Darkly Dreaming Dexter

I have been reading Darkly Dreaming Dexter by Jeff Lindsay, published in 2004. Since that, a TV series has been based on this book. It has been a huge success in America, but also in other countries. The book is written as a detective/comedy story, even though the events are horrible.

Dexter Morgan is not just one person, he is two. At least he think he is. The normal human side of him is just a disguise for the other one that is so dark, even Dexter himself fears him. He usually calls this other side of him for the dark passenger, because of the lack of control when he is in charge. The dark passenger is telling him what to do. And what he does is killing people in a horrible way. First, he injects them with a substance that makes them paralysed. This makes him in total control of the victims body. He collects one drop of blood, then he slices them in to pieces and the job is done.

Dexter's adoptive father, Harry, helped him as a child to manage his need to kill. Because there is a strong need to kill within Dexter and Harry knew this. He taught him some rules to follow when his need becomes to hard to handle. Lucky for us one of the rules is that he only can kill those that really deserves it. Such as murderers, rapists and child molesters. It is easy to find the criminals for Dexter since he his working at the police station. Not as a real detective, but as a expert in blood pattern. It is a perfect job for someone like Dexter.

The story takes place in Miami, witch means it is sunny almost every day and the landscape is different on different locations. They have beautiful beaches, but also frightening swamps. I do not think the story would be the same if it took place in another city in America. Miami really sets the characters to another level. The characters have different origin and sometimes it seems that the do not take their job as serious as a detective would in New York. There is not requirement to wear suits. Some of them do, but the climate in Miami is too hot for it, so they wears their ordinary clothes to work.

Dexter is the ego in the story and you will always see everything in his perspective. His extraordinary thoughts about people and the world as he sees it. He has a foster sister, Deborah, that he cares about, even though he thinks he can not feel anything. She is also working at the police station, just like their father once did, as a detective. She is good looking, but is not that feminine. Dexter tries to help her along the book with solving the case, Deborah is not doing so well as a police detective, but she is improving. Dexter has a girlfriend, Rita, not because he is in love with her, but for appearing normal to the society. He do not want to unmask his killing need. Everything has to be perfect. Rita has two children from another marriage. Dexter likes them, he would never harm a child. Rita is a broken soul, and so is Dexter.

In the book they are chasing a murderer who is draining all his victims for blood and chops them into pieces. Dexter feels a connection with the killer and it seems like he wants to play with Dexter. He has a message, but Dexter do not know what it is. The murderer leaves a head of a doll in his apartment and writes a message in blood one time. Off course Dexter do not share this with his fellow colleagues, in case of exposure of his true nature. All this takes place in several days and the end of the book is really thrilling, but not like the ending of the season on the TV series. I was surprised about the ending. I am not so sure if I liked it, but I would definitely want to read more about him and what happened after this book. I know that it exist at least one more book and I would read it soon.

I like the theme of Darkly Dreaming Dexter. You do not know if you sympathises with Dexter or if you just will see him as a cold-blooded murderer. In one way I understands him, but I do not think that anyone has the right to kill, even though it is criminals. Dexter is always explaining that he has not got any feelings, but I do think he is feeling emotional sometimes. He just have to realize it himself and then he can move on. Both in the book and in the TV series there is this tension around Dexter's killings. Will he get caught this time? When will they figure it out? What happens if someone finds out about his secret? I do not want him to get caught, but at the same time I want them to know. I would love to "see" the expressions on their faces when they realizes Dexter's big secret. What would his sister do? Cry? Scream?

The message to the readers is to understand why someone kills and to feel the way that Dexter does. Further in the book you would get the answer on why Dexter is like he is. As usually with psychopaths, it has something to do with their childhood. And Dexter's foster father Harry is what drives Dexter forward, but if Harry had not trained him, Dexter would probably kill just for the killing and then no one would be safe. In the book, Dexter has killed almost 40 people and it is really a big number. By reading Dexter's mind, you will understand him and how he feels, without feelings to other human beings. An emptiness in his heart and thinking that killing is his call in life. Because Dexter is not such a bad person if you do not include the killing part. Anyone can be a murderer if we did not have a conscience.

I really like the word choices that the author makes, it is beautiful. It is unlike anything I have ...