I've not been compelled to read like this in years, I haven't put the books down since I bought them, blasting through the first 3 books in the series in less than a week. If you enjoy video games or dungeon crawler games in the slightest I think you will love this book. I can't say enough good about the descriptions of loot & monsters, the complexity of the levels, & the detail given to the characters classes & races. It's like reading a video game as it's played but getting to know everything going on in the characters mind. Such a unique reading experience, I look forward to reading them all & checking out Dinniman's other work!

Love this book but hate what it facilitated me doing to myself. Picked it up off of my recommendations list looking for some escapist, pick-it-up-then-put-it-down fun after I had finished a book too early in the evening to just go to bed. Had been new release to a long-running favorite series that did the usual emotional roller coaster plus cliffhanger so I thought I would join Carl and Donut here for an easy romp to get my feels back in the right place. I couldn’t have been more right or more wrong, “just when I thought I was out, they pull me back in.” This book (as well as each of the sequels I have read so far) is amazing. Pros: The characters are a blast. The “protagonist” Carl (we all know he is really Robin to Donut’s Batman but just doesn’t know it despite being the PoV) is an incredible balance of blue-collar everyman, nerd, and isekai protagonist untapped potential; he has the physical and mental chops such that you have no problem accepting his survival without being a tired trope-y Force Recon Scout Sniper or angsty 18 year old skinny nerd-cum-chosen one. The reactions of Carl and the other sane adult humans to the absurdist brutality of the Crawl are amazingly well thought out and executed. They also contrast delightfully with the zany elements of others like Donut and the old-folks home residents. The antagonists are an incredible mix as well (both human and alien). The player killers are monster enough that you enjoy seeing justice done but man enough that you feel guilty about enjoying it a heartbeat later. The alien overlords aren’t all mustache-twirling avatars of evil bereft of all humanity (tangent: we really need another word for that in English to use in sci-fi/fantasy that works for non-human sapient species but rolls of the tongue well and doesn’t sound too contrived. Get on that authors) but also aren’t all muddied-waters, victim-of-circumstance, I’m-not-bad-I-was-just-written-that-way types who suffer from childhood trauma and a tragic backstory; they are complicit, made a choice to buy into the system, and willingly profit from it. Here’s hoping Carl and Donut come to collect. The Sci-Fi/Fantasy RPG elements are on point. Am especially impressed with the effort and crafting with world building employed to integrate the RPG elements rather than the usual “levels, attributes, skills, etc. are a thing because reasons…” There are consequences, they are real, and they don’t just fade away. The balance and tone of everything is incredible. This book is the Singapore Noodles of fun Sci-Fi: comfort-food carbs of a solid plot and the RPG progression; savory umami of meaty character depth and development, sweet & sour world building flavor, and strewn throughout with spicy, crunchy explosions ROFL madness (the A.I and the foot thing…). The balance-in-tension between the AI, Syndicate, and corpos. It is really refreshing how the narrative respects its own rules while mixing it up with complexity that are shadows of the real-life powers that be. Big brother is certainly watching and the deuce ex machina will put its finger on the scales at the 11th hour BUT its complicated and there are consequences. The dialog is masterful. It’s a perfect blend of fictional craftsmanship and the flaws/imperfections of conversation in reality; discourse is elevated like you would want in a book but not up on a pedestal such that it takes you into the aural/lexical uncanny valley you see in a lot of sci-fi/fantasy. Cons (but I hope more constructive criticism in the spirit it is offered): Very occasionally some of the dungeon/floor/enhancement system sections get dense and/or into the weeds. Everything usually gets integrated and works out later in the narrative so readers, if you encounter this feeling, please push through as the novel as a whole is more than worth it. Kindle folks drop yourself a note so you can jump back and re-read a mechanics wall of text and it will all make sense. I can also see how this may be an intentional element as an insurmountable wall of text that contains things you need to know but couldn’t possibly understand until you have already screwed the pooch in the field is all too real working in a technical professional job (not to mention there is no Donut and no magic, perfect sleep bed.) Weaponized hindsight here: some plot hooks/threads that seem like real gems don’t get left hanging/not picked up later in the narrative and it seems like a shame. Carl’s psychological resilience is almost Mary Sue-ish. He needs to hit a wall or find the bottom at some point. This is only in the context of how amazing of a character he is and the incredible balance he strikes (survivor vs. retaining his humanity, serious vs. humor, geek but blue collar capable/functional in society). The hits don’t stop coming, he is everybody’s rock, and the adrenalin high can only last so long in the face of the dungeons horrors resonating with his pre-Crawl trauma. Can’t recommend this book enough, please buy and read.

I really enjoyed this story. The writing is great but audiobook is AMAZING! The narrator does a fantastic job with the voices and the production is top-tier. I've never read a LitRPG book before and I'm not sure if it's for me but it could grow on me. I'm not a fan of RPG games either but this has pretty much won me over. The main plot with Carl and Princess Donut and the intricacies of the dungeon was great. Where it lost me was during the Boss Battles, there was so much going on that I found myself spacing out until it got back to the overall story. I'm not positive that I'll continue reading this series but I'm leaning towards yes. I want to know what happens to Carl and Donut but I don't care about the bosses

I just finished book 6 and came back to the beginning to write a review. This is a brilliant series! The premise is original and interesting, the characters are easy to love (or hate), there is strategy, laugh out loud humor, fighting, betrayal, plenty of gore, and lots of love. But Mr. Dinniman: I've grown very fond of Carl and especially Princess Donut, so please... won't you keep them alive? Can we have a happy ending? I can't wait for book 7!

LitRPG/GameLit is a hit or miss genre to me, often concentrating on gimmicks with stats or using harem elements to draw in fans instead of concentrating on creating a good story with strong world building. With that said, the hits in the genre can stand up with the best of more traditional fantasy and sci-fi. Dungeon Crawler Carl definitely fits into the hit category for me. In fact, I rate it as highly as my favorites in the genre, 8-Bit Bastards by Joshua Mason and Mogworld by Yahtzee Crowshaw. The world building is just fantastic in this story. The idea that aliens would destroy all above ground structures, and then re-purpose them into an underground dungeon like a Role Playing Game is just crazy, but it works. Then inhabiting that dungeon with a mix of aliens and more traditional fantasy creatures, and some hilarious plays on modern culture (the KraKaren, for example) just shows the author’s creativity and warped sense of humor. The world is just basically an intergalactic reality tv show, but with real life consequences. And this is where the fantastic cast of characters comes in. Carl, the erstwhile title character, is just kind of an everyman, a Coast Guard vet who was just kind of meandering through life when the aliens came a knocking. Babysitting his soon to be ex-girlfriend Bea’s cat, Princess Donut, a prize winning show cat, he lucks out as she escaped out the window and he had to chase her outside when the buildings all collapsed. It only gets crazier from there, as he and all the survivors are told they have a specified time to find a stairway leading to the dungeon to try and save their planet, or be stuck on a barren waste of an earth. Carl, unfortunately, chased the cat out in his boxers, a leather jacket, and Bea’s crocs. So armored, he starts his adventures in the dungeon, as he must try and keep himself and Donut alive in the dungeon, while most of the things in the dungeon are trying to kill the “players”. Can you say Goblin Killdozer? Because Carl and Donut meet one soon enough, in a hilariously dangerous first contact. It only gets crazier from there as Donut is given intelligence through a prize in a lootbox, and becomes a player in her own right. She’s still a cat, though, so this leads to some hilarious situations as well, as they proceed through the dungeon to reach the second floor of eighteen. The rest of the characters are a lot of fun, ranging from an alien mentor in the tutorial guild that tries to help them while not getting in trouble, to a group of players escorting a bunch of people from a retirement home through the dungeon. This is hilarious and sad in turns, and is definitely not something I expected to see. The villains are the usual mix of bosses you’d expect in a dungeon, but with funny twists on them. They are also, in some cases, transformed humans who are playing a part against their will, making the fight against them that much more difficult. There are some choices Carl and Donut have to make that are heart wrenching, to say the least. It was not something I expected, but it added a whole new layer to both the character choices and the story. Some of the villains were just hilarious plays on pop culture, such as multi-level marketing fairies. The aliens that run the game are also an interesting bunch, giving a whole new meaning to cut throat businesspeople. Oh, and before I forget. The AI voice announcer is a total jerk, in possibly the most hilarious voiceover ever. The narration is performed by one of my favorite narrators, Jeff Hays. I have been a fan of his for years, because his production company, Soundbooth Theater, is one of the best in the audiobook market. He does such a fantastic job of bringing this story to life. Whether it be the voices of the various characters or the AI voiceover, which is hilarious, he gives each character a unique and very distinct voice all their own. You are never in doubt about who is speaking. Its hilarious when he has to read out Donut’s text messages on the chat, since she texts in all caps and he actually emphasizes that. It’s the little touches that really stand out, and his narrative pace is so perfect, he can give classes on how to do it right. If you have the chance, I recommend the audio version. I was so sad to see this book end. I was so enthralled in it, I was shocked when it ended, but I knew there were more books in the series on audio already, so I have that to look forward to. If you are a fan of LitRPG/GameLit, or just funny fantasy dungeon crawler stories, I think you can find something to enjoy here. I highly recommend this book, and the audio version especially. You won’t be disappointed.