Review: Dexter in the Dark (Dexter #3) by Jeff Lindsay

Print Length: 320 pages

Publisher: Vintage Books (August 12, 2008)

From Goodreads.com: In his work as a Miami crime scene investigator, Dexter Morgan is accustomed to seeing evil deeds...particularly because, on occasion, he rather enjoys committing them himself. Guided by his dark Passenger - the voice inside him that helps stalk his prey - he lives his outwardly normal life adhering to one simple rule: he only kills very bad people.

Dexter slides through life undetected, working as a blood splatter analyst for the Miami Police Department, helping his fiancee raise her two adorable (if somewhat...unique) children, and always planning his next jaunt as Dexter the Dark Avenger under the light of the full moon.

But everything changes when Dexter is called to a gruesome double homicide. Dex realizes he's dealing with someone a whole lot more sinister than he is and it sends the Dark Passenger into hiding. And when something scares your friendly neighborhood serial killer, you know it's serious...

More used to inspiring fear then experiencing it, Dex must investigate, while simultaneously coping with his demanding family. If he's to save himself, and those around him, Dexter must pose questions he's never dared ask - where does evil come from, and does it hide inside everyone...?

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My Rating: 1 star out of 5

When a book series has as big a cult following as this one seems to, I had expected the books to get better as the series went on. And then there was this.... I'm not even sure what this was? Author's bad dream? Ghost Writing gone wrong? 

One of the things that makes Dexter who he is, and one of the things that makes these books so wildly interesting is the presence of his dark passenger. The thing that guides him and makes him such a well functioning sociopath. A concept that worked well in the first two books. I will even admit to their being a certain kind of anticipation seeing the same dark shadow reflected in his future step-children. 

And now suddenly the voice has gone quiet. And Dexter is for the first time, completely alone in his own mind. Subjected to emotions. Subjected to anxiety and fear. Unable to complete his rituals. And while this could have (and should have) made for a fascinating story on the complexity of the human psyche, the author instead turned this into some sort of case of demon possession? An old God? I don't even know. 

All I know is that instead of being glued to the pages, gleefully watching Dexter stalk his prey (or hell even help his seemingly dimwitted sister solve crimes) this book managed to be .... well boring. So much so that I had no trouble setting it down for days on end and forgetting about it. Not exactly the way I want to feel when I am only three books into an eight book series (of which I have already gotten the entire series). 

Three books down. And because I got them all at once, five more to go. Wish me luck! Although at this point, I can't honestly see how they could get any worse.

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                              Dexter in the Dark is available from Amazon.com