"darkly dreaming dexter" by jeff lindsay

Darkly Dreaming Dexter

As I mentioned last month, CBS has started showing the Showtime series based on Jeff Lindsay's Dexter books, and it took me about 5 minutes to get completely hooked, mostly due to the darkly hilarious and charismatic performance of Michael C. Hall.

I really, really want to get the first season on DVD, because of course CBS has to edit a lot, some for content and some just to make time for commercials, and I'm accutely aware that I'm missing stuff. When Dexter nearly gets eaten by an alligator, is just isn't as shoot-Diet-Coke-through-your-nose funny without the attendant bellowing of "Fuck! FUUUUUCK!!!"

But I'm moving again soon (Yes, AGAIN. I only signed a 6-month lease and the arrangement is... not satisfactory. Let's just leave it at that.), so I need to hold off on big (or even medium-sized) purchases for a while. So I contented myself this past wekend with reading the first book in the series, Darkly Dreaming Dexter. I figured there was room in my budget for $12.95.

They're padding the storyline in the series quite a bit, naturally. They have to make the main story arc last for 12 episodes, and Dexter's already killed more people in the first 3 episodes than he did in the entire book. So the book moves quite a bit quicker; it also doesn't seem to have as much character development. I'd have to say the series does a better job of this, in the flashbacks between Dexter and Harry Morgan. But there are at least 2 more books, so who knows, maybe Lindsay does eventually reveal more of Dexter's past.

But I enjoyed the book, it was a zippy, fun read. I'm not big into the modern murder genre, but Lindsay has created something unique within it, and he's got a playful and somewhat purple style that I think will get even better the further into the books you get.

Mostly reading the book has made me see what an amazing choice for the part Michael C. Hall is. Some casting director deserves a cookie, because he is so totally Dexter Morgan, I can't even imagine anyone else playing him.

Postsecret dexter

<----- Not my secret, I was just amused by it.