Wednesday, June 3, 2009

Dearly Devoted Dexter - Jeff Lindsay (Book 2)

Like horrible chick-lit, I wonder why I read this trash. But, then I realize, it is pure entertainment, and I do enjoy it, even if I'm not exactly stretching the boundaries of my intellect in the process. Dexter, the serial-killer who only kills bad people, returns in this second installment. As he indpendently stalks a pedophile, Dexter is sucked into a department case involving his sister's boyfriend. The suspect this time actually isn't a killer - instead, he lops off his victim's limbs with surgical precision, ensuring that while awake during the procedures, they are given enough pain killers to prevent actual death. Intrigued by this exteme method of torture, Dexter is paired with his arch-nemesis to track the psychopath. Dexter's method of "solving" this crime did not impress me - he relies too much on intuition and his Dark Passenger - the ominous voice that compels him to think like a murderer. Yet, unlike the crimes he pursues on his own (like the pedophile), not much seemed grounded in actual clues, which doesn't make it much fun for the reader who likes to play along. Dexter continues his sham romantic relationship in this book, inadvertently stumbling into a marriage proposal. And, he even finds himself a potential protege when he discovers that his girlfriend's son has apparently caused the disappearance of the neighbor's dog. I feel like Dexter's character could be so much more complex - if he weren't constantly reminding the reader that he is not quite human, and amusingly simple. I am left frustrated by his 2-dimensions. Yet, compelled to keep reading.

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