Book 1 of 20: Darkly Dreaming Dexter by Jeff Linsay

Darkly Dreaming Dexter by Jeff Lindsay

I've seen a couple episodes of the television series, Dexter, and I was rather charmed by it, but I didn't see it from the start so I couldn't follow it properly. So when I came across one of the books the show is based on, in Morrisons for £2*, well, how could I object?
I was quite taken with the tagline; "A serial killer with a heart.. be grateful it's not yours."
The whole idea of a serial killer who only goes after serial killers, like a bloody Robin Hood; stealing the lives of the guilty to give chance to the innocent, appeals to my morbid sense of humour.

I'll try to make this as spoiler free as possible, whilst giving you a gist of the story.

The book is written in first person view, so you get to experience the inner workings and thoughts of Dexter's mind.
The opening pulls no punches, throwing you into one of Dexter's 'kill nights', how he carefully targets those who deserve his attention. This completely sucks you into the story. You want to know what makes him do this and why. I mean, we've seen shows like CSI, where they catch serial killers, whilst unravelling their pasts, and those characters are always over the top, bigger than big, but Dexter works for the police, he helps catch killers, it's his job as blood splatter analyst.
And honestly, despite his statements saying he isn't human, I think he has completely human feelings, even if he doesn't realise them, or rationalise them.
Dexter is completely charming and funny. I let out more than one chuckle. He even calls someone a "scamp", which I loved, as I'm not sure of the last time I heard anyone use the word scamp!
The main plot of the book is trying to catch a serial killer known as the Tamiami Butcher, who targets Miami's prostitutes and how much Dexter admires their work and isn't sure if he wants it to come to a stop.

In brief, this story is dark, engaging and amusing, with a charming protagonist and relatable side characters who all work well together. The ending is wonderful and leaves you wanting more. I know that I'll be on the look out for the rest of the titles in the series.

*As of New Years Eve 2013