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Dearly Devoted Dexter
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Dearly Devoted Dexter
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Dearly Devoted Dexter
Audiobook8 hours

Dearly Devoted Dexter

Rating: 4 out of 5 stars

4/5

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Currently unavailable

About this audiobook

He's a charming monster . . .
A macabre hero . . .
A serial killer who only kills bad people


Dexter Morgan has been under considerable pressure. It's just not easy being an ethical serial killer-especially while trying to avoid the unshakable suspicions of the dangerous Sergeant Doakes (who believes Dexter is a homicidal maniac . . . which, of course, he is). In an attempt to throw Doakes off his trail, Dexter has had to slip deep into his foolproof disguise. While not working as a blood-spatter analyst for the Miami Police Department, he now spends nearly all his time with his cheerful girlfriend, Rita, and her two children, sipping light beer and slowly becoming the world's first serial couch potato. But how long can Dexter play Kick the Can instead of Slice the Slasher? How long before his Dark Passenger forces him to drop the charade and let his inner monster run free?
In trying times, opportunity knocks. A particularly nasty psychopath is cutting a trail through Miami-a man whose twisted technique leaves even Dexter speechless. As Dexter's dark appetite is revived, his sister, Deborah (a newly minted, tough-as-nails Miami detective) is drawn headlong into the case. It quickly becomes clear that it will take a monster to catch a monster-but it isn't until his archnemesis is abducted that Dex can finally throw himself into the search for a new plaything. Unless, of course, his plaything finds him first . . .
With the incredible wit and freshness that drew widespread acclaim to Darkly Dreaming Dexter, Jeff Lindsay now takes Dexter Morgan to a new level of macabre appeal and gives us one of the most original, colorful narrators in years.
LanguageEnglish
Release dateMar 27, 2012
ISBN9780449012345
Unavailable
Dearly Devoted Dexter

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Reviews for Dearly Devoted Dexter

Rating: 3.8250183499546693 out of 5 stars
4/5

1,103 ratings68 reviews

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  • Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
    4/5
    I don't even know what to say about this one. The killer here is sick beyond anything I've ever imagined. Makes me wonder how Mr. Lindsay comes up with this stuff!

    I will say that even though the novel is pretty graphic, there is some very good humor in it. There were a few times I laughed out loud. Overall, a very enjoyable book.
  • Rating: 3 out of 5 stars
    3/5
    This was better than the first book, I think, and I have no interest in reading any more of these. Really not into horror.
  • Rating: 2 out of 5 stars
    2/5
    I didn't like this as much as the first one. I am a little intrigued by the suggestion that Cody and Astor are going to be little mini-Dexters with homicidal tendencies, so I'll be looking forward to seeing how that develops in later books. Otherwise, I don't have much to say about this one-- it was creepy but not terribly compelling.
  • Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
    4/5
    Doakes is following Dexter pretty hard, so Dexter is spending a lot of time with Rita and her kids, Astor and Cody, in order to look like an average guy. He hasn't been able to let his Dark Passenger come out to play, and he's getting cranky. Then a killer shows up in Miami, a really nasty guy: he cuts pieces off his victims, basically leaving them alive but with their minds completely gone (he sets up a mirror so they can watch him butchering them--yikes). Former Black Ops Kyle Chutsky shows up from Washington to help out, as he is apparently familiar with the killer, whom they have dubbed "Dr. Danco". Deb and Kyle start dating, and she's livid when Danco grabs Kyle and begs Dexter to help get him back. Meanwhile, Dexter accidentally proposes to Rita, and Masuka throws him an epic bachelor party and Danco takes advantage of the opportunity to kidnap Doakes. Dexter finds Kyle and is able to rescue him before *too* much damage was done, but Doakes wasn't as lucky.
  • Rating: 5 out of 5 stars
    5/5
    Creepy and awesome!
  • Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
    4/5
    Synopsis: Dexter is a serial killer, but he only kills people who deserve it, those who the justice system can't catch or can't prosecute. In this book, another killer is loose in his city and kidnaps his sister's boyfriend.Review: If you are squeamish, these books aren't for you. The descriptions of torture are quite vivid.
  • Rating: 5 out of 5 stars
    5/5
    I loved how in depth we got to see Dexter's relationship with Rita's kids. Dexter says that he is not human, but the way he is with the kids tell me that he is more human than a lot of "normal" people. He treasures kids, and often kills child predators, I respect that completely. I say if you are going to kill people you might as well put it to good use, for the greater good! (Not that I condone murder... but I do respect what Dexter does, even if it's only a channel to feed his Passenger)

    *spoilers*

    I loved the storyline for this book, I would have liked to see it in the show! And I like how Doakes was "dealt" with, even more so than on the show. I also liked how the kids were revealed to be like Dexter, I didn't see that in the show at all, maybe that was too controversial even for Showtime. But as soon as Cody stab that fish and then Rita asking him and Astor about the neighbors missing dog, I could see where it was going. I was surprised *I* saw it before Dexter did! I was freaking out, worried that Deb was going to die when they got into that accident when they were chasing that freaky doctor guy!

    I would definitely recommend this book for fans of Dexter, the show, and fans of the first book.
  • Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
    4/5
    An easy and enjoyable read. I liked it as much as the first Dexter book.
  • Rating: 3 out of 5 stars
    3/5
    Not as good as the debut of the series, but still suitable as mind candy. Spent a little too much time with remarks about how badly Dexter wanted to be out and about with his "Dark Passenger" and how much it stressed him to do good things for people instead of be out killing bad guys.I would never buy these books but I'm happy I can find them at the library.
  • Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
    4/5
    Recently I, along with a few friends, took an eight hour drive to a friends wedding. Although the city is a state capitol, I was surprised at how little there was to do. As you can imagine, the eight hour trip provided many memories for the group that I traveled with, but the destination was less than satisfying. This second novel, an improvement on the first in the Dexter series, is much like this trip. The ending left quite a bit to be desired, but I enjoyed the ride.
  • Rating: 3 out of 5 stars
    3/5
    I love Dexter and his knack for saying/thinking the most inappropriate things. Who knew that the macabre could be so funny? I'm torn on watching the television series after I've finished all the books: can it possibily be this good?
  • Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
    4/5
    Another great, original dexter book. Love this series!
  • Rating: 3 out of 5 stars
    3/5
    This was better than the first book, I think, and I have no interest in reading any more of these. Really not into horror.
  • Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
    4/5
    It was two nights until the full moon, and I would make this one well worth my while. This full moon I would spend not with Miller Lite but with Reiker Photography, Inc. In two nights I would turn loose my Passenger at last, slide into my true self, and fling the sweat-stained costume of Dearly Devoted Dexter into the garbage heap.I have seen some of "Dexter", the television series that is based on these books, and surprisingly, Dexter's sister Deb is even more foul-mouthed and stroppy in the books, while Detective LaGuerta is elegant and incompetent, and fancies Dexter, unlike her television counterpart. Dexter sees kindred spirits in both the antagonistic Sergeant Doakes and Rita's children, who are more damaged in the books than in the television series.
  • Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
    4/5
    I enjoy Dexter. The books are great reads and scary (I wonder who around me could just be pretending...). I will say that I enjoy the show as well and they are very separate from each other. It makes it hard to say good-bye to some characters because they are beloved in the show...
  • Rating: 3 out of 5 stars
    3/5
    Dexter is a serial killer who kills killers....and yet he is charismatic and grows on you. I was a little surprised at how gruesome the killings are in this book since it strays a little from the TV series but I enjoyed it a lot!
  • Rating: 3 out of 5 stars
    3/5
    I'm trying very hard to appreciate these Dexter books. I am such a fan of the show, I'm just finding the books blah. I'm going to continue with the series in hopes that I can come to some sort of appreciation for the differences between show and book.In this one, Dexter is on the trail of a very brutal killer -- one who hacks his victim up while leaving them alive--if you want to call an armless, legless, eyelid-less, tongueless, hairless person alive. Yikes! Gore and splatter all over the place, many plot changes from the T.V. series so it does hold my interest just to see those differences.
  • Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
    4/5
    I loved this book. I absolutely adore Jeff Lindsay's writing, he can make me roll on the floor in laughter when he is writing about the most horrific situation. He is an absolute master of dark humor. In 'Dearly Devoted Dexter' our favourite Blood-Splatter Analyst/Serial Killer is on the hunt for a villain (Dr Danco) once betrayed by fellow members of a Special Forces Team. Dr Danco is out for revenge and is hunting each member of his team down one by one. Dr Danco has to be one of the most disturbing psychopaths I have read about, he cuts each appendix off the victim, including; arms, lips, eyelids, tongue (you get the picture) and the real kicker...he leaves them alive! *shudders* Doakes and Dexter's paths intertwine with Doakes hot on the Dark Passenger's murderous adventures. Eventually Dexter and Doakes are forced to work together to bring Danco down. All the while Dexter is trying to keep the Dark Passenger in check as well as moonlighting as the perfect fiancee and surrogate father. Unlike the TV series I like the direction Lindsay takes with Dexter's interaction with Rita's kids...Cody in particular...who is dealing with a growing dark passenger of his own. This was an excellent read!
  • Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
    4/5
    I think that this book is very well written and has some twisted dark humor in it, but I liked this book very much. I would recommend this book to readers who love mystery and suspense, and don't mind too much of blood and gore. I find this book quite confusing at first, but when the story progressed, I understand more and more of the author's unique and wonderful writing style. As I mentioned before, the author's style is very different, because he would write thoughts coming from the main character's inner demon, and at first you would have a hard time understanding whether if it's a dialog coming from the main character himself, or from someone else. But as I went deeper into the story, I can predict when or how the inner demon is going to express his thoughts and action, therefore making this book easier to understand.
  • Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
    4/5
    Another awesome Dexter book. It's a great combination of murder mystery and dark humor. Very enjoyable. I'll have to read the next book very soon. It makes me want to watch the show just to see how different it is.
  • Rating: 5 out of 5 stars
    5/5
    Doakes is on to Dexter. The havoc this will create is the basis of book two and the cause of a large proportion of the action. While being tailed Dexter has to stay as annoyingly normal as possible, which ends up meaning endless visits to Rita's while planted on her couch drinking beer or playing kick the can with the neighborhood kids. Mix the normal with a new serial killer and you have the recipe for Jeff Lindsay's second book Dearly Devoted Dexter.Book two has really only one aspect similar to season two of Dexter, the Doakes issue. And even that is different (can I just say? I prefer the Doakes solution in the book to the series). Most significantly the annoying Lila is non-existent in the book, thank the lord! I couldn't stand two more seconds of her than I had too.Dexter remains uproariously funny and enjoyable through out. Some of my favorite parts are while Doakes is "Driving him normal" especially when he accidentally gets drunk at Rita's:But what the hell- it was a light beer; or as the can proudly proclaimed: LITE BEER. I suppose we should be very grateful they hadn't thought of a cuter way to spell beer. I took a big sip. It wasn't that bad when you got used to it. By golly, it really WAS relaxing. I, at any rate, felt more relaxed with each swig. Another refreshing sip-I couldn't remember that it had tasted this good when I'd tried it in college. Of course, I was just a boy then, not the manly mature hardworking upright citizen I was now. I tilted the can, but nothing came out. Well-somehow the can was empty. And yet I was still thirsty. Could this unpleasant situation really be tolerated? I thought not. Absolutely intolerable. In fact, I did not plan to tolerate it. I stood up and proceeded to the kitchen in a firm and unyielding manner. There were several more cans of lite beer in the refrigerator and I took one back to the couch. Dearly Devoted Dexter had me laughing out loud while turning the pages eagerly for the out come of events. So many great twists, which I won't spoil here, but suffice it to say I now wish they'd done some things differently in the series...IE: Cody and Astor (you'll see what I mean when you get there!).Book two has me eagerly anticipating book 5, Dexter Is Delicious due out September 7th (good lord, I have a lot of books to read between August 23 and September 7th, maybe I should book some vacation time!). Hip Hip Hooray, Jeff Lindsay for a great read, even with a TV network running away with his main charecter.
  • Rating: 3 out of 5 stars
    3/5
    I was looking forward to reading this novel because it's where the TV show and the books diverged. While the first Dexter novel made up the backbone of the first season, there are only a few similarities here between the second series of the TV show and the second book. Altogether, and this is a rare thing for me, I found myself preferring the television show.Dexter, in an effort to avoid Doakes' constant surveillance (one similarity between the show and the novels), ignores his "Dark Passenger" and forces himself to become a "normal" couch potato. So there's very little of Dexter doing what he does best, which seems to creep into his characterization. The dark humor and charm that made me laugh out loud several times while reading the first book, was largely lacking in the second book. There are some funny moments here - particularly Dexter's accidental engagement to Rita - but I just didn't get drawn into this book like I did the series, or even the first novel. And while Dr. Danco is an interesting character, I just didn't feel that there was much "chemistry" there. He didn't interact with Dexter as the Tamiami Slasher did; there was no playful banter or games shared between them. And the character of Kyle Chutsky wasn't interesting at all; I much prefer Lundy. I will, however, continue reading the series (even though I've heard that the third book is a real clunker).
  • Rating: 5 out of 5 stars
    5/5
    This book is much better than the first. It has just the right amount of 'humor', mystery, detecting, character development and 'justice' to keep you turning the pages.I haven't seen the TV show so I don't know if this runs parallel to that storyline or not, but it's completely engaging and difficult to put down. There are a handful of alliterations in this book (but not nearly as many as there were in the first) but they actually come across as apropos.For some reason I don't think I should give this five stars, but I can't think of a reason to justify not giving it the full five - it's engaging, funny, non-moralistic... perhaps the mystery is a bit simple, but still...
  • Rating: 5 out of 5 stars
    5/5
    This is becoming one of my favourite series. Dexter is such a fun character and the writing always makes me laugh.
  • Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
    4/5
    The second book in the Dexter series is where the fork in the road is hit and all similarities between the book and the show cease to exist. In this novel we find Dexter under constant surveillance by his good "friend" sergeant Doakes, which puts a serious damper on his extracurricular activities. However, just as you think the dastardly demonic Dexter is done a new killer comes to town that shares a connection with Doakes' past. The only person devious enough to find the new villain is our favorite serial killer: Dexter Morgan. I enjoyed this novel better than the first and have already started book 3. I highly recommend this book to fans who pay homage to the art form known as the black comedy.
  • Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
    4/5
    After reading the first book in this series last month, I figured I might as well come back and read the newer one. The basic setup is the same: you have Dexter, our serial killer narrator, only operating on those who slipped through the justice system cracks; his sister, a hard-bitten cop on the force; a police-side antagonist, making it harder for Dexter to get done what he wants; and another killer, even more unspeakable than our hero, who Dexter and the police try to track down.Really, the main differences are in the details. We get more of Dexter's non-murderous life with his girlfriend and her kids, and it works well. It also provides what I felt to be the funniest moment in the book, and also the one that's the creepiest (and that's saying something). Also, if the main character types are the same, the characters themselves are a bit better. Dexter is more interesting in this one, I think, and the police antagonist, Doakes, is much more interesting than the one from the last book, who was consistantly portrayed as a bit dim. On the other hand, I liked Deborah, the sister, less here, and the murderer is less interesting, in a sense.Still, the plot is good, and the writing is very good; Dexter's narration and the style of it is quite interesting, and he's a compelling character. The dialogue isn't always great, but the internal monologue usually is. And since that's the bulk of the book, it carries the day. I'll look into the next one... probably in paperback, which'll leave about a year or so between me and it, but I'll still look into it.
  • Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
    4/5
    The second book in the Dexter series. This time Dexter is being watched by Sergeant Doakes and he has to lay low so as not to attract attention to himself. I found this a little annoying at times, sitting on the couch drinking beer and acting normal is not what Dexter is about, there's nothing thrilling about that so the first part was a little slow due to this. It soon picks up though and Dexter's true character comes out once again to hunt yet another serial killer.Lindsay got quite creative with this monster and what he does to his victims is utterly horrible, but you can count on Dexter and his Dark Passenger to get to the bottom of it. He also explores more characters in this book and shows another side of Dexter's tough sister Deborah, which really irritated me sometimes. Of course Dexter's wit and insight on normal human beings as he's pushed into the family life makes the book highly entertaining.Although not as edgy and well written as the first book it is still an enjoyable read. The strange thing is that whatever happens you still find yourself on Dexter's side, which is a serial killer himself.
  • Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
    4/5
    Dexter is back in this second book, and things have shifted in Dexter's world. He and his sister have the weight of awareness between the two of them. Dexter is being mercilessly stalked by Sgt. Doakes, so his normal activities are largely out of the question. He's settled in for a new life with Rita and her two children, but carrying the burden of Dearly Devoted Dexter can only hold his interest for so long...Until things get interesting. When Kyle Chutsky takes over this investigation and a lot of time with his sister, Dexter's world gets a whole lot more interesting...This volume is quick on action and on the perils of being a well-adjusted killer. Dexter is even given a chance to grow emotionally in the limited way that's available to one with his talents.
  • Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
    4/5
    The 2nd book in the Dexter series goes in a completely opposite direction than the television series - which was refreshing. I enjoyed the 2nd book a bit more than the first - the antagonist seemed a little more threatening to Dexter than that of the 1st. Add half a star to the 4 stars I have listed up there.
  • Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
    4/5
    I have come to the conclusion that Jeff Lindsay is one sick puppy. I don't know what that means about me, since I love his series of Dexter books, Dexter the lovable serial killer. It doesn't help that when I read his book, the voice I hear in my head is the same as on the Showtime Original Series and I keep seeing that cuties face.This installment has Dexter being followed by Sergeant Doakes, which has lead Dexter to having to assume a 'normal' life, in danger of becoming 'the world's first serial killing couch potato.' He is saved from moving from Dexter Derailed to Dexter Demented by the fact that as he says, this is Miami, and a bigger badder inhuman monster shows up. It's a case that involves his sister who enlists Dexter's help to hunt down the killer, but can he do it without becoming his next victim?Jeff Lindsay keeps the tone light-hearted with his witty patter and clever use of alliteration: Debonair Dexter, Dipsophobic Dexter, Daytime Dexter and my personal favorite Delicate Dimpled Dexter.This is a quick and enjoyable read. Pure entertainment. I recommend this book.