Dexter Is Delicious: Dexter Morgan (5)

Another enjoyable episode of Dexter. Great character development and humour. I particularly appreciate Lindsay's ability to create believable dialogue - a skill sadly lacking in many novels in the thriller genre.

The book came in perfect condition, even though it was listed as used. Jeff Lindsay never disappoints! It's like having your own private showing of a whole season of Dexter with a brand new villain. Loved it!

Dexter is Delicious continues where the previous book left off. Dexter now has a baby and all the responsibilities of a father that comes with it. In Dexter in the Dark, the previous novel, the author had personified Dexter's Dark Passenger and this novel follows that same path.

Throughout the book, the Dark Passenger has short dialogues with Dexter and shows impatience, frustration, and even sulks. Although I got used to this supernatural feel from the previous novel, I still long for the style of writing where his inner self was still Dexter, yet darker.

Deborah plays a huge role in this novel and the story is slow at first. Unfortunately, the novel felt more like a story about Deb in the Dexter perspective. Dexter constantly follows Deb around while she pieces together a crime that centers around cannibalism. It makes Dexter's character feel more like a cameraman in an episode of 'Cops'. Deborah herself is colder than her usual potty-mouth self. She argues, quite heavily, with every single person she interacts with as they drive to point A to point B to point C in Miami traffic. Yes the traffic is bad, I get it.

Still, the suspense is there as always and Dexter's wit and humor is still at 100 percent.

The book came in perfect condition, even though it was listed as used. Jeff Lindsay never disappoints! It's like having your own private showing of a whole season of Dexter with a brand new villain. Loved it!

Dexter is Delicious continues where the previous book left off. Dexter now has a baby and all the responsibilities of a father that comes with it. In Dexter in the Dark, the previous novel, the author had personified Dexter's Dark Passenger and this novel follows that same path.

Throughout the book, the Dark Passenger has short dialogues with Dexter and shows impatience, frustration, and even sulks. Although I got used to this supernatural feel from the previous novel, I still long for the style of writing where his inner self was still Dexter, yet darker.

Deborah plays a huge role in this novel and the story is slow at first. Unfortunately, the novel felt more like a story about Deb in the Dexter perspective. Dexter constantly follows Deb around while she pieces together a crime that centers around cannibalism. It makes Dexter's character feel more like a cameraman in an episode of 'Cops'. Deborah herself is colder than her usual potty-mouth self. She argues, quite heavily, with every single person she interacts with as they drive to point A to point B to point C in Miami traffic. Yes the traffic is bad, I get it.

Still, the suspense is there as always and Dexter's wit and humor is still at 100 percent.

It was with great anticipation when the "buy this book" button was clicked on my kindle. Sadly, "Dexter is Delicious" is short on plot and insufferably long on obnoxious, unfunny, narratives based primarily on Dexters unhappy sister. She is obviously depressed. We get it.

As a retired law enforcement officer, I can tell you without hesitation that no one would put up with her level of disrespect and unprofessionalism.

What is going on with the likes of Jeff Lindsay and Nelson DeMille lately? They are mailing it in, using unfunny, endless, irrelevant nonsense instead of substantial relevant plot lines.

Word filler, rambling garbage to get to the end. Don't wast my time.

~Warning: This review contains spoilers!!!!~

I don’t typically review mainstream books, but I love Jeff Lindsay—the Dexter books in particular. In this one, Dexter is settling into his life now that Rita has given birth to his child, a baby girl named Lily Anne. With her around, he begins to feel “human” and thinks about giving up his dark hobbies for good. Then a trail of missing girls appears which eventually leads the detectives to a cannibal cult.

This is the only book of the series that I’ve been disappointed in. I thought the idea of the cult was great, but the rest of the book really phoned it in. Samantha, one of the kidnapped girls that Dexter finds alive, turns out to be there of her choosing because she wants to be eaten.

Yes, you read that right. Not only does she want to be eaten, but her friend did too. After Samantha is rescued by Dexter, she goes back to the cult again. I found it really hard to believe that anyone would want to be eaten, let alone two girls living in the same town.

It seemed to me that the author simply wrote himself into a corner and didn’t put too much thought into fixing it. For that I’m giving this book two stars. I’m hoping the next book will be better because I’m sorely disappointed in the series for the time being.

The fifth book in Lindsay's Dexter series starts us off in a new world for Darling Dexter Morgan as he finds himself taking on a new role in his life as a pretend human. Father.

And Daddy Dex struggles with this new role as the arrival of his newborn daughter puts him in a situation where he, for the first time in his life, begins to feel actual emotions.

Dexter is Delicious takes Dexter in a new direction as he fights his addiction to murder as a smoker fights cigarettes. But this internal struggle quickly takes a back seat to the greater issue at hand, a couple of missing girls and his sister's more-than-usual dedication to bringing them both back alive.

This book is, by far, the darkest of the Dexter series so far, although we see Dexter wearing a much whiter hat than in the previous books. Playing more of the victim role here than before, we find a character who is developing into something more, something new, something that has the possibility of being a ton of fun.

Of course, Lindsay, in his typical fashion, ups the ante against Dexter and his new resolution. And as the odds stack up, Dexter is more lost than ever.

Lindsay has some amazing writing chops, being able to create a tense scene with great ease, and in this book, quite frequently. In fact, the only reason I give this book 4 instead of the 5 possible, is because of another Lindsay standard, the unsatisfactory ending. Sure, it's a happy ending, of sorts, as Lindsay likes to do, but it ends so quickly after we start to figure out what is actually going on that we never really feel like we get the real answers behind everything. A tidy little bow gets tossed on top of all of the plot points with very little attention to the details behind the bow. The final salvation at the end of the novel is explained so quickly that I actually had to go back and hunt for the sentence that explained how it could have occurred because I had completely overlooked it the first time through. And the aftermath of everything is all but completely ignored.

For a series of books that are filled with such darkness and suspense, the endings always feel a little too cheerful, as if the horrible events that played out in the previous 342 pages are all but forgotten about by the end of the 350th.

All the same, it's a fantastic read, just like the previous books in the series. Just wish the resolution wasn't so rushed.

I really enjoyed this next installment of the Dexter series. The cannibal storyline was very interesting and went in a different direction from the rest of the other books.

Dexter grows a lot emotionally in this book, and it is very interesting to see how he wrestles with new feeling his has since the birth of his daughter. The writing is quite humorous in several places, as when his sister Debs is behind the wheel,driving like a maniac through Miami traffic. Unlike the show, Dexter's brother, Biney, returns and it's amusing to watch Dexter react to the way he inserts himself into his brother's family life. You know what Brian is, so his hanging around keeps you on edge, wondering what he might do next. Lindsay created a wonderful tension with that part of the book.

There is an especially well-written part, in a scene where Dexter believes he will meet his demise. The thoughts he has and the emotions he feels are described in such a realistic, authentic way. Dexter is a very complex character and the author did a great job with letting the author into his head and line of sight. Again, I loved the interaction between Dexter and Deborah. She is just as funny as she is on the show and Dexter's attachment to her is endearing. There is a really funny moment with Doakes too, and it would have been great if the show had gone the same route with his character and with keeping Brian around too. Chutsky is always a favorite of mine, and I was sorry to see how the storyline ended up as far as he was concerned.

I wanted to see more of Cody and Astor too. I'm wondering if Dexter will give them what they want--don't want to give away any spoilers. That would be an interesting plotline to pursue. The outcome at the park I kind of saw coming--and loved the setting of the abandoned amusement park, so beautifully described--but the ending took me by surprise. The whole Dark Passenger element still ran strong, which delivers a great creep factor and one has to wonder if it might really be a thing for serial killers. It would certainly explain the two kids in the same household, one's an honor student, the other kills the neighborhood pets, thing.

I really enjoy these books, the witty prose, the simple way Dexter sees some things all tied up with his more complicated thoughts about himself. Lindsay doesn't need to use graphic sex or violence to keep the reader entertained. Dexter's thoughts are all you need to keep you glued to the pages. When I don't want a book to end and am thirsty for the next in the series, that's my mark of a great read, and this one delivered that for me!

This review will contain some mild spoilers.

This book presents us with a version of Dexter we've (thankfully) never really seen before. Dexter the Ineffective. We're used to seeing Dexter taking on his problems with his delicious craftiness. But here Dexter has to be dragged by others into almost every situation and even when he finds himself in the midst of events he fails to take a stand or do anything useful virtually every time.

Dexter lets someone who's clearly a bad influence on Cody and Astor push their dark buttons and never confronts them. He never questions things this person says that should have been GIANT red flags that they were up to no good. He has to be pushed into almost every aspect of the main case of the story and has to have others pull his bacon out of the fire multiple times. Daring and Deadly Dexter this is not!

Dexter aside, Deb did a real personality shift this issue and became almost intolerable. Her reveal at end could be seen coming a mile away and added an almost painful level of schmaltz to the last chapter. Honestly, schmaltz in Dexter. Has the world gone mad?

On the upside I do have to give Lindsay credit for a few things. The crux of what's going on is wonderfully twisted even if it is clearly inspired by a rather infamous crime in Europe from a few years back. Dexter's narration has some very funny moments and the final fight at the end was set up to be wonderfully over the top. Sadly, what could have been crazy awesome mostly falls flat on its face but the potential was clearly there.

Overall, I'm glad I borrowed this from the library rather than paying for it. But Dexter fans would get more out of the show at this point.

Jeff Lindsay is back, with his totally unique creation, Dexter Morgan. Mr. Lindsay's trademark alliteration is firmly in place, e.g., on the second page of the novel, Dexter references his Dark Dabbler, Dexter Dead for Decades, and Dexter the Decidedly Dreadful. [Although the tale is told in the first person, the protagonist routinely refers to himself in the third person.] But in this, the fifth novel in the series, it seems that these references might belong to an earlier Dexter, since now, at first blush at least, he appears to be a changed man, with a new appellation, Dex-Daddy, courtesy of the gorgeous, perfect baby girl to whom his wife has just given birth, to wit: Lily Anne; he now sees himself as "something that almost feels, that so very nearly resembles a human being." And amazingly, he welcomes the change. But can this kinder, gentler Dexter prevail?

As those who have read the prior books in the series, as well as fans of the wildly popular tv series based thereon, know, Dexter is by day a blood splatter expert who works for the Miami-Dade P.D., by night an avenging angel who delights in cutting up and disposing of those whose heinous acts fall into the category of those who fully deserve to die, according to the `code of Harry,' his cop foster father. But his infant daughter has wrought this extraordinary change in our hero, and now, when Dexter perceives a threat, it is not danger to himself or the world at large that awakens his old predilections, it is any possible peril to Lily Anne which is `not a thing he can allow.'

Dexter's protective instincts jump into high gear, as opposed to his usual mode of "recreational homicide," when what at first appears to be a kidnapping turns into the disappearance of not one but two teenage girls. In this appearance Dexter's adoptive sister, Deborah, a sergeant in the Homicide Division, seems to have undergone a change as well, her usual contentious self showing some softer, more vulnerable moments, a truly unnerving thing. And by the time the book ends, it would appear that there are a lot of other people out there with an unsuspected dark side, their own "Dark Passenger." This is a macabre tale which, however, regularly induces smiles despite the occasional grimace, in almost equal measure. It is thoroughly enjoyable, and is recommended.

Dexter:(n)Blood spatter analyst by day, killer by night. Hilarious, loving dad?

Oh, Dexter, how you continue to entertain me and make me laugh! I'm not sure if it's me, but some parts of Dexter is Delicious made me laugh and grin without end. If it's me, I think I need some psychological help. Dexter is just so...FUNNY! It's weird, but true. I know some many people who get uptight about the whole "but he's a serial killer thing!!" They look at you funny when you say Dexter is a great series, and go on moral crusades about how wrong and, oh how awful, and oh but they make him out to be some kind of hero, while wearing very grim faces and NEVER, ever, having laid a finger on any of the books, nor watched a single Showtime episode. I'm not out to convince THOSE people to read Dexter, but it would be nice to persuade some on the fencers to come over and try a great series!

FIRST off, the humor is incredible. In this book, Dexter turns doting dad, and we learn that our serial killer is capable of caring. Maybe too much. At the same time, there is the issue of a canniabilism cult that Dexter must face off against. Will Dexter be victorious, or will he end up as dinner? Without spoiling the book, I want to repeat one line, spoken to Dexter by a willing hostage of the cannibal cult:"All my life, I've just wanted to be eaten. Isn't that what everyone wants?" Daddy duty is new territory for Dex, and I loved reading about him becoming protective of the baby. Also, Debs is here, and is her typical foul mouthed self. Recommended for anyone, but try starting with the first in the series, though this can be picked up without it. The rest of the books are worth it too, so just give them a try!

The fifth addition to the Dexter series is definitely entertaining, but I think it is by far the silliest in the series. The book opens with a new chapter in Dexter Morgan's life - fatherhood. Rita gives birth to their daughter and Dexter discovers his own newfound humanity amongst these overwhelming emotions. He vows to turn over a new leaf, but of course, Miami continues to foster bizarre murders and Dexter cannot so easily step away from his darker side.

A cannibalistic cult makes its presence known and with Sergeant-Sister Deborah Morgan assigned to the case, it quickly becomes Dexter's problem as well. An unexpected old character from Darkly Dreaming Dexter: Dexter Morgan (1) turns up here which adds to the fun - as well as Dexter's already full plate. And it seems that this returned presence may continue to add complications to further books in the series. And a new twist in Deborah's personal life leaves me quite anxious for Double Dexter (Dexter, Book 6)!

Dexter Morgan's well-ordered life has been turned upside down by the birth of his daughter, Lily Anne. And with her arrival in his life Daddy Dexter's dark urges seem to have faded into the background. Because for years Dexter Morgan, the charming Miami blood spatter analyst, has been living a double life. His homicidal tendencies sculpted by his foster father, Harry, he lives by one simple rule: only kill people who deserve it. But the dark lure of his knives doesn't have the sway it once did and Dexter finds himself floundering in a world of normality. Then his sister, Detective Deborah Morgan, calls him in to help investigate the disappearance of two young girls. When the body of one of the girls is discovered it appears that they may have been abducted by a group of vampires or, quite possibly, cannibals. It's almost enough to make Dexter feel the familiar rush of homicidal happiness. To add to the complications in his life, an uninvited person from Dexter's past appears, threatening to destroy his family, his fragile new humanity and his well-kept secrets.

These are the books that inspired the popular TV series, Dexter. But after the first two books/seasons the series and the books have followed different story arcs.

I picked this book up not knowing what I would find. I had loved the first three books, but had been horribly disappointed by the fourth book, Dexter By Design. But I am happy to say that Jeff Lindsay has gone some way towards redeeming himself in my eyes with this book.

In my opinion, what makes the Dexter books work, what makes them so unique, is Dexter. He is an anti-hero in everyway. We know what he does is wrong, but we cheer him on anyway. The books are all narrated in the first person from Dexter's point-of-view and that gives us a unique perspective on the world through the eyes of a psychopath. With Lily Anne's birth, Dexter feels an unfamiliar swell of human emotion and he doesn't really know what to do with it. It's a delicate line Lindsay is walking here because we love Dexter the serial killer. Dexter the normal dad really isn't that interesting. Fortunately Lindsay has managed to walk that delicate line and Dexter is returning to the way we like him.

The plot for this story strays quite close to being too far-fetched on occasion, but somehow it still managed to keep me interested. I wanted to know what happened next in the investigation, but I also wanted to see what Lindsay did with Dexter's experience of human emotion. The overall development in Dexter's character through the course of the book was well-handled and I'm interested to see what Lindsay has in store next.

My main criticism of Dexter Is Delicious is that Dexter's experiences of emotion and humanity were laboured. They weren't dealt with in a few well-written scenes; they were mentioned again and again, as though we hadn't gotten it the first time. So while I appreciated the overall growth of the character, I think that these moments of emotion/humanity could have been better written.

In this book Jeff Lindsay goes a long way towards bringing back the Dexter we know and love and I hope the next book will recapture the original magic.

I have followed, and very much enjoyed, Showtime's Dexter series from the start, but "Dexter Is Delicious" is my first exposure to Dexter in actual book form. It is not like I have been unaware of Jeff Lindsay's Dexter books all this time, however. The only thing that kept me from reading one of them before now was my erroneous assumption that the books were little more than recaps of the same stories I had already watched on Showtime. That is certainly not the case.

The books are TV Dexter's alternate history (or should I phrase that the other way around?). Dexter is basically the same likable serial killer we know from television but some of what he has experienced in that series has not happened to Printed-Word Dexter (and I assume that the opposite is also true). Certain key characters have died television deaths but live on in the books. Dexter's new television son is his new daughter in "Dexter Is Delicious." His innocent young step-children from film are his not-very-innocent step-children in the books.

"Dexter Is Delicious" is a bizarre tale involving young Miami cannibals, a group that is, in its own special way, working to control the illegal immigrant population of that fine city. However, only when two teen girls from an expensive private high school appear to have been kidnapped by the cannibals does the Miami Police Department get seriously involved. The case falls into the lap of Dexter's sister, Deb, who treats Dexter (a blood-splatter expert working for the same police department) as her personal employee, yanking him from the laboratory and running him all over the county in pursuit of the missing girls and those who might have them.

Dexter, while he is perfectly willing to help Deb hunt the bad guys, is, at the same time, waging an internal battle brought on by the birth of his new baby girl. He wants to rid himself of his Dark Passenger, that inner voice requiring him to kill on a regular basis. Dexter wants nothing more than to feel the emotions any new father can be expected to feel. To blend in despite being a sociopath, Dexter has already learned the proper things to do and say when around other people. Now he is having longer and longer moments of actually feeling those emotions. But what will his Dark Passenger think of all this?

The plot of "Dexter Is Delicious" is a bit farfetched, but that is unlikely to bother Dexter-regulars because this is nothing new. From the point-of-view of someone who came to Dexter first via television, what did bug me was the limited, or even nonexistent roles played by some of Dexter's fellow television cops. Too, I kept wondering how a blood-splatter expert could get away with running all over the Miami area for so long doing physical police work and only occasionally going in to the blood lab.

The audio book version of "Dexter Is Delicious," a nine-CD set, is read by its author, Jeff Lindsay, who does a good job giving voice to Dexter and Dexter's sense of humor. I was a little slow settling in to Lindsay's narrative style but by the second CD it all started to sound very natural, and in character, to me. Anyone just willing to go with the flow of the story is going to have fun with this one.

Rated at: 3.5

Our favorite Miami vigilante serial killer for the "better-good", Dexter Morgan is a brand new Daddy! Lily Anne, his newborn cute little gift from above (and Rita) is having an effect on Dexter that he never deemed possible before. At first he couldn't even define this subtle change that was attempting to come over him. This strange feeling was totally different than the "dark passenger" feelings he'd become comfortable with. His whole life had been built around the internal flapping wings... the moonlit nights that called out to him and controlled his life... and subsequently ended the life of many others. (Of course all of the ultimate victims justly deserved their true final rewards courtesy of "DEMON-DEXTER".) It turns out that these strange indefinable feelings that Dexter was being engulfed with... was the true beauty of humanity. No matter how Dexter tried to understand it... tried to fight it... or tried to explain it away... it always came back to his delicate little bundle of femininity... and her little fingers and toes... his lovable Lily Anne. Perhaps Dexter thought... maybe this is how other people feel all the time? All of a sudden Dexter worried about being around to bring her to ballet lessons. All of a sudden he held back some knockout retorts that he reflexively was ready to hurl at everyone in his path... because he was worried about their feelings.

In the midst of this a kidnapping takes place that brings Dexter's sister Sergeant Deb on to the scene. The author creates hilarious interactions between Deb and Dexter... some spoken... and many simply in Dexter's thoughts that are smoothly shared with the reader. For longtime Dexter fans you can easily find yourself counting (just for fun) how many times Deb *SNARLS*... how many times she *SNORTS*... how many times she either *PAINFULLY-PUNCHES-DEXTER-IN-THE-ARM*... or how many times he's *AFRAID-SHE'LL-PAINFULLY-PUNCH-HIM-IN-THE-ARM*... and of course you'd be foolish to even attempt to keep track of how many times she drops the "F" bomb! The kidnapping has added intrigue when the investigation uncovers the fact that there is a group of people in Miami that are cannibalizing victims as well as kidnapping them. Dexter's business life and personal life is taken over by the demands and orders put on him non-stop by Deb. There are many times when you almost say out loud to Dexter... just say no to Deb... but he doesn't. Poor Dex-Daddy breaks into buildings... is held hostage... is beaten... you name it he does it... either as under a direct order from Deb... or as a consequence of following an earlier Deb order.

There is a surprise visit from Dexter's long lost brother Brian, who according to Dexter's narrative, probably breaks the record for phony smiles... which kind of reminds Dexter of himself before his new Lily Anne metamorphosis... and a cameo or two by what's left of old nemesis Doakes. It is also great fun the way Rita is depicted in all her broken... hesitant... semi-babbling... never fully completed... sentences... as she attempts to communicate with Dexter. This is a very enjoyable episode, and the best overall Dexter in awhile.

Dexter is Delicious is the fifth of the Dexter series by Jeff Lindsay. Dexter, new father of Lily Anne, is dazed to find he no longer interested in indulging his Dark Passenger's needs: a bit of a dilemma as Astor and Cody still need mentoring for their own needs. This new Dexter would, ideally, like to steer them in a benign direction. Cody's insistence that someone is watching them proves right when Dexter's brother Brian turns up, seeming all affable and family-oriented, and this can't possibly be good, can it? And work is proving interesting, with a couple of missing teenagers, one of whom turns up roasted and eaten, prompting ideas of vampires and cannibals. Deborah is behaving quite strangely, distracted, perhaps, by the ticking of her biological clock, rather louder since Lily Anne's debut into the world. This instalment has Dexter hanging out in a nightclub refrigerator, a boarded-up trailer and an abandoned amusement park at dusk; all the while we are entertained by Dexter's glib tongue and ready wit. The conversation inside the refrigerator is priceless. The reader is treated to vivid imagery and Lindsay is the master of juxtaposition of the incongruous. As always, Lindsay gives us sharp dialogue and an original plot with some twists I didn't see coming. I look forward to reading Double Dexter.

And delicious he certainly is. I was first introduced to Dexter via the television series then quickly went out and purchased the books. In this installment someone has kidnapped two teenaged girls. When the burned body of one is found, it is evident she had been eaten. Vampires and cannibals in Miami? Dexter has seen stranger things, he thought, until he finds the remaining teen and discovers she doesn't want to be rescued. It is her dream to be eaten by cannibals. There are a lot of changes in Dexter's life. Besides being married, he is now a father to Lily Anne. And as though his life isn't complicated enough, his brother Brian, serial killer numero uno, shows up on his doorstep and injects himself into Dexter's happy family life. I vaguely remember Brian but I keep getting the TV series and books mixed up. I thought he had tried to kill Dexter's step-sister Deb, or encourage Dexter to kill her. Whereas Dexter had the careful coaching of his police officer stepfather, Brian was left to his own accord, being shuffled from foster home to foster home and not having anyone to set boundaries for him. Why Dexter is such a wimp around Brian I don't know. And I would think once Deb sees Brian she would remember he tried to kill her. But the two never meet. Deb has her hands full with the case and with her personal life. Not as much action as the previous books, but Dexter is still an entertaining sociopath.

Overall this is a good story. There were some points where the arm punches from Deb, and the doughnut jokes between Dexter and Mats. became too much. I'm not really a scholar on what makes writing "good". I've read some of the haters reviews, and they claim the writing isn't good. I guess I read from my gut, and rate on what I instinctively enjoy. I liked this book. I don't tend to over intellectualize my approach to fiction. I either like it or I don't like it. Maybe being so naive about what makes writing good allows me to enjoy more fiction.

Anyways get this book. It's a fun, quirky, sarcastic set of characters with an interesting plot. Even with a bit too many arm punches and doughnut jokes.

Dexter is one of my guilty pleasures. In this installment, Dexter struggles with the contradiction between being a Dad and a serial killer. As the father of a 5 year old boy, I can relate (to the Dad part, not the serial killer part!) The book crackles with Linday's usual wit. I laughed out loud at the confrontation with Sgt. Doakes - you'll know what I mean when you get to that part.

As other reviewers have mentioned, this time Dexter's sister Deb is almost the main character. Dexter is definitely not in control as he is buffeted between Deb's manic pursuit of a cannibal click, the unexpected reappearance of someone from his past, daddyhood and his Dark Passenger (who pouts when Dexter won't come out to play).

I heard this as an audio book, read by the author, who is a very good reader and clearly very familiar with the material. ;-) Although I enjoyed the reading immensely, it might be even better in written form because the story does drag in a few places.

The fifth outing for everyone's favorite vigilante serial killer may not be up to par with others (especially Darkly Dreaming Dexter (Vintage Crime/Black Lizard)), but it's still vintage Lindsay and vintage Dexter.

As others have noted, the plot is a little thin and a little preposterous. Lindsay flirts with a few really interesting ideas, namely the reappearance of a certain someone, but even this doesn't feel completely fleshed out.

But in the end, it's the dark humor and quality writing that make this series far more interesting than most. Lindsay does an excellent job writing Dexter's interior monologues; while still funny, they're far darker than what we see on Showtime.

I'm a big fan of the series, and I realize a good writer doesn't simply rewrite the same book over and over again. But I hope the next installment brings the focus back to Dexter's Dastardly Deeds instead of Dithering Daddy Dexter.

Before there was Dexter: The First Season [Blu-ray], there were the Jeff Lindsay novels. As embarrassing as it is for most of us to admit our fascination with Dexter, or any serial killer, we could delude ourselves that we were watching satire. The television series, though billed as a comedy is rarely funny.

The books however are a different story. Dexter is kind of an alien, misplaced on a planet whose denizens shared physical but not cultural similarity. This Dexter struggles to understand humanity, which it turns out is made more difficult by parenthood and the investigation of another parent's nightmare- the kidnapping of a brilliant girl, a prep school student, by a gang of vampires.

Jeff Lindsay's sardonic narration of the latest Dexter installment is a thing of beauty. Load it on your iPod, iPad or Iphone and crank it through the car stereo on long trips. You will be amazed at just how much more clever the books are.

This book, as always (though I see not everyone agrees), was an enjoyable escape to the mind of the most relateable serial killer - Dexter Morgan. The original and creative twist this time is that there is a group of cannibals, and they're eating people.

I love Deb, and I loved her even more after this book. Her one - liners are entertaining, and her love life is complicated.

What I love about this series is the originality. The plot line was unlike any I've read or seen in a crime drama so far. Even if some people where disappointed with certain aspects, really, where does Jeff Lindsay come up with this stuff? And where else are you going to get it?

All in all, I loved this book and highly recommend it along with the others in the series.

The Dexter universe has created an interesting duality. The first book was a hit, and launched a hit tv series. But as early as the first book and the first season, the two Dexter-verses had begun to diverge. By this point, there are as many differences as similarities between the novels and the show. I like that, because it creates more room for the show's writers and for Jeff Lindsay to work, but fans of either the books or the show may find the other one jarring at first. My advice is to give both a try.

The major difference is that while the tv series has occasional voiceovers, it mostly relies on Michael C. Hall's (awesome) performance to give us clues to who Dexter is. The books, however, are completely narrated by Dexter. He comes off as a little more of a jerk as a result - sarcastic, self-centered, and somewhat oblivious to the people around him. Not that there's anything wrong with that -- that's just who the written Dexter is.

In this outing, dearly devoted daddy Dexter is shocked by how deeply he reacts to the birth of his daughter. Dexter has always thought himself an emotionless sociopath, but his emotions have been peeking out as early as the first book. Now, with a floodgate of feelings freed, Dexter has to decide on his destiny. Is he still a serial killer? What is his responsibility to the budding killers he has taken under his care?

Meanwhile, and as usual, Dexter is surprised when the Miami serial killer community he has taken for granted kicks out another in the series of extraordinary killers that drive the main conflicts in the novels. This time, it's a group of cannibals who come into contact with Dexter and his family in some surprising ways.

Overall, I thought this worked. I bought the interaction between Dexter and his various family members, except possibly for Rita. (More on that below). I also thought that the investigation went fine, and that the various action scenes were appropriately suspenseful. Dexter's sister Deb's habit of going into dangerous scenes without backup left little leeway for the rest of the Miami PD to get page time, and struck me as implausible, but it resulted in some good scenes, so I'm willing to suspend disbelief on that one. I also really liked the way Lindsay is developing the alternate personalities of "Daddy Dexter" and "The Dark Passenger," and I enjoyed Daddy Dexter's frustration when the muggles can't tell that another serial killer is employing the same fake personality that Dexter himself uses on them.

I docked this a star because there are a few things that don't work as well.

- Dexter's complaints about Miami traffic or about where he's going to get his next meal are getting repetitive. They're important to the character, but IMHO, Lindsay needs to think of a way to freshen them up a little bit.

- Deb, Rita, and Chutsky all have moments that seemed bizarre or out of left field. I can't quite say that it's bad -- I'm honestly not sure if they are actually poorly written in places or if Lindsay is trying to say that Dexter, as the narrator, doesn't understand why they do what they do because his emotional intelligence is so stunted.

- As with the earlier books, Dexter switches between genius and idiot as necessary to advance the plot. I think that's actually in character -- his conflict between his emerging human personality and the Dark Passenger means that sometime he misses stuff right in front of his face, but it's occasionally jarring as a reader. "Unreliable narrator" books are tricky to do, and I think that Lindsay has it mostly right, but occasionally, it falls a little flat.

I haven't had the pleasure of reading the previous four Dexter books by Jeff Lindsay, nor of watching the Showtime television series based on the character. Because of this I felt some confusion and possibly disbelief at the bizarro sociopath-serial killer who is the anti-hero of the book, but decided to set aside my queasiness at his crimes and see what the book had to offer.

Dexter kills only those who deserve it, and he takes care not to get caught. That's his Code, and he's driven to follow it by the not-so-tiny inner voice he calls his "Dark Passenger." He has no human feelings or emotions, though he does have a wife, Rita, and two step-children. The back-story is threaded in brilliantly by author Jeff Lindsay, so getting into the story was effortless.

This fifth book in the series, Dexter Is Delicious, takes Dexter in a new direction. We find Dexter in the maternity ward, gazing in awe at his brand-new daughter Lily Anne, overwhelmed with the need to nurture and protect her. Human emotions are beginning to encroach on his sense of purpose as a serial killer. But Dexter works as a police consultant (he's a blood spatter expert) and a new, ugly case tugs him away from domestic bliss. A teen girl has disappeared and it seems that vampires have abducted her. Or--worse--cannibals. In Miami? Apparently so.

Tangling with a "cannibal coven" offers creative and chilling opportunities for Dexter to find himself in harm's way, as he comes within a hair's breadth of "a fate worse than death, although certainly including it." He's a very busy man, juggling the dangerous and bizarre case, his new preoccupation with Lily Anne, the unexpected return of his brother Brian, and the retributive night forays commanded by the Dark Passenger. Author Jeff Lindsay lets Dexter tell it all in the first person, with some of the most plaintive and self-exculpatory prose out there. I listened to the Random House Audio version from Audible, brilliantly read by the author himself, and I would not have missed it for anything. This book is definitely Delicious.

Linda Bulger, 2010

"...and there we were: a perfectly normal married man with three kids and a promising career who just happened to enjoy killing people, staring at a perfectly normal eighteen-year-old girl who went to a good school and liked Twilight and who wanted to be eaten, sitting next to each other in a walk-in refrigerator at a vampire club in South Beach."

Where else do you get to read something that hilarious? That is why I love the Dexter series (both TV and books). Dexter's thoughts are really different than most people's normal way of thinking.

In this book, Rita is still alive (and hope she stays that way) and Dexter is a new daddy. He keeps thinking of his new baby girl and it makes him want to change his ways and give up his "hobby" because he imagines that it could somehow be bad for his daughter.

In this book, Dexter's brother, Brian is also still alive (he was killed off in season 1 of the Showtime series). Brian keeps showing up and hanging with Dexter's family as the cool uncle who buys them a Wii.

His stepsister, Deb is a sgt. on the homicide force and still has the worst mouth you ever heard.

This book seems to be more about "family" although there is plenty of suspense and thrills to keep you turning the pages.

Can't wait for the next Dexter book to come out. The new season of Dexter on TV starts this week also, but after they killed off Rita last season, I am almost afraid to watch the TV show again. That last scene gave me nightmares for 3 nights in a row.

I have to admit that the Kindle price of this book is ridiculous. Why get a Kindle copy for that price when you can buy the actual book and it will continue to work for many years to come?

Dexter Is Delicious by Jeff Lindsay

This is the fifth novel in the very popular Dexter series written by Jeff Lindsay. In this anecdote, serial killer Dexter is attempting to deal with being a husband and now a father. Dexters wife Rita, has given birth to a girl that the couple named Lily Anne. The struggles within himself to become a "normal" family man finds Diaper Daddy Dexter in a quandary. Just when he thinks he has everything under control a surprise visitor from the past complicates life even more.
Sister Deb leads an investigation of two missing school girls that seems to begin as a "wanna be" vampire mystery, but ends up as an all too real structured cannibal assembly. Deb acquires the help of her brother when things start to get out of hand. The closer they get to solving the crime, the greater the danger becomes. Soon lives are at stake including Deb and Dexters.
Author Jeff Lindsay continues his success with this fifth book. The development of his characters continue to grow and unfold in front of our eyes. Jeff makes the reader really think about right and wrong, and what's justifiable in life. With the heavy subject matter, and a individual like Dexter, humor is an important ingredient to balance the story. Jeff achieves this on many levels, and in turn makes this an enjoyable read. If you are any kind of a Dexter fan, or just maybe a little curious, you should pick this one up without hesitation.

DEXTER IS DELICIOUS is the fifth book in Jeff Lindsay's series about America's most beloved serial killer. Just in time for the September 26th season premiere of "Dexter," Showtime's program that is based on the series, the new novel shows Lindsay stretching his wings (along with those of Dexter's Dark Passenger, the personification of evil urges that gives new meaning to the term "wingman") to take his character, and readers, into even darker territory.

The novel opens with a new lady in Dexter's life, one who is going to change everything. She is Lily Anne, his infant daughter, and fatherhood transforms him in totally unexpected ways. The main change --- and the most surprising one --- is that he no longer wants to commit homicidal mayhem on a regular basis. Well, at least it appears that way at first. The result is that the book's first half or so seems to be a homage to "CSI: Miami," albeit a much darker one, involving two missing young women and an extremely nasty blood splatter. The trail leads to what appears to be a cult of fine young cannibals, although the police have difficulty proving anything, in part due to the highly influential familial connections of one of the suspects.

And speaking of familial connections, Dexter gets the surprise of his life when an almost forgotten member of his own family makes a sudden appearance at his front door and seems well on the way to supplanting Dexter's role as pater within his own family.

One could be forgiven for concluding that Dexter's combined frustrations with his vocational and domestic situations bring his Dark Passenger into ascendancy. But regardless of the reason, that is precisely what happens, and what had been a (mildly) disturbing read becomes one of the darkest tales you are likely to pick up this year. Lindsay takes Dexter into new and shocking places, and as a result, he finds himself in such potentially deep trouble that he risks losing everything. I can hear you laughing now. The guy is a serial murderer; even if he kills no one other than folks who are deserving of their fate, isn't that enough to put him in jeopardy? While this is true, Dexter really bites the moose this time. And yes, there are extenuating circumstances, but if our boy gets found out, they aren't going to be enough to let him walk.

On top of all this, Dexter's sister is going through her own crisis, one that is surprising and unexpected, particularly to those who have been with the series since its inception. Lindsay ties some things up by book's end, but lets other things dangle, so that by this time next year, each reader's own Dark Passenger will be eagerly anticipating their next Dexter fix.

Lindsay continues to push himself and his creation to new heights. Given that the television series and novels proceed on parallel but not twin tracks, the audiences for both should keep growing exponentially each year. DEXTER IS DELICIOUS is the latest reason why.

--- Reviewed by Joe Hartlaub

There are plenty of reviews here that talk about the plot, so I'll just share some of my other thoughts. Jeff Lindsay gets back to the original pace and writing style enjoyed in the first few books of the series. He has removed many of the redundant phrases from earlier works, and it appears he spent more time on actual plot rather than plot devices. I was also happy the book steered away from the "dark passenger" being an actual entity living inside Dexter's head, and it's more like an alter-ego or little voice. My biggest complaint would be that the ending was a bit contrived and a little to tidy for my taste. I thought after the last book that the Dexter series was done but Lindsay makes a very solid, if not quite spectacular, comeback.

Dastardly Devilish Dexter has become Diaper Daddy Dexter, and the birth of a daughter has had a wholly unexpected effect on the serial killer. A blood-spatter analyst by day for the Miami Police Department, and a serial killer by night, Dexter satisfies the regular urges of his "dark passenger" by preying on those base members of Miami's population who have been able to slip through the grasp of the city's law enforcement officials.

When the body of a teenage girl turns up that appears to not only have been murdered, but dined on - and not by wild animals, Dexter's alter ego begins to stir once again. But this time things are different. Since the birth of Lily Anne, Dexter has discovered within himself things he previously thought he was immune to - feelings. Can Dexter control his driving desire to kill in order to be a father? Or does being a father give more validity to his need to rid society of those elements that might some day come after his daughter? Either way this is another solid addition to the alliterate Dexter Morgan series.