Engage. What a wonderful time in your life. When your special someone “asks the question” and gives you the ring. Wealthy and eccentric couples love to show off their engagement rings. The bigger and more opulent, the better. Now there is a murderer, nicknamed the Promiser by the media, who has turned this happy moment around. The Promiser also loves diamonds. Without cutting. Without garnish. The rough and beautiful stone as unearthed. He dislikes the idea of ​​this precious jewel being displayed on the “wretched big toes of rich women.”
The police want the Promiser to be caught as quickly and quietly as possible. Three murders and an injured witness on the run in Manhattan’s Diamond District. Tortured victims and millions of dollars in untouched jewelry. Obviously, theft is not what motivates the Promoter. (Jeffery Deaver knows how to get the reader’s attention.)

As if chasing down this elusive killer and trying to find the missing witness isn’t enough, Deaver throws out some subplots for our enjoyment. Multiple earthquakes in Brooklyn have resulted in gas leaks and explosions, sadly claiming the lives of several citizens. These rare occurrences center on an active geothermal drilling site and protesters are quick to blame them. It is a coincidence? Of course not, this is a Lincoln Rhyme story.

Now, as he gets to the bottom of these earthquakes and goes after a ruthless killer, Rhyme somehow has time to get involved in another case. This time he seems to be switching sides. At least that’s how junk prosecutors see it. Rhyme and Ron Pulaski begin to investigate the prosecution of a Mexican drug lord who claims that the evidence in his case has been manipulated and fabricated. We can always count on Rhyme to follow up the evidence and present the truth. Even if that means exonerating a criminal and taking a case against federal prosecutors. Pulaski and Rhyme have put themselves in danger simply for “investigating the case.” Although operating at a genius level, Rhyme is quite slow to assimilate this time. Maybe it’s his sense of service, I don’t know. I just didn’t see what kind of people these prosecutors really were.

In 1997 I read The Bone Collector and I was hooked! Over the years, some books have been great, while others … well, not great. Still good, but not great. The Cutting Edge is the fourteenth book in the Lincoln Rhyme series and is a good, solid read. The main story and multiple subplots are interesting, exciting, and feature a great deal of classic Deaver-style writing. Short, crisp chapters allow for quick reading. Until I get to the detail, I mean detailed information on diamond mining. It gets tedious, almost overwhelming, so at certain points and a good 50 pages read as filler … just to make the book longer. But the story is worth it, stick with it. There’s a lot going on in Cutting Edge and Deaver weaves it all into a cliff suspension-style ending … leaving just enough rope to keep us dangling until the next chapter in the Lincoln Rhyme saga. I can not wait!

Happy reading!