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Graphic: Body horror, Confinement, Death, Gore, Torture, Violence, Blood, Stalking, Death of parent, Murder, Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Animal death, Child abuse, Mental illness, Sexism, Terminal illness, Vomit
Minor: Homophobia
Graphic: Animal death, Body horror, Cursing, Death, Gore, Violence, Blood, Murder
However, I LOOOVED the Dexter TV show as a teenager, and that really boosts the book's quality - especially given that I most enjoyed comparing the book to what I remember from the show (the plot is similar but the characterizations are different so that's neat).
So, I settled on 3 stars because I had fun, but I wouldn't say it's actually that good if you didn't hyperfixate on the show at 16. And yes, I will probably read the other ones.
Graphic: Cursing, Death, Violence, Blood, Kidnapping, Stalking, Murder, Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Animal death, Child death, Racism, Vomit, Car accident, Death of parent
Minor: Child abuse, Fatphobia, Pedophilia, Sexual content, Classism
Graphic: Addiction, Body horror, Cursing, Death, Violence, Blood, Stalking, Murder
Moderate: Bullying, Child death, Confinement, Domestic abuse, Gore, Gun violence, Mental illness, Misogyny, Panic attacks/disorders, Pedophilia, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Vomit, Kidnapping, Grief, Death of parent, Sexual harassment, Injury/Injury detail
Minor: Animal death, Body shaming, Cancer, Chronic illness, Drug abuse, Abandonment, Alcohol
now, this—combined with the plot of the story—is an excellent idea. but it was poorly executed.
first, let me say what i do like about this book:
(the book deviates from the show pretty early on, so fair warning to anyone who has watched the show first.)
i’m a little torn how i feel about the ending twist, but i’ll say it’s not a negative feeling. it was an okay twist.
i think having deb’s personality be the complete opposite of dexter’s was a fantastic idea. (in the show, at least, and in my opinion) deb exhibits signs of borderline personality disorder (bpd), and from what i remember hearing from someone with antisocial personality disorder (aspd), people with bpd tend to gravitate toward people with aspd for some reason, so dexter and deb being close makes sense. not sure if that was the intention or if it even went that deep, but still.
i also really like the idea of the dark passenger being its own sort of entity inside dexter. in the show, the dark passenger is just an urge; but in the book, it’s like a separate person, and i think that’s a really interesting perspective. i like seeing it from both, too.
on the other hand, i do have a lot of issues with the book. such as:
some of the characters feel like they’re maybe bordering on a bit racist?
all the side characters felt pretty flat and empty, but the two female characters—deb and detective laguerta—were extremely stupid. deb had dexter give her all her ideas (dexter helped in the show, but at least in the show she came up with stuff on her own), but laguerta is just… dumb. but also somehow successful at being a detective? like, how? she’s clearly not a good detective. and she’s also
and finally,
i know there are more books in the series, but i think more could have been done with dexter as a character in this book. i do hope the next one(s) do him, the other characters, and the overall idea justice, because this book was disappointing.
Graphic: Body horror, Death, Gore, Blood, Murder
Moderate: Homophobia, Mental illness, Misogyny, Pedophilia, Sexism, Injury/Injury detail
Minor: Animal death, Child abuse, Child death, Domestic abuse, Drug abuse, Racism, Sexual assault, Death of parent, Sexual harassment
Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Body horror, Child abuse, Child death, Confinement, Cursing, Death, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Gore, Gun violence, Mental illness, Misogyny, Panic attacks/disorders, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexism, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Terminal illness, Torture, Violence, Blood, Vomit, Kidnapping, Grief, Stalking, Death of parent, Murder, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Abandonment, Sexual harassment, Injury/Injury detail
Graphic: Death, Mental illness, Torture, Violence, Blood, Vomit, Death of parent, Murder
Moderate: Sexism, Terminal illness
Minor: Animal death
Graphic: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Body horror, Child abuse, Child death, Confinement, Death, Gore, Gun violence, Homophobia, Misogyny, Pedophilia, Racism, Sexism, Torture, Violence, Blood, Stalking, Death of parent, Murder, Injury/Injury detail
Graphic: Animal death, Body horror, Cancer, Cursing, Death, Gore, Gun violence, Sexism, Terminal illness, Torture, Violence, Blood, Medical content, Kidnapping, Grief, Stalking, Death of parent, Murder, Abandonment, Sexual harassment, Injury/Injury detail
Minor: Animal cruelty, Animal death