So I found out about this series by accident, after watching the first two seasons of the TV show Dexter. (For those not in the know: Serial killer/forensics geek tries to be "normal" in Miami, awkward hilarity ensues) They really did a nice job with the series I think -- the humor is dark, wry, morbid and feels entirely natural. Who's-his-face that plays Dexter, I like that guy. Good choice. Etc etc.
The books are good too, for the most part. Wait, maybe I don't mean that. Books 1 and 2 are fun. #3 was more than a little pointless. I just finished book 4:
... and I felt sort of like I just read book 1. Not as in, it was so exciting it was like starting the series anew all over again, but rather as in it is more or less the same damn plot as book 1. Has Jeff Lindsay been taking notes from Dan Brown? Dexter 1 is to Dexter 4 as the Da Vinci Code is to Angels and Demons. Replace one hostaged female with another, replace one homicidal asshole with another, and replace the suspicious cop who lost his tongue with one who can still speak. Boom, you've got it. Don't bother with this one, unless (like me) you don't believe something is really that bad until you try it for yourself.
Still a fun read, but WTF.
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Up Next: Runaway (stories) by Alice Munro.
i love that show, even if dexter DID just marry his sister. But the books i might skip, except possibly number one. Mostly because i'm enamoured of the name: Darkly Dreaming Dexter... does it get any better? ;)
ReplyDeleteI'm so happy you're reading Runaway, because it was my first Alice Munro read, and I have lovely memories of lying in my bed at my parents house (my most favorite bed) where I was briefly living, and being in a sort of melancholy, anti-social state, but it was great becuase I read lots of wonderful books including that one.
ReplyDeleteWith your rules, can I loan you books? Because I have lots of amazing ones which I like other people to read and also think are amazing, but I also like to get them back and keep them forever. I have some amazing books still from my very young adult-hood, Judy Blume and the like, which I consider at least as important as any "classic", and hope to hold on to always.
ughh, i was signed in as my bf, sorry! xo, caitlin
ReplyDeleteRegarding my rules: the goal being to make progress in my existing library, I think that officially loaners are out ... BUT, I could make an exception for something young-adult-ish and fabulous, since I have an extra-soft spot for that genre. Some of my favorite reads are "the 4th Grade Wizards" and "Are you there God, it's me Margaret." I definitely need to pick up the pace a bit. Lately whenever I get ready to read in bed I just fall asleep!
ReplyDeleteSo far, Runaway is A-ma-zing. More on that later!