Shannon C.’s review of Darkly Dreaming Dexter by Jeff Lindsay
Contemporary mystery/thriller fiction released by Doubleday 20 Jul 04
I wasn’t really sure what to expect when I unearthed Darkly Dreaming Dexter from the depths of the TBR. I’d heard some great things about the book — if you’re into heroic sociopaths working for the side of justice and the law — but it took a specific mood for me to really get into this book, and even after I’ve read it, I’m not sure I’ll be going out of my way to read the rest of the series.
The premise, for those of you who missed both the book and the television show inspired by the book, is that blood spatter analyst Dexter Morgan is no normal human being. His foster father, Harry, realized that Dexter had it in him to be a serial killer, and made sure to teach him how not to get caught, and to make sure that he channeled his tendencies toward the deserving.
This is an interesting premise, and riding along in Dexter’s head wasn’t one of the more pleasant reading experiences I’ve ever had, although I enjoyed his snarky sense of humor and his self-deprecating wit. I also liked his struggles with sanity, which are kind of crucial to a story like that. But still… I just can’t parse what it must be like to feel such insane and utter glee at the prospect of killing someone, nor could I even begin to empathize with the rush of almost sexual connection between Dexter and the serial killer he is helping to investigate.
That being said, the writing here is really good. Lindsay gives us enough detail that we can picture the gore rather than have it spelled out for us, which I think can be extremely effective when done correctly, as it was done here. He also seems to have a strong sense of the darker part of the human psyche, which seemed eerily accurate, but which was nonetheless hard to read.
I think that’s where I ultimately had a problem with the book. It was just too gritty for me, and I never really got a sense of things being resolved at the end. I want a sense of justice when I read any kind of fiction, some idea that the characters get exactly what they deserve, and that’s where this book ultimately fails for me. I can acknowledge that this is the sort of book that people love, but I don’t think I need so many shades of gray in my fiction.
Grade: C+
Summary:
Meet Dexter Morgan, a polite wolf in sheep’s clothing. He’s handsome and charming, but something in his past has made him abide by a different set of rules. He’s a serial killer whose one golden rule makes him immensely likeable: he only kills bad people. And his job as a blood splatter expert for the Miami police department puts him in the perfect position to identify his victims. But when a series of brutal murders bearing a striking similarity to his own style start turning up, Dexter is caught between being flattered and being frightened–of himself or some other fiend.
Read an excerpt here.
