A Coast Guard veteran and all around good guy, Carl, lives in an apartment with his ex-girlfriend’s cat, Princess Donut. On a cold, winter night, Donut slips out of a window and gets stuck up a tree. And it’s a good thing she does! Wearing nothing but a jacket, boxers, and a pair of slippers that don’t fit, Carl goes outside to try to coax her down. He’s just about retrieved the cat, and then it happens.The whole world is changed. In the blink of an eye, every building, car, and piece of technology on the planet is flattened. Smooshed. Gone. A bodiless voice announces that anyone who doesn’t want to live off whatever is left on the planet will need to enter stairs. Carl and the cat do so, and that’s when the fun starts.It seems the galaxy has had a long-running and massively popular television program that follows “dungeon crawls”—classic role-playing/video game scenarios where adventurers go into a medieval dungeon, explore, fight monsters, win treasure, gain experience, become more powerful, and then proceed to deeper, harder levels. Earth has been selected to serve as the setting for the current season. That’s right. The Earth has been destroyed for the sake of a galactic television game. By entering the stairwell, Carl, Donut, and a couple million other humans have become participants in this game. Instead of remaining a pet, Donut is made into a fellow “crawler,” like Carl. She can speak, and reason, and fight—all with the personality one would expect from a cat named Princess DonutThe rules to this galactically televised dungeon crawl are intricate. But essentially, Carl and Donut begin to mentally see stat screens, just like in an RPG video game: health, various skills, their strength, dexterity, intelligence, and constitution. In classic 80’s kids Dungeons & Dragons style, they have unlimited encumbrance, meaning they can carry anything they can pick up, file it away in “inventory,” and pull it up whenever needed. They‘re on level 1 of this season’s crawl, a classic dungeon with tunnels, doors, chambers, and monsters—lots of different monsters. There’s a countdown running, so they only have so many days to find a set of stairs that will lead them down to the next, harder level. And if they don’t find the stairs before the timer runs out, the level they’re on will collapse. There’s all sorts of lethal dangers awaiting the crawlers. And that’s what takes up the bulk of the book.There are daring encounters, puzzles to sort through, and lots and lots of monsters to fight. In each encounter, the reader is given real time stats of the characters. After their initial shock, Carl and Donut slowly form an endearing partnership, one that proves quite successful in this dangerous game they‘re forced to play.I’ll confess for the first quarter of the book, I was skeptical. It felt an awful lot like one of my kids watching someone else playing a video game (which is something I don’t really understand). But Matt Dinniman does a masterful job of weaving in enough subplots—both inside and outside the dungeon—so that both a cohesive story and genuine character development emerge from all the excitement of fighting kobolds, or rigging goblin explosives, or figuring out how to slay a “big boss” monster that vaguely resembles a cat-hoarding old lady. There’s depth to this dungeon.And of course there’s action. It’s compelling, page-turning, fun. And funny. Dinniman has a sharp, occasionally crass, often dark sense of humor and he knows how to use it in all the right places. There’s snark, and absurdity, and physical comedy, and some snort-through-your nostrils lines. Think of a homebrew Dungeons and Dragons campaign melded with a Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy vibe that‘s centered around a likable hero and a hilariously self-absorbed cat.I thoroughly enjoyed this book, and will definitely be pursuing the series. Highly recommended.
Loved this book! If you're a fan of science fiction with fun, funny writing, I think you will, too! Especially if you're a gamer, as the main character, Carl, is essentially inserted into a real life video game.
Very entertaining read, and I can't wait to read the other books!
Dungeon Crawler Carl is pure chaos in the best possible way. It’s like Squid Game meets Diablo, with a heavy dose of absurd humor, over-the-top worldbuilding, and a talking Persian show cat named Princess Donut (who totally steals the show).The premise? Earth is turned into a massive alien-run dungeon crawl where humans have to fight for survival while being watched for entertainment. Carl, our reluctant hero, gets thrown into this nightmare alongside Donut—and from there, it’s a wild ride.I listened to the audiobook and highly recommend it. The narration is phenomenal, especially the voice actor for Donut. The full-cast performance, sound effects, and achievement system audio really bring the story to life.What I loved:✔️ The progression fantasy elements—leveling up, loot drops, and skills that actually matter.✔️ The absurd world—lava-spitting llamas, magic missile cats, and more. It shouldn’t work, but it absolutely does.✔️ The humor—so many laugh-out-loud moments, balanced by real emotional depth.✔️ Carl and Donut’s dynamic—equal parts chaotic and heartwarming.Things to know:⚠️ It’s truly unhinged. If you prefer serious, logical fantasy, this might not be your thing.⚠️ Some side characters felt a bit flat (like NPCs), but the main duo more than makes up for it.Final Rating: 4.75 starsA completely unique and addictive read that I couldn’t put down. I totally get why people are obsessed with this series—and yes, I’m already starting book two.
LitRPG is a guilty pleasure of mine. Almost all I've read has been pulp quality, yet I still come back and read more. It is fun, light escapist fare. BUT... Dungeon Crawler Carl is really good. It escapes out of the pulp quality level to actual good storytelling. It has three dimensional characters whose depths are revealed over the series. It has an interesting world building backstory, which again is revealed, little by little over the series. The plotting is fast paced and there is plenty of action. There is humor both in situations and snarky observations by characters. Over the series there is loss of main characters and clever solutions to difficult situations. I'm really enjoying this series and highly recommend it.
I read this while listening to the audio book. It was amazing!! The story is hilarious. I love the gameshow setup of this dystopian novel and it's great learning about how to play along with Carl and Donut. The world building is excellent with more added as we read and learn more about the game. Since we learn about the world and characters as Carl and Donut learn about them it's easier to follow and not as overwhelming as an info dump like some fantasy books do. I really can't say enough about the audio book. All the voices are perfect for this book and help bring more of an experience to the whole book!!
Read this perhaps too quickly, but I think that goes to show how engaged one can get with the book. You’ll get to learn more about Carl, and Princess donut of course, and see how they grow in just book 1. I think because of how fast I finished this, I really want to jump into the next book immediately, I am honestly invested on how far Carl and Princess Donut get in these dungeons.While the plot is not unique, I appreciate that you the reader learn with Carl how to survive the dungeon, and see how Carl and Princess confront the issues ahead of them, and maybe even get glimpses of how things connect. It’s honestly a fun adventure to pick up, quick paced, engaging, and makes a lot of references to past pop cultures that brings a chuckle out of me.Give it a try!
This freakin book and series (I’m just calling it) is my Roman Empire! I will never stop talking about this book! The way I laughed my butt off and shook my head at the insanity of the adventures in this book will never end!We follow Carl and his ex-girlfriend’s cat, Princess Donut, as Earth turns into a Mad Max/Survivor the TV Show kind of thing.I honestly wasn’t sure how I would feel about this book; it gives off a video game vibe. I enjoy playing video games but wasn’t sure how reading a video game would come across, and honestly, BookTok has led me astray with recommendations… 😏 But I ate this up! I’m so glad I took a chance!On to the next one!
Dungeon Crawler Carl is hands down one of the best LitRPG series I’ve ever read—and listened to. From book one to book seven, the quality never dips, and the journey just keeps getting more intense, more hilarious, and more unforgettable.Matt Dinniman’s writing is sharp, immersive, and wildly imaginative. He somehow manages to balance brutal stakes with laugh-out-loud humor and genuine heart. Every character (even the awful ones) feels fully realized, and Carl himself is one of the most compelling protagonists in the genre.The audiobook production by Soundbooth Theater? Absolutely top-tier. The voice acting, sound design, and overall polish make it more than just a reading experience—it’s an all-out performance. Truly stellar work from everyone involved.I probably look like a lunatic on the highway LOLing on my way to and from work—but man, it’s worth it, and I don’t care. This series is LitRPG at its finest.Bravo, Matt Dinniman and Soundbooth Theater!
This is a fun, original story about aliens who destroy most of the human population and create a reality show for the survivors to compete in. There are a series of dungeons where your job is to stay alive and "level up" so you can compete on the next level(s).Carl has been babysitting his ex-girlfriend's prize-winning Persian cat, Princess Donut, and he and Donut happen to survive the extinction event and are entered as Dungeon Crawlers in the games. Donut is given the power of speech, but remains a typical cat in other ways. If you like RPGs, you'll probably get a kick out of this book. It's the first in a series, so the game is not resolved by the end. I'm looking forward to Book 2, where they level up and choose their race and class for the rest of the game.
This was my first LitRPG book. The author did a great job with setting up the premise and portraying the game world. While on the surface this looks like a lightweight, comic read (and there are a LOT of funny parts), there are also themes of loyalty and disloyalty, unequal distribution of power and fighting back against it, and taking risks to help others when you have every reason not to. Though the book doesn’t form a complete story on its own, I nonetheless look forward to reading more of the series.
The book that started it all! I was only one paragraph in when I said out loud, “Oh, I’m in trouble.” I could tell right away that I was going to devour this series—and just a few sentences later, I knew I was hooked. Matt Dinniman does what every writer hopes to achieve: he grabs your attention immediately and doesn’t let go.One of Matt’s greatest strengths is his ability to keep you constantly reading towards something. Carl might be awarded a loot box he can’t open right away, and as the reader, you find yourself pushing forward just to get to that moment. But by the time you get there, something else is already dangling in front of you. There’s always a reason to keep going beyond the main storyline—and it’s brilliantly addictive.The characters are all incredibly compelling. Even the ones you’re supposed to hate are fascinating enough that I found myself wanting more time with them—a true testament to Matt’s writing.The dynamic between Donut and Carl is easily one of my favorite character relationships in any book series. Donut’s impulsiveness and juvenile charm play perfectly against Carl’s more uptight nature. Their chemistry, their unspoken bond, and their constant bickering make their scenes an absolute joy to read.I read this book in a single day, and now, just a week later, I’m already on Book 4. This series is quickly becoming one of the best I’ve ever read.
As someone who constantly picks up project reads and massive tomes that are a lot of work to grind through, Dungeon Crawler Carl has been an absolute breath of fresh air.I've always loved the sci-fi / fantasy genre and what the author has done here has struck a perfect balance between creating something that I absolutely cannot put down and making something light and fun. I devoured this book and immediately purchased the rest in the series and intend on blowing through those nearly as quickly.While this book is full of crass humor and silly things aplenty in the narrative, don't let that trick you into believing that the book has no heart, there is a wealth of heart and soul in this book as well as a healthy dose of social commentary that dwell just beneath the surface if you are looking for it---and if you aren't, you can always completely ignore it and "Glurg, Glurg" down all the high octane action.Highly recommended: If you enjoy video games, power fantasies, dungeon and dragons, relevant humor and levity.Do not recommend: If you have no sense of humor.
Six books into the series and now i've finally come around to writing a review, apologies because I could not put it down until now. There's a mixture of Dungeons and Dragons elements, Men in Black aliens/tech and an healthy dose of pop culture that made me giggle, laugh and sometimes even cry. Its a rollercoaster that i wish would never end and now I'm starting on the 7th book in the series and I can't wait to get started.The writing is clever, witty, and keeps you on your toes. The clues are all there! Can you figure it out? Amongst the nonsensical ramblings that happen in the book, you start to notice it wasnt as pointless as you first thought. Everything is a clue to the next floor/chapter/character that builds on one another into a grand epic tale of friendship, camaderie and adventure.The adventures of Carl and Donut is one to be recommended to everyone, i cannot wait for this to turn into an adult cartoon or some other medium of entertainment. There are some aspects that may seem inappropriate to young readers but it was suitably kept at a minimum and only enough to push the storyline forward, I really appreciate this aspect, so thank you!I had a very enjoyable time reading this and will definitely put this on my re-read list.Cant wait to relive their adventures all over again. :)
WARNING! Cliffhanger! I wouldn’t call it traumatic, but it’s annoying because it’s definitely a hook to get you to read more. This rates maybe a 3/5 on the trauma scale.When the world ends at the hands of a galactic corporation, the surviving humans find themselves in a televised game show, controlled by an AI, and where death can be frighteningly real.Carl was rescuing his ex-girlfriend’s cat when it happened, in the middle of the night, during a snowstorm. He’s got no shoes, no pants, and now he’s also got a talking cat… who might just be stronger, smarter, and tougher than he is!Now he has to play to stay alive, but that’s not always an easy thing to do.With a few tributes to The Hitchhiker’s Guide, and some quality 80s TV shows (and some later shows of varying quality), this is an irreverent romp through a post apocalyptic game world.Carl is a likeable character, the kind of ‘nice guy’ that doesn’t often get written about, but it makes him quietly charismatic in his own way.Donut is hilariously feline in every way, and has definitely earned Carl’s catchphrase of “G*d*mnit Donut!”. She’s the perfect foil for the big softie, and the two of them make a surprisingly effective team.As a non-gamer, I was a little leery of delving into LitRPG, but this book does a decent job of explaining most of the gaming side of it. There are a few terms that the non-gaming reader might have to look up, but the story is well written, the action fairly fast paced, and the book itself reads more like an old fashioned sci-fi story from the 80s, (that’s not a bad thing, it’s merely a comment on style), while the humour part reminds me of Sir Terry Pratchett (who wrote a couple of sci-fi stories back then, in his pre-Discworld days).With a number of laugh out loud moments, and plenty of action, this is an entertaining read for sci-fi lovers and LitRPG fans alike, and for anyone who enjoyed the sci-fi tales of Adams or Pratchett.
Dungeon Crawler Carl is the story of a man and his cat just trying to survive the apocalypse. After getting stuck outside in his boxers and a leather jacket, Carl and his girlfriend's cat, Princess Donut, are thrust into the World Dungeon - an intergalactic game show that they stand a very high likelihood of getting killed in. Carl and Princess Donut must level up and go from floor to floor in the dungeon defeating bosses and earning experience points and loot boxes so they can keep fighting their way through in order to survive.This book was fun! I really didn't know what to expect out of a litrpg novel but I actually enjoyed this so much more than I thought I was going to. I've never played dungeons and dragons before but I felt like the basics were pretty well explained as you go and I never got to a point where I felt like I was lost or confused. The book was silly, decently written and had a lot of heart. The characters are all enjoyable and I actually found myself excited to pick it back up so I could find out what everyone was going to get up to next.I'll definitely be continuing on with this series.
I devoured Dungeon Crawler Carl by Matt Dinniman like a contestant on a game show who just found the last slice of pizza. This book isn’t just a read—it’s an intergalactic, high-stakes, wildly entertaining thrill ride.The characters are unforgettable. Carl is the ultimate reluctant hero, and Princess Donut? Pure gold. The humor is sharp, the plot is airtight, and the worldbuilding is both chaotic and brilliantly original.This book has everything: • Characters you’ll root for and occasionally shout at • Clever sci-fi meets dystopia with a dash of absurdity • A fast-paced story that keeps you guessing • Hilarious moments that genuinely made me laugh out loudIt’s like The Hunger Games collided with a reality show, threw in some monsters, and hit fast-forward on the madness. Just a heads-up—this book contains mature themes and language, so it may not be for everyone. But if you’re up for something totally unique and wildly creative, it’s absolutely worth the ride.I can’t wait to dive into the next book in the series!
I had seen this book around for a while but didn’t think it was for me. Oh, I was wrong! I ended up using my Audible credit on the audiobook just to give it a chance, and I’m so glad I did. It was amazing! The audio is actual perfection. I highly recommend it. There are some extra tidbits in the physical copy that you won’t want to miss, so I recommend doing both formats. I even convinced my husband to listen to it, and he just finished book one last night. He loved it too!This was the craziest, funniest, most completely out-there story I’ve read in a long time. I had so much fun and laughed out loud more times than I can count. The apocalyptic world it’s set in is so unserious (at least for now), and it’s incredibly entertaining. There are so many amazing characters *cough Princess Donut cough* along for the ride. Just a heads up, there are some very dark and gory moments throughout. It’s not a completely light read, even with all the humor. When your reward for a new achievement is that you're still alive, you know it's intense. The banter between Princess Donut and Carl is top-notch!I’m not a gamer, which is why I was hesitant to start this. I’ve seen so many people compare it to D&D, saying if you like that, you’ll love this. I don’t know anything about D&D, and I still loved it! Also, can someone please explain the Cincinnati connection? There are a few shout-outs to the city, and I need to know why! The author isn’t from here, but it was a fun little surprise since we live in the area.Is this book out there? Yes! Will you have the best time? Absolutely. I highly recommend listening to the audiobook while reading along. That’s how I’ll be enjoying the rest of the series. If you're looking for something entertaining and funny, give this a shot. It’s not my typical read, but I’m 100% in now!Thank you to the publisher for the gift. I also own the hardcover!!
I Loved this book. It was hilarious and gave me the laughs that I needed during a stressful time. Carl gave me Harry Dresden vibes. 4.5 Rounded upCharacters: 5/5 - The characters in this book was so so good. They were fictional, even fantastical (a talking cat named Princess Donut??) but also incredibly relatable. Weirdly enough they kept having me ask myself “What would you do in this situation?” Mordecai was the best guide for Carl and Donut. Loved him, can’t wait to read more.Atmosphere/Setting: 5/5 - I loved the atmosphere and settings here. With LitRPG books, I’m never sure when I start them if we’re going to get just 1 level or the whole game or how it will play out. I’m glad that we got a few levels at least - and while they were similar, they also had distinctive differences.Writing Style: 5/5 - Loved Dinniman’s writing style in this book. It was easy to follow with great pacing. Funny yet also made you think. It was just the right amount of ridiculousness.Plot: 5/5 - At the bottom line, the plot was about Carl and Princess Donut’s survival. However, Dinniman also injected social commentary through gameplay. I thought it was brilliant.Intrigue: 4.5/5 - As much as I loved this book and its characters, there were (just a few) times when my brain did zone out a bit. That was probably a me thing - it’s been a long stressful year so far (I know, it’s only March!) but I had to note that here. Additional note to my note, although my brain zoned out and wandered a few times, I was never confused when it came back.Logic: 5/5 - The way that Dinniman used the LitRPG model and Carl (and Donut) learning the game as they are “playing” it - helped the reader along amazingly. We learned along with the characters, but not in an academia … lecturey sort of way. It felt natural, and helped everything make logical sense.Enjoyment: 5/5 - I thoroughly enjoyed this book and can’t wait to read more in this series, which I am now drastically behind on.Audiobook Narrator: 5/5 Jeff Hayes did an AMAZING job at narrating this audiobook. I don’t know how he managed to do it but he gave different voices for all the characters - and there are a lot. And never got them mixed up. His pacing in his reading was great and easy to follow, and I could probably have read this book just through the audio alone.Total = 39.5/8 = 4.9
This book is fun. Some of the humor is a bit crude and suggestive, and there is a LOT of violence involved, so I can't recommend this book for kids. But if you're older than 16 and you want something that is quirky, social commentary, dangerous, weird, and has a good sense of adventure than you might like this one. And it's the first in a series so if you love it all the way to the last word, you can get the next book in the series and keep reading - I know I did.It's winter in Seattle. Carl's ex-girlfriend's high-bred prize-winning show cat has just decided - for the first time in her life - that she MUST explore the outdoors. So she just jumped out the window. It's 2:30 in the morning and Carl is in bed, trying to fall asleep. But if he loses that cat, his ex will murder him when she gets back from the cruise she's on with "the other man" (one of them anyway). So Carl heads outside to get the cat, only to find her stuck in a tree because she didn't like the way the snow felt on her paws. In his boxers, because it's 2 am and he's only expecting to be outside for a minute.That's when it happens: the entire apartment building, all the cars in the parking lot, all the buildings and vehicles on the street, as far as the eye can see in fact - they all get instantly sucked down into the earth, leaving nothing but a patch of freshly turned dirt behind. Everyone who was in a car, on a ship, on a plane, or indoors is killed instantly - worldwide. And then, all across the planet, a psychic loudspeaker activates and a strange alien voice tells everyone that the syndicate will be mining their planet, and anyone still alive has the opportunity to reclaim their world by descending down into their "dungeon crawl." Anyone who makes it down to level 18 can not only reclaim the planet's resources, but will be left to rule what's left of the Earth. Any survivors who choose not to enter the dungeon crawl will be left to fend for themselves on the surface as the planet's interior is strip-mined.So Carl takes his cat, Princess Donut, into the dungeon... not because he cares about ruling the world, but because he's not wearing any pants or shoes and it's FREEZING COLD tonight. Within the first week, nearly ten million people die in the dungeon. It is a hostile place. but in the dungeon, there are rules. The whole thing is run by a crazy AI with foot fetish, and organized by a certain interstellar corporation. There are other corporations who are in competition with this one, and they rotate between them to produce each season of a DUNGEON CRAWL: WORLD television program that is broadcast out to the entire galaxy. This season just happens to be produced by the corporation that owns the Earth. The ratings from that show, and the ad revenue that pours in, are the real treasure they're after, not Earth's tiny supply of minerals. So the rules are simple: don't die, don't piss of the AI or the syndicate, and make it entertaining because more dedicated viewers means the AI gives you better loot, which helps you live longer. Oh, and don't piss in the hallways.It's been a long time since I read something that is fresh and feels like it brings NEW ideas in a science fiction / fantasy adventure setting. This book does that. So I'm eager to start the second book now that I've finished this one. But it's 2:00am here in Maine, it's cold outside, and I'm in my boxers trying to fall asleep... so book 2 will have to wait until tomorrow.
