Dungeon Crawler Carl (2020/2024) Book Review

 Hey everyone, how's it going? I'm doing pretty well. I was gonna do a blog post on either Monday or yesterday, but I was running errands both days, so I didn't get around to it. However, that post I planned to do will happen on Friday. Today I'm finally doing my review of Dungeon Crawler Carl, the first book in the series of the same name. This will have some spoilers in it because I think most of you have probably read this book already, but if you haven't, this is your SPOILER WARNING!!! for potential spoilers. Even though I've read books 2 and 3 of the series, I haven't read anything past that, so I won't even be discussing books 2 and 3 in this review. Let's get into it.

I'm amazed at how big this book has blown up in the last eight months. I originally read it back in January, when Brad lent me the first three books as I was stuck at home due to medical issues I was having at the time. When I first read it, nobody was talking about it online, nobody I knew besides Brad had told me about it. It just wasn't there. But, almost as soon as I finished book 3, suddenly I was seeing people talking about it online, outside of the typical Booktube (the book review community on YouTube), Bookstagram (book community on Instagram), and Booktok (the TikTok version) spaces. Not only that, but I have other friends who have read this book, as well as the other books in the series. It's insane that it's gotten so huge in such a short amount of time.

Dungeon Crawler Carl is written by Matt Dinniman, who originally self-published the book in 2020, as the pandemic hit and we all went into lockdown. Like I said, I didn't hear a thing about it at the time. I'm sure people within the online book communities were discussing it, but it never appeared on my radar and nobody I knew had read it.

The book is about a dude named Carl, who ends up in a game of survival along with his ex-girlfriend's cat, Princess Donut, whose full name is Princess Donut the Queen Anne Chonk. Donut was a show cat. Aliens invade Earth and destroy every building, car, gazebo, and other structures designed as shelters. The only inhabitants of the planet to survive are those who were outside when the alien invaders arrived. The survivors had a choice, enter the dungeon and participate in the game or stay on the surface and try to survive. The game is basically a reality show being watched by millions of people across the galaxy. It's like Dungeons and Dragons meets The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy meets The Hunger Games for more familiar references.

The reason Carl was even outside in the first place is because for some reason, Donut jumped out the window of the apartment that Carl had shared with his ex-girlfriend, Beatrice, onto a tree branch and then refused to jump back in through the window. This forced Carl to go outside to try to coax her back into the apartment. It was also January 3rd, in the middle of winter in Seattle. Carl had gone out in nothing but his boxers, a leather jacket, and a pair of crocs on his feet that were way too small. So they had no choice but to enter the dungeon and play the game in order to stay alive. Oh, and Donut talks after Carl gives her a special pet biscuit that turns her into a talking cat and a dungeon crawler in her own right.

I really enjoyed this book both times that I read it. However, I'm not a gamer, so while I found the concept to be fresh in the beginning, it quickly became repetitive and a slog to get through as I got further into the series. Which is why I've only read the first three books in the series. I think this first book is the best. The social commentary is great, it's just not saying anything new or groundbreaking. Which is fine, because that wasn't Dinniman's intent. 

My favourite part of the book is the characters. I love the dynamic between Carl and Donut. I also love Mordecai, who is basically Carl and Donut's guide in the world of Dungeon Crawler World, which is the name of the game show that Carl and Donut find themselves in. Mordecai is a former crawler who stayed on as a guide once his season was over. Which is interesting, but we don't really learn very much about him in this book. 

I do really enjoy Dungeon Crawler Carl. Normally this is where I'd recommend the book to you, but most people have read this book. Those that haven't are the ones who aren't interested in it. And that's fine. Not every book is for everyone. It's still a good book to read though, and I do recommend it if you enjoy reading books like this.

That's it for me for today. I'll be back soon with another post. Until then have a great rest of the day and I will talk to you all later. Take care.  

Nostalgia is Fun, But It's Fun Watching and Reading New Stuff Too

 Hey everyone, how's it going? I'm doing pretty well. It's Friday, and that means I'm here to talk about some of the things that I watched this year so far that I enjoyed and are recent releases. By recent, I mean in the last year or so (2025 to 2026). So, let's get into it.

Right now I'm currently doing a re-read of Dungeon Crawler Carl by Matt Dinniman. I actually read this book back in January when Brad lent me the first three books in the series while I waited for surgery. I haven't read books 4 to 8 yet, and I don't know if I actually will, but I liked the first book enough to buy my own copy of the paperback for the book a few weeks ago when I was at the drugstore for something. I'm re-reading it right now so I can do a review of it on the blog since I didn't do one back in January.

I did a review on this book two months ago, but the only other new book that I read is The Weight of Everything by Steve L. Morgan. Go check out my review of the book to get my full thoughts on it.

I haven't seen any new movies this year, because I don't go to the movie theatre anymore, but I have watched some recent TV shows. The first was the first season of Star Trek: Starfleet Academy. While there are some legacy characters in this show, as well as a host of legacy actors, this show doesn't focus on them as much as it does the younger cast who appear in this show. I had so much fun with this show because the characters were unique and while we've had characters who were cadets attending Starfleet Academy before, as well as stories that take place in that school setting, getting to see it on screen for the first time as the focus of a show was awesome for me, as a life long Star Trek fan. 

After that, I watched the first season of Star Wars: Maul - Shadow Lord on Disney+. It was a really good show. As I mentioned in my review of the first season, I was unsure about whether I would watch it or not, just because villain centric shows and movies are not my thing, and while I liked Darth Maul in Episode I, I thought they could've done less with him given that he was killed (supposedly) in that movie. I also tried to start season 1 of Star Wars: The Clone Wars, and got eight episodes in, but haven't gotten back to it, because I haven't been in the mood for it this past week.

Last year, when I was watching Andor, I kept seeing a show about a group of young adults in their twenties living in New York City in the 2020s. I was intrigued by it, so I put it on my watchlist on Disney+. It's called Adults and I finally got around to watching the first season after I was finished with Maul, and I loved it. Season 2 is premiering at the end of this month. So we'll see how things go.

Currently, I'm in the middle of the fourth season of Star Trek: Strange New Worlds. It is a way better season than season 3 was, however, I have one big problem with it, and it's a problem that the show has had for the last couple of seasons. SNW has always been about experimenting with different genres and filming styles. We had the storybook fantasy episode in season 1, way too many horror episodes for my taste, a musical episode, and a live-action/animation hybrid crossover episode with Lower Decks, which is still one of my favourite episodes of the entire show so far. But I found that in season 3 they experimented too much and the story got lost in the shuffle. Season 4 is suffering from that too a little bit. Like, this week's episode was filmed like a film noir show (like Spider Noir) and it wasn't necessary to do that. For me it distracted me from La'An's storyline as well as Una's and just became visually unappealing. It took me out of the world that Una, M'Benga, and Uhura were dealing with.

The people working on SNW have done their best to make every episode stand alone from the others. Which is fine, but when the story of each individual episode isn't necessarily strong enough, the jarring nature of changing genres and visual styles makes them even harder to enjoy. Especially when they're changing it constantly. And, so I don't know what show I'm going to be watching week to week anymore because of that. Which makes next season a bit worrisome to me as it's the final season and there are three characters who don't transition to TOS, so I'm afraid they will kill off these three characters or get rid of them in a way that serves the story, but doesn't serve those characters.

As a whole though, season 4 is a lot better than season 3 was. So I am enjoying being with these characters again after a year apart. I just hope we have a more satisfying ending to the season than we did with season 3.

Nostalgia is fun. I love watching movies that came out during my childhood, or from the decade I was born in, that I didn't get to see growing up. But, I also enjoy stepping back into modern day and watching or reading books, movies, and TV shows from now. I like having the balance of watching old shows, mixed with new shows. 

Alright my friends, that's it for me for today. I'll be back next week with a review of Dungeon Crawler Carl and I might try to do a movie review or two next week too. We'll see though. Until then, have a great evening and a great weekend and I will talk to you all later. Take care.