Dexter's Final Cut: A Novel

After the frankly terrible 6th book, the 7th was really quite fun to read. The series is starting to feel a bit like the original series Star Trek Movies -- are the odds good, the evens bad? Who knows?!But at least in book seven the awful, excruciating, "Witness" plot of book six is a thing of the past, and we have Dexter thrown into a Hollywood production (Lindsay is pretty hard on the whole TV pilot process and it makes me wonder if he is taking jabs at whatever his involvement was in the Showtime production).<spoilers ahead>In this book Dexter starts to show us again quite clearly that he is a creep. A lovable creep to his fans, but a creep nonetheless. And I'm relieved, as that's exactly what he's supposed to be. He has no reluctance to leave his wife, home and family, and when the woman he wants to leave them for is murdered, he feels sorry for himself, not her.Dexter is pretty bone-headed about a few things in this book. This is not the first time it's happened in the series, but our lovable creep can also be pretty darned stupid. From my perspective as a fangirl it is a bit unpleasant to be confronted with that stupidity. Being a creep is one thing, but being a moron? That's something else.Dexter is also quite heartless about Rita. The heartlessness is painfully brutal. Even his sweet little baby daughter is mainly just a way to cast his DNA into the future. Indeed, this is a vastly different Dexter than the one in the last few books since Lilly Ann was born, when it seemed he was maybe, just maybe, becoming a bit more "human."It's a good story with the normal dry humor we have come to expect (you know, I would love to adopt Dexter's positive and productive attitude about driving!), and thankfully Deb has a very minor role. So this book is mostly about our serial-killing, paranoid schizophrenic, adulterous anti-hero. And I like that. He's why I read these books. And at least in this book, Lindsay seems to acknowledge that.<really big spoilers ahead><you have been warned>This is a case of art imitating... art...? Because Rita gets killed at the very end (gosh, what a cliff-hanger) and it is similar to what happens in the Michael C. Hall series in a way... he's there with Rita's body and it looks bad for Dexter. And in fact the only reason it seemed he cared about Rita at all was that she might help with his alibi (and that he'll no longer benefit from her cooking). Regardless, she dies, literally in his arms. And we won't know how bad things are for Dexter until we buy the next book....And to be honest, I wasn't planning on buying the next book because I think maybe Lindsay kills off Dexter in it (if I am to believe what I have written about it), and I don't want him deaded. I hate it when authors and TV shows kill off beloved characters, and I avoid such things whenever possible.What a conundrum!

"Deeply Disappointing Dexter" would have made for a more appropriate title, in my opinion.Without providing spoilers, I felt like this seventh installment in the Dexter series provided us with a Dexter unlike we've seen before. He was not cool, calm, or collected through most of the story and was instead lead by emotion, fantasy, and disillusion which is very unlike the Dexter we have come to know throughout the series. The only consistent piece found within this series was Lindsay's decision to have the villain of the story use the kids as a plot device to string Dexter along, which I think at this point has been a little overused.I appreciate Lindsay's attempt at making changes to a story readers will already recognize; however I think the changes need to be made to the events and story, not the main character. As a constant reader, I enjoy reading the story from Dexter's perspective and one thing I've always enjoyed is that Dexter, for the most part, is a predictable and simple creature.Knowing what to expect from Dexter makes the story exciting to see what situations he will end up in and seeing him wrapped in a mystery. With "Final Cut" Lindsay has altered Dexter's core being, making him seem more 'human' than he's ever been and he has used some of the same plot devices that we've already seen in other books.As a side note, I think if Lindsay would've focused more on a better story and new plot devices rather than Dexter's witty comments it may have turned out a little better. There were many times where it felt like Lindsay probably spent more time trying to think of Dexter's clever response rather than the story as it unfolded.Also, I feel like it's finally worth saying that Lindsay has not fully utilized the story arc of guiding Rita's kids down the "dark path." He touched on it in earlier books and always left the reader wondering how far he would go, but at this point being seven books in I find it a little disappointing that he has not ventured into this darker, unexplored territory.The only redeeming quality of "Dexter's Final Cut" is that it ended with a cliffhanger, so maybe the next book will bring us back to the Dexter we all know and love.Pros: a decent cliffhanger.Cons: you're more eager to be done with the book rather than to find out who the identity of the "mystery killer"Bottom line: still worth a read for fans of the series, just don't get your hopes up

I have recently purchased and have read one third of Jeff Lindsay's latest work, Dexter's Final Cut. Although it's probably not advisable to right a review of same until I have finished it, I can say I am thoroughly enjoying the read so far. It is packed with the same wit and dark humour that has graced the pages of Lindsay's previous six Dexter novels and I am truly looking forward to learning how Dexter's Final Cut works out. Does Dexter die (given the title "Final Cut")? Is he cornered and caught in the act? Who knows? I have just under two hundred pages to go before I can tell you that, but with season 8 being the final in the tv version of Dexter and the words "Final Cut" concluding the title of this novel, there is an air of finality in Dexter's realm. The first Dexter novel followed the story-line of the first tv series (or vice versa) but since then, the novels and tv series have gone on their own paths, so, Lindsay and the tv producers have given us 14 Dexter stories between them. If you think you're into Dexter, rethink if you haven't watched and read them all. If this is the end of it all, thanks Jeff Lindsay for some of the best entertainment I've known. The wicked political incorrectness of the main character is brilliant, and Dexter is not the only odd person one encounters when reading and watching. Dexter is adult fun at its best!

The reason for 4 star rating is I'm not happy w/ a lot of Dexter's choices in this story. This volume has Dexter's Police division, specifi-cally, his Captain, sister, & some others help train actors to do what cops, etc. do to create a network series about them. Of course, fun things occur along the way.

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A Dexter novel with a heavily meta set up as it features Dexter the character in the novels becoming involved with a Miami-based forensic TV show just like Dexter the TV show. More than that, Dexter becomes a background actor in that TV show so Dexter the character in the novel starts to muse about TV fame.Although the self-referential potential is there, the plot rattles along in a far more standard thriller manner. It rips along at pace but is a bit clunky, one red herring in particular is flagged repeatedly then literally just disappears from the narrative with no explanation. A plus points is that the ending pulls the rug from under Dexter in a surprising way setting up the final book in the series, Dexter Is Dead.Overall, a reasonable addition to the Dexter series but more formulaic and less satisfying than the earlier books.

As with the other books, the stories depart quite a bit from what we've seen on TV. In this final book, Dexter gets the acting bug and becomes besotted with the leading lady to the point of planning to leave Rita (yes, she's still alive in the book) Unfortunately for Dex, all his chickens come home to roost by the end of the story. I was a bit disappointed because I'm still rooting for Dexter to make a comeback both on tv and in print. And I'm still hoping that somewhere in the Canadian outbacks there's a bearded lorry driver who has an unhealthy part-time hobby involving M99, a fillet knife, a butcher's apron, shrink wrap and a large amount of plastic sheeting .......... Goodbye Dexter, gone but not forgotten xx

My favourite since "Darkly Dreaming Dexter". Great plot and full of the trademark wit and observations that make the Dexter series so much fun. The storyline is a little slow moving in places but, there are a lot of nice twists and surprises to keep you guessing and a very shocking ending.My only fault is the villain was a little obvious, despite the red herrings throw in there and I would have liked a bit of expansion on the motives and hints dropped about a certain character that aren't followed up on.

I had eagerly awaited this (final?) Dexter book. I was sorely disappointed. I actually was able to predict the plot. It had started off so well but became unbelievable 'a Dexter with feelings' unthinkable! The ending was unsatisfactory but leaves it open for another if Mr Lindsay changes his mind. For this book to be the last in the series strikes me as a sad ending?

Didn't like this book. It was as though the author was tired of the character or under instructions from elsewhere. Nothing like the same Dexter from the previous books. Not greatly recommended, sorry gets a thumbs down.