The Stone Monkey
| Industry | Publishing |
|---|---|
| Headquarters | New York City , United States |
| Products | Books |
The Stone Monkey is a crime novel published in 2002 by American writer Jeffery Deaver, marking the fourth book in the Lincoln Rhyme series.
Plot summary
A vessel transporting approximately 30 Chinese illegal immigrants is intercepted near New York City by the US Coast Guard. The ship's leader, a feared human trafficker and assassin known as Ghost, triggers an explosion to sink the boat and escapes on a life-raft.
While some immigrants survive on another life-raft, Ghost kills several survivors. Ten individuals from the Chang and Wu families—activists who supported the 1989 Tiananmen Square protests—manage to reach Manhattan's Chinatown by stealing a van. Ghost rendezvous with an accomplice who soon deserts him.
Near the shore, Amelia Sachs finds a gunshot victim who identifies himself as Dr John Sung, a prominent advocate for democracy seeking asylum. He is released while awaiting his hearing.
At Lincoln Rhyme’s residence, where the operation is being coordinated, Sonny Li, an undercover officer from Fuzhou embedded among the immigrants, aims to kill Ghost due to personal motives. The Chang family is hidden in Brooklyn, while the Wu family pays a Chinatown gang for protection.
Ghost enlists three Uighur associates to eliminate both his disloyal partner and the Chinatown gang leader. He tries to assault the Wu family’s apartment but is ambushed by combined FBI, INS, and NYPD units. An INS agent’s premature gunfire allows Ghost to flee despite losing one accomplice.
The Chang family patriarch attempts to assassinate Ghost by disguising himself as a vendor but is drugged by his father and replaced at the meeting. The grandfather kills one of Ghost’s accomplices before taking his own life to avoid torture. Li pursues further investigation and confronts Ghost—who had faked his death and assumed Dr Sung’s identity—in a deadly encounter. Before dying, Li retrieves talcum powder from an amulet worn by Ghost to assist Rhyme’s inquiry.
Rhyme identifies the Chang family’s safehouse and organizes a task force. Sachs, who has developed a rapport with Dr Sung (actually Ghost), brings him along as an interpreter but is followed by Uighur operatives. After tracing talcum powder residue, Rhyme warns Sachs. She stages the arrest of an INS agent to bait Ghost into an NYPD trap.
Although responsible for numerous crimes, Ghost exploits his INS connections to secure deportation back to China, where he evades prosecution. Rhyme uncovers that Ghost operates covertly for Fujian province, tasked with smuggling dissident intellectuals cheaply before murdering them by sinking ships. The US State Department knowingly enables this scheme to maintain favorable relations with China.
In a final showdown at an airport boarding gate involving Rhyme, NYPD officers, and The New York Times, public pressure compels the State Department to hold Ghost in custody longer. Several officials from INS and the State Department are forced into early retirement. Ghost faces trial with potential outcomes including death penalty or life imprisonment. Meanwhile, the Chang and Wu families continue their asylum proceedings with strong prospects for approval.