Darkly Dreaming Dexter

Darkly Dreaming Dexter
Cover of the 2004 edition
Author(s)	Jeff Lindsay
Country	United States
Language	English
Genre(s)	Crime novel
Publication date	July, 2004
Media type	Print (Hardback & Paperback)
Followed by	Dearly Devoted Dexter

Darkly Dreaming Dexter is a 2004 novel by Jeff Lindsay, the first in his series about serial killer Dexter Morgan. It has formed the basis of the Showtime television series Dexter and won the 2005 Dilys Award and the 2007 'Book to TV' award.

Plot summary

The novel's protagonist, Dexter Morgan, works for the Miami-Dade Police Department as a forensic blood spatter pattern analyst. In his spare time, Dexter is a serial killer who kills murderers, rapists and other such undesirables he believes have escaped justice.

Dexter's murders are directed by an inner voice he refers to as the "Dark Passenger", who keeps prodding Dexter to kill something. Once he has done so, the voice is satisfied for a while, but always comes back.

Flashbacks reveal that his foster father, a police detective named Harry Morgan, recognized early on that Dexter was a violent sociopath with an innate need to kill, and taught him how to kill people who have gotten away with murder as a way to channel his homicidal urges in a "positive" direction. Harry also taught the boy to be a careful, meticulous killer, to leave no clues, and to be absolutely sure his victims are guilty before killing them. Dexter calls these rules "the code of Harry."

Dexter manages his double life reasonably well for years, but his idyll is disturbed when he becomes involved in homicide investigation in which a serial killer is preying on Miami's prostitutes. As the "Tamiami Slasher" rampages through the city, he begins sending messages to Dexter, who finds the series of terrifying crimes engrossing and fascinating. Meanwhile, his adoptive sister Deborah sees the series of murders as her ticket out of the Vice unit and into Homicide. Dexter is torn between helping her catch the killer and a desire to sit back and admire the artistry and skill of a fellow killer's work.

Narrative style

Darkly Dreaming Dexter features a first-person story narrated by a serial killer.

Dexter claims to be devoid of human emotion, but he does harbor feelings of a sort for the people in his life, including his foster sister Deborah, his girlfriend Rita (who he supposedly dates solely to gain the appearance of a normal social life), and Rita's children, Astor and Cody. By the novel's climax, he admits to himself that he is "fond" of them, the closest he can get to feeling love.

As a narrator, Dexter has a sense of black humor, even as the story turns grim. He also uses numerous alliterative phrases, typically featuring three prominent D sounds (e.g. Darkly Dreaming Dexter, The Dark DefenDer).

Television series

Main article: Dexter (TV series)

The novel was the basis for a TV series on the cable network Showtime. Whereas the first season largely followed the plot of the original book, the second, third, fourth, and fifth seasons featured original storylines not directly based on subsequent "Dexter" novels.

Darkly Dreaming Dexter was also featured on an episode of Booked, a Canadian television series that investigates crime fiction novels through the eyes of real forensic science experts.^[1]

Differences between the book and the television series

Book	TV series
The character of LaGuerta is named Midgia LaGuerta and is a detective. She is more forceful with her feelings for Dexter and after he spurns her advances, she catches him looking for Deborah at the ship yard.	She is named María LaGuerta and is a lieutenant. She has a slight crush on Dexter, and Doakes is the one who catches Dexter at the ship yard looking for Deborah.
Deborah seems to suspect that there is something "wrong" about Dexter and eventually discovers his secret.	As of Season 5, Deborah only knows that Dexter is hiding something.
Brian Moser kidnaps Deborah, kills LaGuerta and escapes.	Brian Moser dates Deborah, proposes to her and then kidnaps her so that he and Dexter can kill her together, which Dexter refuses to do. Dexter kills Brian.
The string of prostitute murders are committed by the Tamiami Butcher.	The killer is named the Ice Truck Killer.

Awards and nominations

Darkly Dreaming Dexter won the 2005 Dilys Award presented by the Independent Mystery Booksellers Association.^[2]

Notes

1. ^ "Booked.TV".
2. ^ "The Dilys Award". Archived from the original on 2008-08-26. http://www.webcitation.org/5aMnQELWH. Retrieved 2008-08-26.