You wouldn't believe how quickly I snatched this book off the shelf at Goodwill as soon as I saw it. I wouldn't have believed it myself a few years ago when I was pooh-poohing all the LOST fanatics. Then I got bit by the LOST bug and now here I am grabbing LOST tie-in books off the shelf in my local thrift store!

What a fun trip down the LOST memory lane. This book is the story of one of the survivors of Oceanic Flight 815--one of those who is just an extra in the television series. His story is skillfully woven into the events of the first few episodes of Season 1. He interacts with all our favorites, some of whom are gone, but not forgotten: Boone, Shannon, Artz, Michael, Walt, Charlie, Claire, Sayid, Hurley, Locke, Rose, Sun, Jin, and of course Jack, Kate and Sawyer.

I thought it was clever how the book follows the format of the episodes, with alternating chapters being flashbacks and what is happening on the island. It's not the greatest writing, or the most engrossing story, but it had just enough LOST in it to make me very nostalgic for those first few episodes; I may have to watch the DVDs again!

I'm sending this along to the next person on Greyflank's LOST bookring to enjoy and do with what they like.

Most awesome! I was only expecting Bad Twin, but this is a welcome addition to the bookray. Thanks for including this, grubsneerg. I'll read this and pass along with Bad Twin once I'm finished.

---

Paperback, 168 pages

From the back cover:
There are things no noe knows about Dexter Cross. His friends believe he's just another moneyed Ivy League student. But Dexter is leading two lives—until a fateful trip to Australia exposes the truth.

Dexter books the first flight out of Sydney, wanting nothing more than to return home after his deceit is revealed. The plane he boards, however, never reaches its destination. Instead, Oceanic Flight 815 crashes, trapping Dexter on a remote island and forcing him to make a decision.

Faced with a blank slate, Dexter reinvents himself once again. When tragedy strikes, his carefully constructed farce begins to crumble, and Dexter must trust his fellow castaways with the truth.

But Dexter isn't the only one lying. And he quickly learns that on the island there are many unknowns, but none are deadlier than the secrets of its inhabitants...

Finished in record time! LOL I can't resist anything these days having to do with Lost. Love that show.

Anyway, this is an OK book. Nothing fabulous, as grubsneerg pointed out. I found myself increasingly annoyed by Dexter and by the fact that there wasn't enough Sawyer (something I find myself screaming about during the series as well...LOL). This reminded me a great deal of the television and/or movie tie-ins that I was addicted to as a kid.

I can overlook most inconsistencies, but I can't overlook one...While Daisy's father asks Dexter to go with the family on vacation during the "next school break," I can only assume that means Spring Break. (?) If that's the case, there is no way they were on Flight 815 in September. And if he meant the break over the summer, these college kids would have missed about a month of classes before getting back from Down Under. Yes, I'm a geek, but this one little point really bothered me.

Anyway, thanks for sharing this. I'm going to package this with Bad Twin and let it continue with the ring.

By the way, did you know that there is a Lostpedia, part of Wikipedia? Yep. Here it is.

UPDATE: Mailed to kayjay33 on July 2, 2008

Enjoy!

This little addition to the Bad Twin bookray was included in the package. Someone has also included a TV Guide. I may just include the pertinent pages of the guide in order to keep postal costs down.

This was an interesting little book in some ways but really didn't ring true. As far as I can remember, Dexter was not a college aged man but much older than depicted in this book. I also seem to think that he wasn't even on Oceanic Flight 815. Wasn't he the fellow who was working for the Dharma Experiment? Not that it matters that much. Thanks for sending it along,Grubsneerg. I will send it to the next person awaiting The Bad Twin when I finish it.

CONTROLLED RELEASE NOTES:

This book is on its way to Utah as part of a bookray. Mailed at Canada Post Office

I need to get used to the new system. I released the book in British Columbia, not in Utah. Oh well,I'll learn.

Received in the mail a few days ago from kayjay33 as part of the Bad Twin bookray. Thanks!

So... I didn't like this book. Maybe it was because I'm so invested in the show-world of Lost that I couldn't take the additional words and actions of the characters as cannon. Maybe it was because the 'secret identity' of the main character seemed paltry and insignificant when finally revealed. Or maybe it was just because I'd much rather be watching a new episode of Lost than read this, and I have to wait until February for that.

By the way KayJay33, I think you're referring to Desmond. Dexter - the guy in this book - isn't a known character in the show itself.

CONTROLLED RELEASE NOTES:

Sent to rebel-padawan with Bad Twin via media mail.

This came with another book-a bookray for my sister rebel-padawan. She's out of town on a backpacking trip to the Appalacians, I just checked her mail and there was A LOT of packages waiting for her.
She will be home October 20, so she will probably start her own journaling of this book then. I just opened it up to journal to let the sender/owners that it got to where it was going!