A review by gawdz0rz
Darkly Dreaming Dexter by Jeff Lindsay

dark tense fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? No
  • Loveable characters? No
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

2.25

the overall idea of dexter morgan—serial killer, blood spatter analyst for miami metro homicide, definitely normal human being—is a fascinating one with so much potential. compared to bret easton ellis’ patrick bateman, dexter is a saint. he’s a moral sociopathy trope living by harry’s code where he (ironically) only kills (other) murderers.

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.)

the alliteration was clever. playing off the title of the book and adding similar alliteration throughout was neat, i liked that.

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
sexually harassing and eventually sexually assaulting dexter at work?? like??? then thinking something was wrong with him when he didn’t want to be non-consensually humped and fondled in the office??? and then stalking him??? like, i know she flirts with him in the show but this is waaay beyond that. like, waaay beyond.
so, yeah, it’s just A Lot. 

and finally,
when dexter wakes up, there’s the immediate switch between “deb didn’t come home last night” to “i know he has her,” which felt really off and abrupt. and then the “i know this is the container, i have no idea why, but i feel it in my bones” like a midwesterner saying it’s about to rain on a sunny day, which was also just really out there. like, there’s no way lol. i get he “knew” from when he was a child but like… did he really


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. 
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