DEARLY DEVOTED DEXTER

Miami's best-dressed serial killer is back and on the prowl - as least he would be if he could shake his permanent shadow. Ever since their paths first crossed, Sergeant Doakes hasn't let Dexter Morgan out of his sight. Dexter may well be the Miami PD's blood-spatter analyst, but Sgt. Doakes has a pretty good idea of how Dexter likes to spend his free time and he's determined to catch him in the act. Dexter hasn't killed in months and is getting twitchy. To throw Doakes off his scent, he's spending more time with Rita, his girlfriend. But no matter how many cosy nights they spend in front of the TV, Doakes is still watching. Then a body turns up and Doakes and Dexter will have to work together...if they can trust each other. It's a devil's pact and one of them will have to be the bait...

After the events of Darkly Dreaming Dexter, Sergeant Doakes decides to watch Dexter's every move. That puts a strain on Dexter's bad guy games, especially when he's got his eye on the second half of a particularly sick individual that his Dark Passenger can't wait to get his hands on.

Determined to bore Doakes out of his pursuit by acting boringly normal, Dexter spends most of his nights on Rita's couch watching TV and drinking beer. That alone isn't exciting but it does get him closer to Rita's children - Astor and Cody. And he starts to notice a familiar disturbance with Cody that only someone like Dexter would recognise. As much as Dexter doesn't consider himself human, he might end up being the children's only hope at a normal life. He can relate to them in a way he's never related to anyone else before.

If his personal life is complicated, his professional life is even worse. He's helping his sister, Deb, with a disturbing case. A mutilated body is found inside a house - hacked but still alive. It's so bad that it sends everyone into a spin. Who would do such a thing? What reason could anyone have to leave a person alive after such brutality? *shiver*

The crime investigated in this book is pretty gross and related to something that happened in El Salvador with a Special Forces group that Doakes happened to be a part of. It's truly horrific and so barbaric that it'll shock you. But it does introduce a love interest for Deb, and forces Doakes and Dexter to work together.

Dearly Devoted Dexter is the excellent second installment of the Dexter series. It's filled with dangerous situations, shocking crimes, and a funny misunderstanding between Dexter and Rita. It's also balanced out with plenty of internal witty observations. One of my favourite things about this series is Dexter's voice. I find him intriguing, interesting, and hilarious.

I'm really enjoying the time I'm spending with Dexter and look forward to more...

Dearly Devoted Dexter, September 2009, ISBN 0752877887, Orion Fiction Paperback