Dexter–He takes life. Seriously.

So, after professing a love for Dexter Morgan after watching the first 2 Showtime seasons, I decided it was integral for me to read the originals– Jeff Lindsay’s 3 books:

• Darkly Dreaming Dexter
• Dearly Devoted Dexter
• *Dexter in the Dark

I love what Showtime did with this series. They made Dexter, a living, breathing sociopath, able to share his thoughts with us in the comfort of our (well-lit) living rooms. Dexter, an amiable blood spatter analyst for the Miami PD also happens to be a sociopathic serial killer. Before you start assuming anything, let me just say–Dexter is on our side! He kills by code, delivering death only to those who “deserve” it.

The first two books are explorations into Dexter’s mind; why he does what he does, the “code” that rules his killings, and best of all, his attempt to be “normal”.  Both are fairly short, entertaining reads. The book’s characters are identical to those on television, but the crimes have been adapted for a little more dramaticism and to last over the course of several tv shows. While I almost always prefer books to movie/television adaptations, the show has done an excellent job expanding on what Jeff Lindsay began, namely Dexter’s family background and reasons he is what he is.

The third book seems to fall off the bandwagon as it is based on the supernatural as an explanation for the origin of Dexter’s “Dark Passenger”.

By far the most entertaining aspect of these books is Dexter’s soliloquies. He tries so hard to fit in that it makes you laugh out loud. He uses his girlfriend, Rita, as a “disguise” to blend in, doing what other middle aged males ought to be doing—drinking beer, playing with the girlfriend’s kids, and going fishing on his boat–all while plotting his nightly slicing and dicing.

Only Sergeant Doakes, who spent time in El Salvador as some sort of Special Ops, seems to be clued into what Dexter really is…after all, like calls to like. Dexter mentions that one would think that they could “have a cup of coffee and compare Passengers…talk about dismemberment techniques.”  However, Sergeant Doakes doesn’t take too kindly to Dexter, saying that Dexter gives him the “fucking creeps”.  This constant battle of wills combined with Dexter’s macabre sense of humor makes for one great series.

*Note—not available until Sept. 2 but thanks to my connections I was able to finish the series last week!