The Recurring Cast
Character guide · 26 books · 1997 to 2026 · Mostly set in New York

Jeffery Deaver

Crime and mysteryThriller and suspensePolice proceduralForensicAction and adventure

Lincoln Rhyme, a quadriplegic forensic scientist, solves crimes from his Manhattan townhouse with detective Amelia Sachs as his eyes and legs. Kinesics expert Kathryn Dance spun off from Rhyme, and Colter Shaw tracks missing people for reward money.

Best estimate, compiled from series guides, publisher descriptions and reviews where available, and from memory otherwise. Book level only, not chapter level. Minor includes cameos and brief references. Each book carries a confidence rating in its tooltip. Earlier Rune and John Pellam books and Deaver’s standalones are left out. The Collateral Heart is due in November 2026.

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Who appears in which book

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Jeffery Deaver books in order

Each series in publication order, with its lead characters. Where the story runs in a different order, switch to Story order. Crossover books are marked and listed under their main series. Use My books to track what you have read.

Lincoln Rhyme

17 books · Set in New YorkForensicPolice procedural
  1. 1The Bone Collector1997With Lincoln Rhyme and Amelia SachsBuy on Amazon
  2. 2The Coffin Dancer1998With Lincoln Rhyme and Amelia SachsBuy on Amazon
  3. 3The Empty Chair2000With Lincoln Rhyme and Amelia SachsBuy on Amazon
  4. 4The Stone Monkey2002With Lincoln Rhyme and Amelia SachsBuy on Amazon
  5. 5The Vanished Man2003With Lincoln Rhyme and Amelia SachsBuy on Amazon
  6. 6The Twelfth Card2005With Lincoln Rhyme and Amelia SachsBuy on Amazon
  7. 7The Cold Moon2006With Lincoln Rhyme and Amelia SachsBuy on Amazon
  8. 8The Broken Window2008With Lincoln Rhyme and Amelia SachsBuy on Amazon
  9. 9The Burning Wire2010With Lincoln Rhyme and Amelia SachsBuy on Amazon
  10. 10The Kill Room2013With Lincoln Rhyme and Amelia SachsBuy on Amazon
  11. 11The Skin Collector2014With Lincoln Rhyme and Amelia SachsBuy on Amazon
  12. 12The Steel Kiss2016With Lincoln Rhyme and Amelia SachsBuy on Amazon
  13. 13The Burial Hour2017With Lincoln Rhyme and Amelia SachsBuy on Amazon
  14. 14The Cutting Edge2018With Lincoln Rhyme and Amelia SachsBuy on Amazon
  15. 15The Midnight Lock2021With Lincoln Rhyme and Amelia SachsBuy on Amazon
  16. 16The Watchmaker’s Hand2023With Lincoln Rhyme and Amelia SachsBuy on Amazon
  17. 17The Collateral Heart2026With Lincoln Rhyme and Amelia Sachs · ForthcomingBuy on Amazon

Kathryn Dance

4 books · Set in Monterey, CaliforniaPolice procedural
  1. 1The Sleeping Doll2007With Kathryn DanceBuy on Amazon
  2. 2Roadside Crosses2009With Kathryn DanceBuy on Amazon
  3. 3XO2012With Kathryn DanceBuy on Amazon
  4. 4Solitude Creek2015With Kathryn DanceBuy on Amazon

Colter Shaw

5 books · Set in various US locationsAction and adventure
  1. 1The Never Game2019With Colter ShawBuy on Amazon
  2. 2The Goodbye Man2020With Colter ShawBuy on Amazon
  3. 3The Final Twist2021With Colter ShawBuy on Amazon
  4. 4Hunting Time2022With Colter ShawBuy on Amazon
  5. 5South of Nowhere2025With Colter ShawBuy on Amazon

Characters

11 recurring and key characters, with the book each one first appears in.

Rhyme’s Manhattan

Colter Shaw