DEXTER IN THE DARK

Dexter Morgan, Miami’s favorite vigilante sociopath, battles demons more powerful than even he can imagine.

Miami Homicide is baffled by the ritual killings of two coeds who’ve been decapitated, burned and neatly laid out, their heads replaced by ceramic bulls’ heads. On the strength of forensic evidence, Sgt. Deborah Morgan, Dexter’s sister, arrests professor Jerry Halpern, who watches from jail as the murders continue—including, most satisfyingly, the monstrous caterer Dexter has booked for his wedding to his girlfriend Rita. The case clearly calls for the special talents of a forensic technician who moonlights as the untroubled executioner of bad guys (Dearly Devoted Dexter, 2005, etc.). This time, though, Dexter is in the dark. The familiar spirit who normally incites him to dastardly deeds has taken fright at something in that first crime scene and abruptly decamped, leaving Dexter unpossessed and alone. It’s a spooky feeling when you’re no longer haunted by evil spirits because even more evil spirits have driven them out. And it couldn’t have happened at a worse time for Dexter, who’d just begun to bond with Rita’s children. Astor, nine, and Cody, seven, have all the makings of apprentice serial killers themselves—if only Dexter can keep them safe long enough to teach them the prudence they’ll need to survive.

Sadly, the struggle between Dexter and his new demons is more portentous than interesting. How you feel about Dexter’s third adventure will depend on how invested you are in Dexter.