Deaver's novel fits into the tradition of cat-and-mouse suspense thrillers such as those written by James Patterson or Ridley Pearson. However, while other suspense thrillers may rely on detailed examinations of police procedure, Deaver's Lincoln Rhyme novels, like The Empty Chair, are different in that they are heavily scientific. There is extensive explanation of forensic techniques reminiscent of Sherlock Holmes stories.

Details about chemical compounds and fingerprints are crucial to the narrative. The use of physical ailments and wounds could be compared to an author such as Edgar Allan Poe or Nathaniel Hawthorne, where outward appearance corresponds to inward anguish, unhappiness, or sin.

In The Empty Chair, Deaver also uses American folklore extensively. Stories such as the tale of the lost settlers at Roanoke and the story of the White Doe, a myth about an Indian princess turned into a deer, are important for the setting...