Dungeon Crawler Carl 1-3
Review by Jordan S.
I've long avoided the LitRPG craze. While some books sounded interesting, their overall reputation scared me off. I'm also very picky when it comes to good RPG video games and tabletop campaigns, so I knew that any LitRPG I picked up would have a high bar to clear. The Ace prints of Dungeon Crawler Carl, Carl's Doomsday Scenario, and The Dungeon Anarchist's Cookbook, however, convinced me to take a chance—and I'm very glad I did.
If you've never heard of a LitRPG, imagine a video game in book form. Usually, the main character is the player character, and the books revolve around leveling up, inventory management, and other hallmarks of video game RPGs. The Dungeon Crawler Carl series is one of the biggest names in LitRPG and now has seven installments, three of which have been published by Ace, the long-standing fantasy/sci-fi imprint. The series follows Carl and his ex-girlfriend's beloved show cat, Donut, who enter a living RPG after the world is destroyed by a reality contest show run by an alien empire. It's a lofty (and silly) concept, but Matt Dinniman, the author, handles it seriously and pulls it off admirably. Along the way, Carl levels up, crafts a fantasy persona, and forms a party with the now-talking Donut.
The greatest strength of this series is its characters, specifically Carl, Donut, and Katia. They all feel authentic, and it’s a pleasure to watch them try to survive the gauntlet they find themselves in. They have flaws they must grow with and overcome as the series progresses. This is especially well-done with Donut, who is one of the best characters I’ve read in a long time. Somehow, Dinniman created an amazingly well-rounded character out of a talking cat, and I’m in awe of that.
The books also lean into RPG elements in a way I loved. My favorite part of the series (besides Donut) is the bosses our heroes face. As someone who tends to prefer being the Dungeon Master for TTRPGs rather than a player, I found Dinniman’s creation of these bosses one of the coolest parts of the books. It added a wonderful layer of worldbuilding. His level design is also fantastic. I especially loved the subway-based level in The Dungeon Anarchist's Cookbook and could easily read a whole series set in a world like that.
The only drawback for me was the humor, which occasionally felt too edgy or didn’t land. Humor is highly subjective, so your mileage may vary, but in the first book, some jokes felt like they were punching down. However, these moments decreased as the series progressed, and by the third book, there were far fewer jokes I felt were in poor taste.
Overall, I recommend this series. It’s a lot of fun and has definitely opened up the LitRPG genre for me. I’m planning to explore more of these books now, which is probably the highest praise I can give. I’m also excited for the next installment in the series, as well as David Dalglish’s forthcoming LitRPG, Level: Unknown.