful story. David Pitt
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

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Product Details

• Audio CD
• Publisher: Simon & Schuster Audio; Unabridged edition (April 18, 2006)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0743544331
• ISBN-13: 978-0743544337
• Product Dimensions: 6 x 6.4 x 1.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 11.2 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (108 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,505,657 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #27 in Books > Books on CD > Authors, A-Z > ( D ) > Deaver, Jeffery

More About the Author

Jeffery Deaver was born outside of Chicago in 1950. His father was an advertising copywriter and his mother was a homemaker. He has one younger sister who writes novels for teenagers ' Julie Reece Deaver.

Deaver wrote his first book ' which consisted of two entire chapters ' when he was eleven, and he's been writing ever since. An award-winning poet and journalist, he has also written and performed his own songs around the country. After receiving a Bachelor of Journalism degree from the University of Missouri, Deaver worked as a magazine writer, then, to gain the background needed to become a legal correspondent for The New York Times or Wall Street Journal, he enrolled at Fordham Law School. After graduation he decided to practice law for a time and worked for several years as an attorney for a large Wall Street firm. It was during his long commute to and from the office that he began writing the type of fiction he enjoyed reading: suspense novels. In 1990 he started to write full time.

The author of twenty-two novels, Deaver has been nominated for six Edgar Awards from the Mystery Writers of America, an Anthony award, a Gumshoe Award, and is a three-time recipient of the Ellery Queen Reader's Award for Best Short Story of the Year. In 2001, he won the W.H. Smith Thumping Good Read Award for his Lincoln Rhyme novel The Empty Chair. In 2004, he was awarded the Crime Writers Association of Great Britain's Ian Fleming Steel Dagger Award for Garden Of Beasts and the Short Story Dagger for "The Weekender." Translated into 35 languages, his novels have appeared on a number of bestseller lists around the world, including the New York Times, the London Times and the Los Angeles Times. The Bone Collector was a feature release from Universal Pictures, starring Denzel Washington as Lincoln Rhyme. A Maiden's Grave was made into an HBO film retitled Dead Silence, starring James Garner and Marlee Matlin.

Jeff has also released two collections of his short stories, called Twisted and More Twisted.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

32 of 35 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Deaver loves the wild twist, August 1, 2005

By 

Dave Schwinghammer "Dave Schwinghammer" (Little Falls, Minnesota USA) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Twelfth Card (A Lincoln Rhyme Novel) (Hardcover)

I have been a Lincoln Rhyme fan every since I saw THE BONE COLLECTOR, then realized there was a mystery/thriller series by Jeffery Deaver featuring the same character. There's something about a paralyzed forensics expert who solves complicated cases with the aid of a beautiful redheaded sidekick that fascinates.

That said I've always had some reservations about Deaver. He loves the wild plot twist for one thing, and that's still the case with THE TWELFTH CARD. Through most of the book we think the attempted assault on Geneva Settle, a high school student doing research at the Museum of African-American Culture and History, has something to do with her ancestor, Charles Singleton, an emancipated slave who'd inherited land from his former master. But that's too easy for Deaver. Soon we're dealing with Arab terrorists, bombs going off right and left, and two or three more people trying to kill Geneva. It's all a little too much for the patient reader.

Then there's the matter of ebonics (I can't remember the more politically correct term). Every African-American character in the book sounds the same, including Geneva Settle, when she's around her friend Keesha and a potential boyfriend. Can you say the word s-t-e-r-e-o-t-y-p-e?

The saving grace in THE TWELFTH CARD is the villain, Thompson Boyd. He's a professional hit man who's been "numbed" by his profession. What's interesting is that he's trying to cure himself by cohabiting with a woman and her two little girls. He figures if he goes through the motions of family life, some of their normalcy and zest for life will rub off on him. Thompson goes down a bit too easy about a hundred pages before the end of the book, again because of Deaver's penchant for the wild twist.

Despite the reservations mentioned above, I highly recommend this book. The Lincoln Rhyme, Amelia Sachs team is top notch; the police procedural (with its recurring evidentiary lists) is fun to follow, and the cast of recurring characters, including Fred Dellray, Mel Cooper, Lon Sellitto, and Thom, Lincoln's physical therapy aide, are all well-rounded and interesting. If you haven't read any of the other five novels in the series, you're in for a treat.

15 of 17 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Lincoln Rhyme rides again, June 7, 2005

By 

Robert Busko (North Carolina) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: The Twelfth Card (A Lincoln Rhyme Novel) (Hardcover)

When I learned that a new Lincoln Rhyme novel was due out in June I was elated along with many of our library patrons. Jeffrey Deaver and his stories are greatly anticipated by many of our patrons.

In The Twelfth Card teenager Geneva Settle is attacked and nearly killed while doing research in a library in the City. Chased by the assailant she narrowly escapes. She eventually ends up in front of Lincoln Rhyme and Amelia Sachs where she is debriefed and put in protective custody. It is this part of the book that seems contrived. Lincoln Rhyme is a high powered piece of manpower. If he were used to investigate every suspected assault on a teenager he wouldn't have any time for other crimes. Of course WE know that there is a major crime to be prevented/solved because we can see the book. However, Lincoln doesn't know that this isn't just what it looks like, a possible attempted sexual assault.

Aside from this minor point, The Twelfth Card is everything we have come to expect from Jeffrey Deaver. The Twelfth Card is a great story with more than its share of plot twists. The plot is believable and keeps the readers turning the pages.

Finally, Deaver continues to offer fresh stories that rely on good authorship. This is refreshing considering some of the trite and contrived novels being published by other authors.

7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars interesting book, although sometimes unbelievable, August 7, 2006

By 

Nick Baumhardt "NeeKoRiss" (Chicago, IL) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Twelfth Card (A Lincoln Rhyme Novel) (Mass Market Paperback)

I just finished reading this book and i feel somewhat torn. Although i found the story very interesting and entertaining, at times I felt a few of the characters and dialog were a little unbelieveable. I was also annoyed at some of the subtle philosophical themes hidden throughout the story.

Deaver goes into great detail developing the characters. I thought Boyd was incredibly interesting - especially with the inner torment of trying to become normal again. The conflict within is mirrored by Selitto's own bout with feelings of inadequacy on the job and Jax's conflict of street thug versus legitimate member of society.

Another aspect that I give high marks for is Deaver's penchant for twists and suspense. Towards the end of the book, it seemed like every page had some sort of misdirection or twist in it.

However, I felt the story was hurt by unbelieveable dialogue and situations. For some reason I couldn't connect with Rhyme or Sachs. The Ebonics dialogue smells like something that someone researched, not lived though. Even so, it's hard to quantify such a rapidly changing dialect into print without sounding cliché and dated.

I also felt that a lot of the situations were unrealistic at times. For instance, i doubt a real Crime Scene unit would have the witness, Geneva, present for so much of the investigation.

Aside from minor unbelievability, i still enjoyed the story. I was slightly annoyed at some of the philosophical underpinnings. In many cases Deaver's political views were a little obvious and it was hard for me to empathize with the heroes of the story when I didn't believe in what they were doing on a fundamental level. i'm not looking for a political debate. All i'm saying is that when you let your own politics color the story, it's going to hinder a person with differing viewpoints from connecting with the story.