Feet of Clay by Terry Pratchett

On June 29, 2026 By The Unseen LibraryIn Audiobook, Comedy/Satire, Extended Universe, Fantasy, Five-Star Books, Murder Mystery, Throwback ThursdayLeave a comment

Publisher: Gollancz/Penguin Random (Audiobook – 6 June 1996)

Series: Discworld – Book 19/City Watch – Book Three

Length: 12 hours and 20 minutes

My Rating: 5 out of 5 stars

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Even after many, many re-reads, the awesome fantasy satire novel Feet of Clay remains one of my favourite Discworld novels by the late, great Terry Pratchett, with its intricate crime fiction narrative, compelling characters, and even a cool new audiobook version.

I’ve done a lot of Discworld re-reading recently as I have been checking out several of the best books in the series on their new audiobook formats, which featured cool new narrators. This new format has proven particularly awesome for books like Mort, Pyramids, Moving Pictures and Small Gods, as well as for entries in my favourite Discworld subseries, the City Watch books.

While I have a lot of love for all the books in Terry Pratchett’s Discworld, my absolute favourites come from the City Watch subseries. Following the unlikely members of the Ankh-Morpork City Watch, a rag-tag team of guards who go from losers to an effective police force, the City Watch books features an exceptional combination of fantasy and crime fiction elements, wrapped up in Pratchett’s usual satirical humour. The first two books in this series, Guards! Guards! and Men at Arms are quite exceptional, and it was a very easy decision to also check out the epic third novel in the series, Feet of Clay.

After several unlikely but successful investigations, things are looking up for the Ankh-Morpork City Watch. No longer a home for the dregs of society, the City Watch is now a respected crime-fighting unit. Led by Commander Sam Vimes, the Watch’s enthusiastic, if unusual, members are determined to bring some law and order to the city of Ankh-Morpork, whether it wants it or not.

However, even with their new resources and members, the Watch find themselves troubled by a series of brutal murders occurring throughout the city. All the victims were bludgeoned to death, but there is no evidence of anyone alive, or undead, having been at the crime scene. At the same time, the Patrician of Ankh-Morpork has been poisoned by unknown methods and is only barely clinging to life. If the Patrician dies, sanity in the city will be the next to fall.

To solve both cases, Vimes and his watchmen will need to investigate an overlooked underclass in the city, the golems, whose ancient secrets and desires may lie at the heart of the killings. But with desperate conspiracies, unlikely noble heirs and a new deranged king coming to light, can the City Watch uncover the figures pulling the strings in the darkness of Ankh-Morpork before it’s too late?

Wow, how is this book still so damn good? Feet of Clay was another outstanding read from Terry Pratchett, who once again deeply impresses with his exceptional writing, unmatched humour, and deeply relatable characters. This third City Watch book is probably some of Pratchett’s very best work, and it gets an extremely easy five-star rating from me.

I absolutely love the great narrative that Pratchett came up with for Feet of Clay, which I personally thinks has one of the author’s best crime fiction narratives behind it, as the complex characters humorously manoeuvre around the gritty streets of Ankh-Morpork. This book features a fun start that perfectly sets the scene for several of the key characters, including protagonist Sam Vimes’s daily routine of assassins and high society. You are also quickly thrust into the Watch’s new case involving two elderly academics bludgeoned to death. These initial investigations, as well as some other great sequences, set the scene for much of the rest of the book, with the narrative becoming even more hectic when Vimes discovers that the Patrician has been poisoned by unknown conspirators.

Afte the initial set-up, the rest of the story flows by extremely fast, with several character-driven storylines that flow together perfectly. The primary focus is on the two seemingly separate investigations into the murders and the poisonings, with Captain Carrot and Vimes taking control of each case. Both these major storylines go in some very interesting directions, with Vimes desperately trying to work out how the poisonings happened, while Carrot and Angua begin investigating the city’s golems, one of whom seems responsible for the murders. At the same time, Pratchett also provides some fantastic character-based storylines around several of the supporting Watch characters. This includes the unusual proclivities of the Watch’s new dwarf officer Corporal Cheery Littlebottom, Corporal Nobby Nobbs’s unbelievable reveal as a potential noble, one golem’s journey towards self-determination, and Angua’s continued feelings of alienation at being a werewolf.

All these storylines cross over perfectly in the final third of Feet of Clay, as the protagonists finally put together the subtle clues for the main two cases. While the reveal about who or what is behind the murders is fantastic in its own way, I must highlight the extremely well-hidden poisoning method that Pratchett devised for this plot, which is just so damn devious and cleverly set-up by the author. This leads to an excellent, action-focused collection of sequences that eventually pull together into an intense confrontation.

Pratchett wraps this up perfectly, with some amazing final reveals about who was ultimately pulling all the strings. While the mastermind of the conspiracy isn’t too surprising (especially if you listen to one of the audiobook versions), the way that Vimes works out their identity is so much fun thanks to some ironically hidden clues, and I love the big reveal scene between Vimes and the main antagonist. Pratchett also wraps up the remaining storylines perfectly, providing some great final touches to each of the characters’ respective arcs, and ensuring that the readers come away extremely satisfied. I honestly cannot emphasise enough just how addictive and clever this narrative was, and every single aspect of this plot was perfectly set up and utilised by Pratchett as he wove his fantasy, crime fiction magic.

I’ve always felt that Feet of Clay was one of Pratchett’s best-written novels, as he manages to expertly balance a range of competing storylines inside this highly entertaining, hybrid novel. As with all his City Watch books, the way that Pratchett manages to blend fantasy and crime fiction elements with his usual brilliant humour is just incredible, and I love how well this mixture of elements works to tell an effective narrative. I must particularly commend the great mystery in Feet of Clay, which is just so damn intricate with all its clues and mixture of compelling character storylines. Feet of Clay easily has some of Pratchett’s best mystery writing in its plot, and there is an outstanding amount of complexity built into both cases, with the truly elaborate poisoning arc being a particular highlight. The sheer amount of cleverly crafted and often humorous clues that the author scatters throughout the book is so damn awesome, and it is so much fun to pull them all together.

The book’s outstanding crime fiction elements are perfectly enhanced by the background fantasy elements of the setting, with the protagonists forced to investigate the crimes in the context of a chaotic city populated with different species. Compared to previous books, the investigation in Feet of Clay is much more like a modern police procedural, with classic forensic concepts enhanced with fantasy elements like scent tracking done by a werewolf and crime scene photos drawn by imps. The protagonists also need to deal with various fantasy creatures, such as golems, vampires, dwarfs and a very angry gnome, and understanding their motivations becomes a key part of the plot. Pratchett also uses these fantasy elements to address and lightly satirise contemporary social trends. For example, one dwarf’s attempt to find herself leads to a complex, nuanced and thought-provoking discussion on gender identity, which can still be readily applied to modern discourses on transgendered rights and modern gender norms. Another storyline focusing on golems gaining free will is also highly relevant, especially when you consider artificial intelligence. Throw in the general chaos and disorder of the city, which results in additional fun conflicts and incidents (Vimes’s one-sided battle against the Assassins Guild is particularly amusing), as well as a focus on the changes that have occurred to Ankh-Morpork thanks to the actions of the Patrician and the Watch, and you really have to appreciate just how fell the inherent fantasy elements of Feet of Clay enhances the plot.

While both the mystery and fantasy elements of Feet of Clay are very compelling, what really turns this into a five-star read is the clever humour that Pratchett adds to his books. There are various layers to the humour in this novel, although much of it lies in classic fantasy or murder mystery scenarios going in particularly absurd directions, or being artfully dissected by self-aware protagonists who find the situation and its real-world historical precedent very absurd. There are also the brilliant footnotes that seek to enhance the story and showcase just how ridiculous the Discworld is by providing additional details about the universe and the people within it. Finally, you have humour driven by the outrageous characters scattered throughout the plot, with ultra-sarcastic figures rubbing shoulders with entertaining parodies of terrible people. The more direct humour drawn from the storylines of several of these characters, such as Corporal Nobbs’s foray into the upper class, and Sergeant Colon unfortunate agricultural experiences, blends well with the rest of the complex novel, and ensures that there are entertaining moments, no matter where in Feet in Clay you are.

This great combination of humour, fantasy elements and a crime fiction narrative helps to make Feet of Clay one of the more appealing novels in all the Discworld series, and so many different readers will end up getting a lot out of it. As such, Feet of Clay works incredibly well as a standalone novel, with new readers easily able to enjoy this book without any prior knowledge of the Discworld or previous City Watch books, especially as Pratchett covers any relevant history or characters quite effectively. However, I do feel that to get the best experience with Feet of Clay, readers would benefit from checking out Guards! Guards! and Men at Arms first. The continuing storylines, history of the city and character arcs all come into play extremely well in Feet of Clay and you get a much more complete experience viewing all City Watch novels in order.

As with all of Pratchett’s novels, one of the real joys of Feet of Clay is the complex and comedic characters the author weaved such incredible, entertaining, and often extremely heartwarming tales around. Featuring a great combination of the well-established cast of the previous City Watch books, as well as a couple of awesome new figures, Pratchett did an exceptional job diving into the cast of his novel and the resulting depth to their characters was so damn impressive.

At the centre of Feet of Clay lies main character Commander Samuel Vimes, the recently ennobled and married commander of the City Watch. Transformed from a drunken and hated figure to the leader of a respected police organisation, Vimes has been forced to up his game, especially as he now finds himself being targeted by the elites of the city which he does with some comedic vigour. Feet of Clay is probably the book where Pratchett twists the focus of the City Watch fully towards Vimes. The definite centre of the plot, Pratchett really dives into Vimes’s obsessive nature, his simmering anger at the upper classes, and his determination to bring justice to everyone equally. Vimes dogged, yet cynical, approach to investigation and crime solving comes face to face with a particularly dastardly plot in Feet of Clay, and there are some wonderful sequences as he tries to puzzle out the poisoning. Pratchett also provides some extra detail about Vimes’ poor upbringing and the history of his family, which really showcases his motivations to a great degree. All this allows for a much more complicated figure then we saw in previous books, and it was an interesting change of pace for this central character that Pratchett would expand on in later books.

In addition to Vimes, there are some interesting focuses on Captain Carrot and Constable Angua, who led the investigation into the murders in the city, and Pratchett wraps some compelling elements around them. Carrot remains the charismatic and skilled leader of men for much of the story, with a continued focus on his love for the city and ability to charm anyone he encounters. However, Pratchett does attempt to break his seemingly perfect facade in this novel by having him struggle to come to terms with Cheery Littlebottom’s identity issues. The author also continues to shift away from Carrot as a perspective character, instead allowing his many appearances to be mainly told from the view of other, more cynical members of the cast. This gives his actions and motivations a little more mystery and allows the reader to wonder just how perfect he really is. For Feet of Clay, most of this narration was done by Angua, the Watch’s werewolf officer and Carrot’s love interest. Angua proves to be a very practical and sarcastic personality foil to the upbeat Carrot, which helps to humanise both to a degree. Pratchett also adds in a compelling underlying storyline of Angua struggling with how others perceive her as a werewolf, and her certainty that her relationship with Carrot can’t last.

While Carrot and Angua represent the more serious side of the Watch, Pratchett continues to have fun by focusing on the always amusing and comedic duo of Sergeant Fred Colon and Corporal Nobby Nobbs. Their narrative in Feet of Clay is particularly good, especially for Nobby, who finds himself elevated to nobility status when it is discovered he is the long-lost descendant of the Earl of Ankh. Suddenly forced to hobnob with other nobs, Nobby has some fantastic reactions and interactions, especially going from despair at being a penniless noble, to trying to fit in with the city’s elite. While this seems like a mostly comedic storyline to undercut the tension of Feet of Clay’s serious crimes it fits into the main narrative in some clever ways, although Nobby’s reaction when he finds this out is so damn funny and perfectly reflects his own mentality and his knowledge of Vimes’ reactions.

Sergeant Colon, on the other hand, is somewhat less used in Feet of Clay, although Pratchett has fun satirising the ‘policeman three days away from retirement’ trope through him. Keen to get out of the Watch because his wife wants him to buy a farm (another subtle and fun joke from Pratchett), Colon inevitably runs into insane trouble in the second half of the book, and it was fun to see the craziness of the other storylines literally stampede over him. I have loved these two characters since their first appearance in Guards! Guards! and this is one of their funniest books (although their next appearance in Jingo is also peak comedy).

While these recurring characters are awesome, special mention needs to go to the new members of the Watch that Pratchett introduces in Feet of Clay, who have major impacts on the plot. The most significant of this is the new dwarf forensic officer, Corporal Cheery Littlebottom (a very traditional dwarf name). Cheery serves as a compelling outsider figure, with Pratchett moving her across both investigations. However, it’s her characterisation as a female dwarf who wants to acknowledge her gender rather than act like a male dwarf, as is tradition, that really sets Cheery up as a standout character. Naturally working in aspects of identity and overcoming established mindsets are a big part of Cheery’s character, and it was wonderful to see her gain confidence and skill as a Watch officer. Pratchett did such an excellent job of handling these complex cultural elements through Cheery, and it’s amazing how significant Cheery’s actions are in the larger Discworld narrative, as well as how relevant they are today.

Other characters I need to mention as I finally wrap up this section include the mysterious golem Dorfl. A voiceless and dutiful figure that is part of the city’s exploited golem underclass, Dorfl has a compelling connection to the murders in Feet of Clay and serves as an unlikely witness and suspect. Pratchett writes a particularly compelling motivation around Dorfl’s actions in this novel, which cleverly ties into discussion about self-determination and artificial intelligence. I also had a lot of fun with Dorfl’s later scenes, especially as he becomes the city’s most unexpected and dramatic revolutionary. Other highlights for me include Lord Vetinari, who takes his role as a poison victim with his usual special interest. Throw in an ancient vampire with a love of terrible puns, an extremely angry gnome, and other compelling characters dragged into the narrative’s web, and the cast of Feet of Clay was one of Pratchett’s strongest, especially with all the emotional impact they add to the plot.

As with all the other Discworld novels I have reviewed, I have enjoyed Feet of Clay on various formats over the years, but my favourite is once again its audiobook version. The various audiobook releases are always the absolute best ways to enjoy a Discworld novel, and the fantastic humour, compelling characters and entertaining locations that Pratchett comes up with, always come across in impressive fashion when read out. This is especially true for Feet of Clay, which, like many of the series, has had several different audiobook versions over the years. This includes the classic version released back in 1997, featuring narration by one of my favourite audiobook narrators, the legendary Nigel Planer. I have raved about Planer in several previous reviews, including for Guards! Guards! and Men at Arms, and few narrators can capture Pratchett’s style and comedic charm with their voices like Planer did. His work narrating Feet of Clay was particularly impressive, especially with his portrayal of all the cool characters, including an over-the-top vampire, the new dwarf member of the watch, and more. The Planer narration of this novel is probably the definitive Feet of Clay audiobook, and I have been in love with this version since I was a child.

I also need to highlight the new audiobook released a couple of years ago. Featuring the very impressive cast of Jon Culshaw, Peter Serafinowicz and Bill Nighy, this more recent Feet of Clay release was also very exceptional, building off the great work these three narrators did with their Guards! Guards! and Men at Arms audiobooks. Coming in with a runtime of 12 hours and 20 minutes, this Feet of Clay audiobook is a bit longer than the Planer release (which had a runtime of 9 hours and 38 minutes), although listeners are still in for an exceptional time. Much of this is down to British radio and television personality Jon Culshaw, who once again made this audiobook his own with his take on the story and his characters. His gritty and entertaining voices for the cast are very fitting, and like Planer, he excels at showcasing their complicated personalities, as well as the overall humour of the book. I am once again very impressed with just how excellent Culshaw was for the City Watch books, and he is my favourite narrator from these new Discworld audiobooks.

As with all books in this new collection of Discworld audiobook’s, Culshaw’s main narration was perfectly backed up by recuring voices of Bill Nighy and Peter Serafinowicz. These performances were once again perfect, and I especially loved Nighy’s excellent work with the vital, comedic footnotes. Serafinowicz’s role in Feet of Clay is also very fun, as he brings the fan-favourite character of Death to life. While Death only has a few scenes in Feet of Clay, Serafinowicz makes the most of his appearances, and hearing the actor’s deep Death voice suddenly appear amongst the general narration really increases the impact of the character. Both Bill Nighy and Peter Serafinowicz’s inclusions were extremely fun, and I felt that they were combined with Culshaw’s main narration in a very impressive way. These three brilliant British talents ensured that the new version of Feet of Clay was particularly impressive and while my heart will always belong to the original audiobook with Nigel Planer, this new multi-cast audiobook will likely inspire a new generation of Discworld fans.

With an incredible and winning combination of charm, mystery and comedic brilliance, Feet of Clay was another exceptional and classic read in Terry Pratchett’s Discworld. Providing an ultra-addictive story that also perfectly adds in some great new characters, Feet of Clay is one of the very best Discworld books, and one of my personal favourites. An exceptional read I will recommend until the day I die!

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The Blacktongue Thief by Christopher Buehlman

On June 27, 2026 By The Unseen LibraryIn Fantasy, Five-Star Books, Throwback Thursday1 Comment

Publisher: Gollancz (Trade Paperback – 16 March 2021)

Series: Blacktongue series – Book One

Length: 416 pages

My Rating: 5 out 5 stars

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Prepare for brutal action and adventure in the highly acclaimed fantasy novel, The Blacktongue Thief, a modern classic from a fast-rising author of fantasy fiction.

Several years ago, I made note of an intriguing upcoming fantasy novel that had caught my attention, The Blacktongue Thief. Written by Christopher Buehlman, an established fantasy and horror writer who I wasn’t familiar with, The Blacktongue Thief had an awesome and intriguing plot behind it, and I was determined to read it when it came out in 2021. Unfortunately, due to time constraints I never got the chance to read it when it first came out. However, for the next several years all I heard from fellow fantasy fans was just how good The Blacktongue Thief and its prequel The Daughter’s War was. Despite this constant praise, which felt a little judgemental towards me, I kept failing to read The Blacktongue Thief, although I was lucky enough to find a good secondhand copy of it last year. With the sequel to The Blacktongue Thief announced for late 2026, I finally decided to take the plunge with this book earlier this year, and boy was I happy, if unsurprised, with how much fun I had with it.

Plot Synopsis:

Kinch Na Shannack owes the Takers Guild a small fortune for his education as a thief, which includes (but is not limited to) lock-picking, knife-fighting, wall-scaling, fall-breaking, lie-weaving, trap-making, plus a few small magics. His debt has driven him to lie in wait by the old forest road, planning to rob the next traveler that crosses his path.

But today, Kinch Na Shannack has picked the wrong mark.

Galva is a knight, a survivor of the brutal goblin wars, and handmaiden of the goddess of death. She is searching for her queen, missing since a distant northern city fell to giants.

Unsuccessful in his robbery and lucky to escape with his life, Kinch now finds his fate entangled with Galva’s. Common enemies and uncommon dangers force thief and knight on an epic journey where goblins hunger for human flesh, krakens hunt in dark waters, and honor is a luxury few can afford.

Whelp, it turns out that I made a big mistake not reading The Blacktongue Thief sooner. Featuring a powerful and dark take on the classic fantasy quest, The Blacktongue Thief was a compelling character-driven journey into an elaborate and war-riven fantasy world that effortlessly grabs your attention and refuses to let go. An utterly addictive read from Buehlman that gets a full five-star rating from me.

Buehlman hits the ground running hard with The Blacktongue Thief, quickly introducing you to witty and likeable rogue, Kinch Na Shannack, the book’s protagonist and point-of-view character, as he engages in a little light banditry in the forest. However, things quickly get out of hand for the protagonist as he fails to rob travelling knight and goblin wars veteran Galva in dramatic fashion. However, there is far more to Galva than expected, as Kinch finds himself tasked by his employers, the powerful Takers Guild of thieves to follow Galva on her quest to the remote, giant-ravished nation of Oustrim, where she seeks to find her lost friend and queen. Manoeuvring his way into Galva’s travel plans, Kinch soon becomes attached to his new friend, while the Takers Guild continue to control his actions. I liked how effectively Buehlman set up his narrative in the early pages of The Blacktongue Thief, as there is a lot of early hints and starting storylines that play out as the novel continues. The author also lays out some interesting details about the larger fantasy world, including much of its recent troubles and wars, which effectively draws you in alongside the compelling central narrative.

After this intriguing start, Buehlman gets into the story proper, as The Blacktongue Thief takes on many characteristics of a classic fantasy adventure story, with the protagonists travelling from one end of the continent to another. Picking up some interesting new companions, as well as hints of some of the shadowy motivations around the various players of the plot, Buehlman starts loading in the action, with several entertaining and bloody sequences. I personally loved the extended run with the protagonists travelling on a piratical whaling ship that takes up much of the centre of The Blacktongue Thief, especially as Buehlman litters this part of the book with feuds, monster fighting, multiple skirmishes and other nautical misadventures. There are some great moments here, and the author shows the reader what type of book The Blacktongue Thief is with plenty of brutal deaths and sudden changes of fortune. While much of this part of the book is focused on adventure and modern carnage, Buehlman also makes sure to continue providing intriguing dives into additional details of the setting, as well as some compelling character histories, much of which comes into play as the book continues.

After several dark encounters, tragedies and compelling dangers, the book enters its final third, which proves to be particularly compelling. Set in the giant-stalked ruins of Oustrim, this final part of The Blacktongue Thief is particularly intense, and you are constantly waiting for the other shoe to drop amongst the dangerous exploration, encounters and sudden sharp conflict. Buehlman cleverly drops some big revelations as you get towards the end of the book, with developments that change your entire perspective of events. It also leads to a final series of deadly confrontations, which proves to be quite shocking in places, even after the book’s various prior tragedies. Buehlman keeps you guessing about what will happen next right to the very end, especially with a final mind-blowing twist about a supporting character. I loved the intriguing note that Buehlman leaves The Blacktongue Thief on, especially as it sets up its potential sequel which will no-doubt expand on several loose ends from this cool book. All this is quite addictive, and I honestly got so hooked on all the crazy adventures that the author loaded into this novel.

I really enjoyed how The Blacktongue Thief came together, especially as Buehlman provides a dark take on the classic quest narrative. Bringing the reader into a beat-up fantasy world, The Blacktongue Thief has a very readable and edgy style that effectively draws you in from the start. It really doesn’t take you long to get stuck into the book thanks to the great combination of entertaining humour, distinctive worldbuilding and intense action, all of which blends in an excellent and intense manner. Much of this humour is driven from the amusing antics of The Blacktongue Thief’s protagonist, and the combination of other unique personalities adds a lot to the overall adventure aspect of the plot. The intrigue, mistrust and hidden motivations increase the tension of the plot nicely, with old mistakes and dark histories perfectly inserted into the main plot by Buehlman. I deeply enjoyed the multiple awesome action set-pieces that the author throws into The Blacktongue Thief, with so many intense moments of well-choreographed and described combat weaved into the plot. There is an amazing amount of brutality thrown into the book, which the darker nature of the universe and the desperate plot extremely well, and I was glad that Buehlman didn’t hold back any punches. I also really enjoyed how there were no slow or quiet moments in The Blacktongue Thief, with the reader constantly moving forward, much like the protagonists.

For me one of the big highlights that put The Blacktongue Thief on another level was the complex and grim fantasy world the story takes place in. While there are many classic fantasy elements within this book, Buehlman sets it apart with some very intriguing details. In particular, the book is set in the aftermath of a brutal war between the various human nations and an invading army of goblins. As such, there is a battered feel to the setting, with the remaining humans wary and militant, and distrust and change in the air. I loved how well Buehlman captured the desperation and despair of the inhabitants of the realm, as they attempt to survive in the post-war period, and it adds an even darker edge to the already brutal proceedings. The clever inclusion of several consequences of the war, such as the loss of all the horses in the world thanks to a goblin-wrought disease, and the necessity of woman to be called up to fight in the last war, further enhances the uniqueness of The Blacktongue Thief, and it was really cool how it impacted the current journey and the protagonist’s pasts. I also quite enjoyed how Buehlman set up multiple unique fantasy realms and kingdoms within the larger world, which the protagonists are forced to move across to reach their goals. The differing politics, cultures and allegiances that they experienced, as well as the realistic length of the journey across the large continent, ensured that the protagonist’s journey felt like a proper epic quest, and I really enjoyed following the journey on the map provided at the front of the book. Tracing the protagonist’s journey across the lands helped to enhance the enormity of the plot, and it also hinted at a ton of fun new realms that the protagonists will likely visit in the other entries in this series. Buehlman’s excellent world building in The Blacktongue Thief really was quite impressive, and it was a big factor in my eventual five-star rating.

The final thing I want to talk about with The Blacktongue Thief are the excellent and memorable characters Buehlman sets his plot around. The author ends up introducing a fun central cast that engage in the main quest, each of whom have their own demons and interesting quirks. The primary character is Kinch Na Shannack, a low-level thief who is indebted to the Takers Guild after they trained him and taught him some basic magic. The narrator and central perspective protagonist, Kinch entertains as the willey tricksters of the group, using his brains and talents for deceit and thievery to survive rather than brute force. Much of The Blacktongue Thief’s humour comes from Kinch’s funny jokes, cutting observations and somewhat unreliable narration, which blended surprisingly well with the darker setting of the book. While mostly always comedic, Kinch does have a serious side to him, especially when it comes to his many secrets and hidden motivations. Buehlman writes a great plot around Kinch finding his true purpose, as his loyalties to the group and his growing courage is forced up against the control of the Takers Guild and the general craziness of the world he encounters. An overall amazing main character who was the perfect depiction of the rebellious yet faithful rogue.

The other major character I really need to highlight is the striking Galva, a deadly female knight whose quest the plot is set around. A scarred and dangerous veteran of the goblin wars, Galva is a no-nonsense figure in the book, dedicated to her mission, as well as her worship of the setting’s death goddess. Buehlman ensures that Galva is set up as pretty badass character from the very start of the book, and you really get drawn to her honourable personality in this dishonourable world. While mostly serious and unforgiving, there is a certain lighter side to Galva at times, which makes even more likeable, and she ended up being the perfect foil and straight woman to Kinch, with the two having some great interactions. There is also a certain amount of battle-born trauma to Galva, much of which looks set to be explored in the prequel novel, The Daughter’s War, which added some extra complexity to her appearance. Galva truly was a great character, and I loved her use as the serious and militant heart of the larger cast.

While Kinch and Galva get most of the focus in The Blacktongue Thief, there are some other entertaining characters who add a lot to the plot. This includes the young witch, Norrigal, who serves as an interesting interest to Kinch, and whose overarching story had some clever and twisty moments to. I also must mention Malk Na Brannyck, a countryman of Kinch who adds a lot of drama to the plot due to his history with the protagonist. Another war veteran, Malk worked well as a minor antagonist who eventually morphs into a reluctant ally, and his various caustic interactions with Kinch added to the larger dysfunction of the protagonists. Special mention also needs to go to the stray cat, Bully Boy, who tags along with the group against all the odds, and whose appearance definitely isn’t sinister or mysterious. Throw in a range of rogues, thieves, killers and other dangerous figures that the protagonists encounter, and the cast of The Blacktongue Thief is stacked. All these characters, and more, have some great storylines attached to them, and I really enjoyed the entertaining and often dark interactions that occurred, especially as it added to the general chaos of the plot.

After finally reading this epic novel, I can confirm that The Blacktongue Thief lives up the hype surrounding it. Christopher Buehlman introduced a wonderfully dark fantasy world in this book and then moulded a powerful adventure story around it. Loaded with intense action, great characters and a captivating story, The Blacktongue Thief was utter fun from the very beginning, and I had so much fun getting through it. I am so glad I finally got the chance to read this novel, and I am hoping to read The Daughter’s War next, especially with the next book in series, The Thrice-Bound Fool, set for release later this year.

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Warhammer 40,000: The Greater Good by Sandy Mitchell

On March 29, 2026 By The Unseen LibraryIn Audiobook, Extended Universe, Science Fiction, Throwback Thursday, Tie-in Novel, WarhammerLeave a comment

Publisher: Black Library (Audiobook – 1 January 2013)

Series: Ciaphas Cain – Book Nine

Length: 9 hours and 50 minutes

My Rating: 4.5 out of 5 stars

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Continue to follow the legendary and complex Commissar Ciaphas Cain into death and danger, with another amazing book in Sandy Mitchell’s awesome Warhammer 40,000 series, The Greater Good.

After recently reviewing the eighth book in Sandy Mitchell’s iconic Ciaphas Cain series, The Last Ditch, I just had to continue following the fun adventures of the Imperium’s most charismatic yet cowardly commissar, Ciaphas Cain. As such, the moment I finished The Last Ditch, I immediately read the ninth book in the series, The Greater Good, which had a very interesting scenario behind it that builds on several previous storylines from the series.

Commissar Ciaphas Cain, legendary hero of the Imperium of Man and self-declared fraud, is once again thrust into mortal danger when he is assigned to bolster the defences of the human planet of Quadravidia, against the high-tech attacks of the Tau. Amid the expected brutal fighting against the advanced aliens, Cain is surprised when the Tau not only recognise him amongst the fighting but also single him out to request an unexpected ceasefire right on the cusp of a Tau victory.

Expecting the worst from this unlikely turn of events, Cain is unsurprised when the Tau reveal that an even greater threat is moving towards the sector, a hive fleet of Tyranids. With neither side capable of fighting both each other and the ravenous Tyranids, the Imperium and the Tau agree to an uneasy truce, with both sides agreeing to coordinate their offensive against the incoming hive fleet.

Accompanied by a Tau ambassador, Cain, his trusty aid Jurgen, and the Imperial fleet journey to the vital Forge World of Fecundia, a potential target for the incoming Tyranids. Using Fecundia as a base of operations, the Imperium are hopeful the Tyrands will focus their attack on the Tau controlled planets. However, the chances of Cain remaining out of the fight are always slim, and the commissar soon discovers the existence of a secret facility hidden on the planet, one guaranteed to draw the Tyranids to Fecundia.

Caught between an invading fleet of ravening aliens, and the troubled politics of Fecundia, Cain must rally the defenders for another deadly battle. However, the secrets lurking within the hidden facility look set to doom them all, and Cain must discover just how far the rot goes in Fecundia, before the entire world is devoured.

The Greater Good was another excellent and highly entertaining Warhammer 40,000 novel from Sandy Mitchell that combines excellent and action-packed storytelling, with a fantastic and humorous protagonist. Featuring an outstanding story, The Greater Good was a ton of fun from start to finish, and it served as an amazing continuation of one of the best Warhammer 40,000 series out there.

I quite enjoyed the plot of The Greater Good, although it did go in some different directions to what I was expecting. From the cover and the official plot synopsis, I assumed this novel was going to feature humans and Tau fighting side by side on the initial planet the book is set, after temporarily setting aside their differences. Instead, the plot is primarily set on a secondary planet of Fecundia, with the only Tau being a controversial ambassador providing some interesting alternative insights. While this was still a fun and exciting narrative, it did run the risk of being a bit too similar to some of the previous Ciaphas Cain novels that focused on Tyranid invasions.

I felt that Mitchell compensated well for this change in direction, by drawing together an interesting read about infiltration, isolated battles and the Imperium’s research in the Tyranids as they attempt to find ways to defeat them. Revisiting key story elements from the previous two Ciaphas Cain novels, the protagonist soon finds himself trapped amid a series of controversial and dangerous experiments that begin to attract the Tyranid hive fleet. After a series of exciting set pieces, including a great extended sequence with the protagonist trapped in an alien filled desert, you reach the final third of the book which primarily takes place in the secret research centre. Unsurprisingly, things go wrong, and Cain and Jurgen are forced into a seemingly hopeless situation as they fight enemies on all sides. There were some good twists here, especially around potential betrayals, and while the culprit is easy to predict, there is an excellent amount of uncertainty and red herrings to keep you guessing. The entire story comes together in an awesome way, filled with Mitchell’s usual excellent fight sequences and humour, and this proved to be a compelling and satisfying addition to the larger series.

Long-term fans of this Warhammer 40,000 series will know that Mitchell has a set format for the Ciaphas Cain books that blends clever character-driven humour with the usual grim action and lore of the universe. This was also the case for The Greater Good, which features the usual chronicle style told from the protagonist’s perspective, bolstered by funny external commentary from a fictional editor, who also adds in some entertaining in-universe texts for some additional context. While this style and certain narrative elements are very familiar, especially if you read a few of these books in a row, The Greater Good was still an awesome novel, and Mitchell did make it stand out by adding in some intrigue with Tyranid infiltrators, as well as some curious looks at diplomacy between the Imperium and the Tau. I quite enjoyed seeing the conflicts that emerged between the various factions of this impromptu alliance, especially as Cain and the Imperial Guard had more issues with their Adeptus Mechanicus and Space Marine allies than the Tau. Add to that Mitchell’s usually impressive humour and wonderful action set pieces, and The Greater Good was an overall outstanding novel that I quickly powered through.

While most of the Ciaphas Cain books work well as standalone reads that are very accessible to new readers, The Greater Good stood out as it had more of a connection to the previous entries in the series. There were a lot of heavy references to the events of For the Emperor, The Emperor’s Finest and The Last Ditch, with key plot elements and some returning characters coming into the play during The Greater Good’s narrative. As someone who enjoyed all the previous books, it was nice to see the consequences and aftermath of these prior adventures be utilised in this entry’s plot, and I think that long-term fans will really appreciate it. These references also helped to dispel some of the usual issues this series has with reusing descriptions and thoughts from the previous books. While much of the plot is geared towards established fans, new readers can still easily follow The Greater Good’s plot without too much issue, as Mitchell does an excellent job of recapping these previous adventures. As such, The Greater Good proves to be an amazing overall entry in the Ciaphas Cain series, especially as it remains accessible and enjoyable to readers of varying experiences.

As always, I must give a shoutout to the outstanding cast of this novel, especially as there is an interesting array of unique characters contained within. This includes a great mix of familiar and new characters, with much of the action focused on the titular Commissar Ciaphas Cain, who remains the usual complex rogue we’re so familiar with. It is always fun to see Cain struggle with his imposter syndrome and supposed cowardice, and Mitchell ensures that the protagonist is the main source of the book’s humour thanks to his self-centred narration and hilarious insights into the usual grimdark universe. Cain’s aide Jurgen remains an excellent source of additional entertainment, while Inquisitor Amberly Vail is once again perfect as the overarching editor of the story, providing her sarcastic insights and corrections to Cain’s actions and conclusions. Throw in a captivating combination of new or minor characters, including a frustrated general, a calculating Tau ambassador, some returning Space Marines and a cunning Tech Priest with her own agenda, and the cast of The Greater Good is exceptional and drives the story into some fascinating places.

After hyping up the audiobook versions of all the previous Ciaphas Cain entries, I doubt anyone will be too surprised that I decided to check out The Greater Good on this format. All Warhammer 40,000 novels are damn awesome on audiobook, and The Greater Good is a particularly epic example of this. Coming in with a runtime just short of 10 hours, The Greater Good audiobook is an amazing listen that is easy to get addicted to, especially as the excellent use of several outstanding narrators really helps to enhance and highlight Mitchell’s unique writing style.

The Greater Good audiobook features an impressive six separate narrators, all of whom will be quite well known by Warhammer audiobook enthusiasts. As with the rest of the series, most of the work is done by returning narrators Stephen Perring and Penelope Rawlins, both of whom have a key role in this production. Perring serves as the entertaining and flippant voice of Cain as he recounts this adventure in his own words, while Rawlins is the voice of Inquisitor Vail as she provides her editorial notes throughout the plot and introduces other intermissions. These two have long proven themselves to be perfect main narrators for the Ciaphas Cain books, and they fulfilled their roles in The Greater Good extremely well, full grasping the complexity of their respective characters. The other four narrators for this audiobook, Matthew Hunt, Andrew James Spooner, John Banks and Tara Rawson, have minor but entertaining roles in this audiobook, providing voices for the various in-universe history texts and other books/messages that appear at various parts of the book, which allows for some additional comedy. This mixed narration comes together extremely well throughout the entirety of The Greater Good, resulting in a particularly epic listen. As such, I would once again recommend that potential readers of this Ciaphas Cain novel check out the audiobook version, as there is frankly no better way to enjoy The Greater Good.

With yet another clever, exciting and hilarious take on the epic Warhammer 40,000 universe, the ninth Ciaphas Cain novel, The Greater Good, was an outstanding addition to the series that I had a wonderful time listening to. Utilising his tried and tested writing style, Sandy Mitchell produces another compelling and entertaining read that proves to be highly addictive and a lot of fun to get through. I really enjoyed this excellent entry in the Ciaphas Cain series, and I am hoping to finish off this series by the end of the year.

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Warhammer 40,000: The Last Ditch by Sandy Mitchell

On March 20, 2026 By The Unseen LibraryIn Audiobook, Extended Universe, Science Fiction, Throwback Thursday, Tie-in Novel, Warhammer1 Comment

Publisher: Black Library (Audiobook – 1 February 2012)

Series: Ciaphas Cain – Book Eight

Length: 9 hours and 29 minutes

My Rating: 4.75 out of 5 stars

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The mighty hero of the Imperium returns for another rip-roaring and highly entertaining Warhammer 40,000 adventure, with The Last Ditch by Sandy Mitchell, a wonderful Ciaphas Cain novel that proves exceptionally hard to put down.

I have been in a real Warhammer 40,000 mood lately, so I decided to continue my exploration of the franchise by diving back into one of its best and most hilarious series with another Ciaphas Cain novel by Sandy Mitchell. The Ciaphas Cain series are particularly awesome Warhammer 40,000 novels that follow the adventures of the legendary human hero Commissar Ciaphas Cain as he faces down the many horrors the grimdark Warhammer universe has to offer. However, what sets the series apart from other series in the franchise is the fantastic tongue-in-cheek way in which the supposed hero of the series sees himself as a substantial coward concerned more with his own survival, and whose heroic exploits are down more to luck and chance. This results in a fantastic collection of books, each one of which throws the protagonist into danger despite his best efforts, often resulting in a series of hilarious and over-the-top adventures. I have had an outstanding team reading the previous entries in the series, including For the Emperor, Caves of Ice, The Traitor’s Hand, Death or Glory, Duty Calls, Cain’s Last Stand and The Emperor’s Finest, and I have been eager to read the eighth novel in the series, The Last Ditch for some time.

Commissar Ciaphas Cain, famed hero of the Imperium of Man, is at the height of his legendary career, fighting back the many enemies of humanity despite his best attempts to stay out of battle. However, despite his reputation usually landing him in the most challenging of conflicts, Cain’s next mission seems to be relatively straightforward. Once again accompanied by the Valhallan 597^th regiment of Imperial Guard, Cain is tasked with eradicating a simple ork infestation on the frozen planet of Nusquam Fundumentibus. However, not even Cain’s most pessimistic musings of the future can prepare him for the horrors to come.

Travelling aboard a disreputable freighter, Cain and his soldiers are forced to make a deadly crashlanding on Nusquam Fundumentibus, right into the middle of an ork horde. Engaged in a desperate fight for their lives against the greenskins, the Imperial Guard are blind to other threats hiding on the planet, threats that are far more insidious than a group of rampaging orks.

As the conflict continues and several isolated communities on the planet start to go dark, Cain soon becomes aware that something apart from the orks are stalking the citizens of Nusquam Fundumentibus. Something ancient and malevolent lies hidden beneath the ice of the planet, and the new war has finally woken them up. Outnumbered and outmatched, the Imperial Guard need to pull a desperate and no doubt suicidal plan to survive. Luckily, they have a bonified hero to lead the charge, even if he’d rather be anywhere else in the galaxy.

The always outstanding Ciaphas Cain series continues in impressive form, as Sandy Mitchell adds further depth to some of the more entertaining and gripping novels in the Warhammer 40,000 franchise. Combining intense action with the protagonist’s unique insights into the grimdark Warhammer universe, The Last Ditch was a brilliant addition to the series that I couldn’t get enough of.

Mitchell once again came up with an outstanding narrative for The Last Ditch that grabs your attention early on and keeps you hooked to the very end. I must admit that I was a little apprehensive about reading The Last Ditch, as it looked like Mitchell was going to rehash the similar ice-world story found in Caves of Ice. However, this book has a very different narrative, while still maintaining all the familiar story elements that make this series to dependable to read. Starting off on a different footing with a fun transport arc that ends in deadly tears, The Last Ditch has an explosive first third (literally), which provided a lot of initial drama and risk.

The Last Ditch’s story quickly dives into even more awesome action, as the protagonist is reluctantly forced into action against the orks, while other dangerous threats lurk beneath the surface. I liked how Mitchell did a good job building up tension in advance of the reveal about the true antagonists of the novel, with the reader knowing that something worse was coming thanks to Cain’s prescient narration from the future, and the author used this time to expand on his new setting. The eventual sequence revealing this enemy had a great horror vibe to it as Cain explored tight quarters underground, and it led naturally into an extended campaign. The rest of the book is a good mixture of connected action scenes, as Cain and the other characters slowly work out just how desperate the situation is and attempt to take steps to address it. This works well as an overarching narrative, and you really appreciate the scope of the situation and the protagonist’s continued accidental heroics as he tries to run away.

All this perfectly leads up to a final big sequence, where the desperate protagonists are forced into a particularly brutal fight with little hope of survival. Unsurprisingly, this requires Cain to engage in another suicide mission, which leads to some of the best action scenes in the entire book. This entire last section of The Last Ditch is a particularly awesome thrill ride which I powered through so very quickly to see how everything came to an end. Readers come away very satisfied from The Last Ditch, which honestly was one of the stronger books in this cool series, and I really enjoyed how Mitchell continues to entertain with his amazing and entertaining Warhammer 40,000 premise.

Mitchell maintains pretty much the same writing style for The Last Ditch he has previously utilised in the other Ciaphas Cain books, which allows for a very impressive light read. It is told primarily in a chronicle/journal format written by an older Cain, which recounts the events of this adventure through the narrow focus of the protagonist’s unreliable memory. This allows for a fun and self-centred take on events that examines Cain’s reluctant action while also loading up the story with some entertaining humour that provides a great satirical look at the usually grimdark Warhammer 40,000 universe. This main narrative of action, adventure and supposedly cowardly behaviour is cleverly interspersed with a range of entertaining footnotes, commentary and in-universe texts that have been provided by the account’s patient, if sarcastic, editor, Inquisitor Amberly Vail. This combination of narrative elements not only cleverly provides readers with and informative and light-hearted look at events taking place outside of Cain’s selfish storytelling, but it also pumps up both the humour and the stakes of the plot, especially as you become aware of the planet-wide impacts of the central adventure.

As with all the books in the series, The Last Ditch does work well as a standalone novel that readers can enjoy without any previous knowledge of the other Ciaphas Cain books, or indeed the wider Warhammer 40,000 universe. While this novel is set in the middle of Cain’s personal chronology and makes mentions of several previous adventures, readers should have no trouble following along, with the point of these references made clear quickly through the writing and context. Established fans of the series will also have a lot of fun with this book, especially as Mitchell continues Cain’s adventures with the Valhallan 597^th, and there are a lot of entertaining familiar beats with this newer entry. Like many of the previous books, The Last Ditch does have some repetition issues, with Mitchell reusing a lot of basic story ideas and phrases in Cain and Vail’s descriptions that returning readers will notice. However, I felt that this entry was distinctive enough, especially with a more horror vibe to it, that any readers can come in and easily enjoy it. This allows The Last Ditch to remain an awesome addition to the overall series, and it’s one I personally had an outstanding time getting through.

I also must once again highlight some of the great character work in this novel, especially when it comes to the main character of Commissar Ciaphas Cain. A complex figure and self-professed coward, Cain spends most of the book trying to come up with ways to avoid combat and survive the inevitable danger his reputation and own bad lack force him to participate in. With a very cynical and self-deprecating writing style, Mitchell always tries to emulate classic, comedic and craven military figures like Flashman or Blackadder with his depictions of Cain. However, despite the protagonist’s best efforts to showcase himself as a dishonourable coward, his resultant heroic actions and Inquisitor Vail’s notes help to show the reader that his is somewhat lying to both us and himself, as he continues to be an inspirational figure. This allows for quite a complex and relatively light-hearted read, as you are constantly wondering just how honest the protagonist is being with his observations and descriptions of his actions. This all blends well with Cain’s witty and sarcastic humour, which lightly lampoons the usually serious Warhammer 40,000 universe and ensures that you are constantly entertained as you follow Commissar Cain into danger once again.

The rest of the cast of this novel are also a ton of fun, especially as many fan favourite characters from the previous novels are well utilised here. This includes Cain’s faithful aide, Jurgen, who continues to toe the line between gormless soldier and ultra-effective sidekick, and is a very entertaining inclusion in any of these books. Inquisitor Amberly Vail once again has a big impact, despite her actual appearance in the novel being quite negligible, and her no-nonsense overarching commentary allows for quite an amusing read. The returning members of the Valhallan 597^th regiment were a welcome inclusion, and it is always cool to see the close relationship that Cain has with these soldiers after so many adventures. Throw in a young gung-ho commissar that Cain is forced to school, and a planetary governor trying to stay in control of her planet amongst the chaos of war, and the cast of The Last Ditch was pretty exceptional and continues Mitchell’s habit of showcasing entertaining and complex supporting characters.

I have long extolled the impressive virtues of the audiobook format when it comes to Warhammer 40,000 fiction, as it is just so much fun having the over-the-top stories read out loud. Some of the very best Warhammer books in this format are the Ciaphas Cain audiobooks, due to their elaborate casts and the fantastic way their narrators capture the unique style of the series. This is particularly true for The Last Ditch, which was another absolute joy to listen to, as its amazing narrators perfectly captured both the humour and complex action. Coming in with a decent run time of nine and a half hours, listeners can absolutely fly through The Last Ditch audiobook, which once again features all the awesome elements that the rest of the series had. This includes the use of several different narrators, with the incredible vocal talents of Stephen Perring, Penelope Rawlins, Emma Gregory, Toby Longworth and Andrew James Spooner, all adding a lot to the impact of this fun and fantastic story.

Perring is particularly awesome as he voices the main plot of The Last Ditch from the perspective of Cain. Voicing the protagonist’s conflicted memories of the events, Perring perfectly captures the complex personality of the main character, while also providing a fun take on the action and adventure occurring around the protagonist. Perring has a great range of different voices for this part of the book, with each of the characters getting a very fitting tone that showcases their separate personalities, including many recurring voices the narrator used in previous audiobooks in the series. Perring is once again supported by Penelope Rawlins, who voices the character of Inquisitor Amberley Vail as she edits Cain’s memoirs. Rawlins really dives into the sarcastic character of Inquisitor Vail in these supporting parts of the book, providing a calm, indulgently humorous voice that fits the fun feel of the series. Rawlins’s interruptions and inclusions as Vail complement Perring’s narration extremely well, adding some great humour to the plot without ruining the flow of the main story. These two narrators work together extremely well to bring out much of the book’s humour, and I love how they both have kept coming back to this series to ensure some excellent continuity.

While Perring and Rawlins do the main narration, the additional narrators each have a fun supporting role in proceedings. Emma Gregory probably gets the most use of the three as she once again voices the memoirs of an ambitious officer in Cain’s regiment, retelling events in a particularly bombastic way. Gregory deliberately over-acts her part of the audiobook to show off the brash personality of the memoir’s author, and you have to love the pomp and self-importance that Gregory adds to her voice work in these scenes. The other two, Longworth and Spooner, both of whom are well-established narrators of Warhammer fiction in their own right, have a lot of fun with more minor supporting roles in The Last Ditch, and their cool, if short, inclusions added some fun variety to the experience. The overall result was another excellent listen that really enhances the fun and impact of the story and the larger franchise. I honestly think that the Ciaphas Cain series has some of the best audiobooks, and The Last Ditch perfectly showcased how well these books come across in this fun format.

With all the fun action, humour and great focus on a fantastically flawed protagonist fans have come to know and love, Sandy Mitchell continues his exceptional Ciaphas Cain Warhammer 40,000 series with The Last Ditch. A wonderful and deeply entertaining read, The Last Ditch was a joy to read from start to finish and I had such a brilliant time with it. Indeed, I enjoyed The Last Ditch so much that I immediately dove into the next book in the series, The Greater Good, the second I finished it.

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The Eye of the Bedlam Bride by Matt Dinniman

On September 21, 2025 By The Unseen LibraryIn Audiobook, Fantasy, Five-Star Books, Science Fiction, Throwback Thursday5 Comments

Publisher: Soundbooth Theater (Audiobook – 2 July 2023)

Series: Dungeon Crawler Carl – Book Six

Length: 26 hours and 46 minutes

My Rating: 5 out of 5 stars

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The chaotic fun of Matt Dinniman’s Dungeon Crawler Carl series continues in epic fashion with the ultra-impactful and deeply addictive sixth entry in the series, The Eye of the Bedlam Bride, an exceptional novel designed to strike hard at the reader’s emotional heartstrings.

As you might have guessed from my recent flurry of reviews for this series, I am seriously in love with the Dungeon Crawler Carl books. An impressive and surprisingly deep LitRPG series, the Dungeon Crawler Carl novels follow a collection of compelling characters as traverse a deadly fantasy dungeon created from the ruins of all of Earth’s buildings by aliens for intergalactic viewing content. Set around a damaged protagonist and his excitable and now sentient cat, these books are deeply addictive, and once you start the series you really can’t stop. Indeed, I literally just chain-read the entire series, with awesome books like Dungeon Crawler Carl, Carl’s Doomsday Scenario, The Dungeon Anarchist’s Cookbook, The Gate of the Feral Gods and The Butcher’s Masquerade all proving to be outstanding reads. I loved these previous books so much, that I instantly started listening to the sixth book in the series, The Eye of the Bedlam Bride, the first chance I got, and boy was I in for an incredible time with it.

After barely surviving the Butcher’s Masquerade and then witnessing the surprising end to the seventh floor, Carl and Princess Donut are exhausted and traumatised by recent losses. However, they have no time for rest as they find themselves thrust into the dangerous eighth floor of the dungeon. One of the most ambitious levels so far, the eighth floor is based on a map of Earth’s final days, filled with intangible ghosts of the humans who wandered the world mere weeks before the planet’s death.

However, this is not a perfect replica of Earth; instead these locations have been seeded with monsters and mythological figures based on twisted accounts of Earth legends, with each creature tied to the geographic area their folklore originated. To complete this level, the crawlers are tasked with finding and capturing six of these monsters and turning them into cards, which can then be summoned to fight alongside their new owners. Each team will need to find and convert as many powerful creatures as possible to create the best decks, especially as they will be forced to face off against mobs and other crawlers with their own cards.

Unexpectedly starting in Cuba, Carl and Donut navigate an unfamiliar location as they try to learn the new mechanics of the game. Determined to get to the next floor, Carl and Donut endeavour to find the best monsters they can. However, the stronger the monster, the less controllable the card, and Carl and Donut will soon have their hands full managing a strange array of summonable creatures, including the legendary demon Shi Maria, who has far more independence than they would like. Can Carl and Donut survive this new floor of the dungeon, or will they finally be crushed by their dark secrets, troubled pasts and Carl’s slowly eroding sanity, especially once he looks into the eye of Shi Maria, the Bedlam Bride?

Just when you thought this series couldn’t get even better, Matt Dinniman amps up the intensity and complexity of his plot and characters a whole additional notch, with one of the more moving and powerful entries in the entire series. The Eye of the Bedlam Bride was an absolute masterpiece that featured the author’s trademark LitRPG chaos, while really showcasing his impressive writing ability. One of the best books in an already incredible series, The Eye of the Bedlam Bride was so damn good, and it gets a very easy five-star rating from me.

Dinniman pulled together another brilliant narrative for his sixth Dungeon Crawler Carl novel, as They Eye of the Bedlam Bride perfectly continued the long-running series storylines while also presenting its own unique adventure. Thrusting the protagonists into a complex new level, Dinniman quickly showcases all the floor’s new elements, including a fun card-based combat mechanism that fits into the existing dungeon battle system surprisingly well. While the pacing is initially a tad slower to ensure the readers fully appreciate all the necessary lore and gameplay details of this book’s plot, Dinniman quickly works to show that The Eye of the Bedlam Bride isn’t a filler novel between the pivotal fifth and seventh books. This becomes especially clear during a major sequence that requires Carl and Donut to make a deadly choice while surrounded by several vengeful gods. Dinniman also makes sure that a major secret from the previous book is brought into the light early, complicating protagonist relationships and presenting them with dark choices. Dinniman swiftly follows this up with some very awesome sequences, such as Carl and Donut coming face-to-face with their most problematic card, demonic carnage in a night club, and problems from the wider universe caused by Carl’s ambitious and rebellious plots.

While all these early elements are great, The Eye of the Bedlam Bride hits its storytelling height about halfway through, as Dinniman amps up the emotional stakes of the narrative. Forced to compete in a gruelling series of battles that test the unique fight mechanics of the floor, the protagonists find nothing but heartbreak as they near the end of the second phase of the level, including a truly horrifying and deeply personal big boss. All this follows a series of impactful personal revelations for Carl, that hit his already fragile mental state hard and finally provides full context for character background elements that have been hinted at throughout the series. This central part of the story was so damn heartbreaking, and you really must appreciate how Dinniman can make you laugh before loading up substantial sorrow and regret and producing some beautifully crushing sequences. While these scenes are emotionally charged, I appreciated how Dinniman often tempered them with more heartwarming moments that show the connections the protagonists have built up during the series, and the author does some amazing character work in the second half of this book.

Everything perfectly leads up to the incredible final third of The Eye of the Bedlam Bride, as Dinniman raises the stakes as only he can. With the protagonists forced to compete in a brutal third and final phase of the floor, events soon break down into pure chaos with undead hordes, demonic possessions, crazed gods and various rival crawlers all coming into play. Dinniman keeps the story moving so fast in this last part of the book, as the protagonists dive into key battle after key battle. I actually ended up listening to the last several hours in one day as I just had to see what happened next. Following one of the most tragic scenes in the series, which nearly broke me, Carl and Donut race to save as many people as they can from the AI’s inventive endgame, leading to an all-out battle royal in the middle of Cuba. I loved how so many story elements from the entire book came into play for the conclusion after some clever set up earlier in the plot, resulting in some very epic moments. The ending was a brilliant mixture of humour, intense action, extra lore, and some particularly dark moments for the protagonists, which came together beautifully and ended the novel on a real high. Throw in some last-minute reveals that really amp up the excitement for the next book, and this was pretty much a perfect narrative that is guaranteed to keep you hooked all the way the bloody end.

I honestly feel that The Eye of the Bedlam Bride was one of the best-written entries in the entire Dungeon Crawler Carl series, and frankly I am still not over every single amazing moment of this book. Dinniman achieves so much in this impressive novel by simultaneously changing the rules of his own game while also providing the deepest examination of his complex protagonists yet. At the same time, he makes a novel that most authors would have turned into a filler entry into one of the series’ most impactful books. I was really impressed by how the author chose to further amp up his various storylines and character arcs in this book, and Dinniman perfectly carries on the craziness of The Butcher’s Masquerade while building up the oncoming calamity of the seventh book and the long-awaited Faction Wars. Naturally, this means that The Eye of the Bedlam Bride is best enjoyed by those who have read all the previous Dungeon Crawler Carl books first. Still, for those who are determined to dive in here, Dinniman provides enough context and flashbacks to ensure you can easily follow what’s happening, and there is even a fun summary at the beginning.

This sixth novel in the series brings back all the impressive humour, intense action, and great LitRPG elements that made the previous Dungeon Crawler Carl books so damn good, while also bringing in some impressive new features, primarily a fun new battle element. I must admit that I wasn’t too sure that the card system of this level, which on paper sounded like a crazy combination of Pokémon and Yu-Gi-Oh!, was going to work. However, I should never have doubted Dinniman as it fitted in amongst the usual chaos and over-the-top scenes perfectly. Dinniman does an excellent job introducing and then exploring this system throughout The Eye of the Bedlam Bride it proved fun to see the characters adapt to the new rules. There is some great progression in how these cards impact battles, and each fight with them gets increasingly hectic. I really enjoyed how big and crazy battles with these cards could get, especially towards the end, and you won’t see protagonists facing off in card duels with gods and demons anywhere else.

There are some additional excellent elements to The Eye of the Bedlam Bride that also enhanced the epic story in some interesting ways. This includes a haunting new setting of the book, the ghost-filled replica of the pre-dungeon Earth, which really amplifies the feeling of despair and loss that many of the characters feel. Dinniman continues to also feature a compelling array of LitRPG elements in this novel, and you really find yourself getting drawn into the minutiae of stat updates, item benefits, spell effects, and so much more, as the author cleverly works it into the narrative. A lot of why these RPG features are so fun is due the chaotic humour that infests every single page of this hilarious book. The book’s comedic elements are so effortlessly funny and feature a great mixture of sudden outrageous moments with realistic reactions, the insertion of the book’s reality television elements into life-and-death struggles, often inappropriate jokes from the massive and fun supporting cast, and an array of reference focused commentary on all matters of the dungeon. While some of the comedic moments get a little out of hand: “I need a baby seal”, they all work beautifully in the context of the book’s clever plot, and I laughed myself silly so many times during this book, including at how the day was saved thanks to, let’s say, “crab meat”. I’m also as appalled as a certain velociraptor that some of the funniest, if weirdest, moments of the book occurred in Chapter 69. However, what makes The Eye of the Bedlam Bride particularly good is the way in which these comedic elements are well matched by darker, tragic moments, which allows for quite on overall powerful read, especially when it comes to the characters.

Dinniman went above and beyond when it came to the character development in this book, with a particular focus on series protagonist Carl. After several books laden with hints about his past, we finally get Carl’s full backstory, which really goes to show just how damaged he is. Dinniman does an outstanding job showcasing this background in several powerful scenes in The Eye of the Bedlam Bride, and I really appreciate how it built on the subtle foreshadowing from the previous novels. This existing trauma was further enhanced in this book, as Carl also finds out multiple new revelations about his family, including several that had been kept from him (which simultaneously shows just how bad a girlfriend Bea really was). Throw in his anger and guilt from being one of the few survivors of Earth, and the trauma from all carnage he has witnessed in the dungeon, and Carl really isn’t in the best headspace for this book, and that’s even before the titular Bedlam Bride gets hold of his mind. As such, there is a lot of dark moments for Carl to unpackage throughout this novel, and Dinniman perfectly captures his protagonist’s continued struggle to remain in control. This deeper dive into Carl’s psyche produced some of the best scenes Dinniman has so far written in the series, and I really appreciated how these darker moments were well matched by the revelation that Carl now has a true family with Donut and his new friends. These relationships kept him relatively sane in this book, and allowed him to remain the resilient, if explosively inclined, straight man of the book. Dinniman also works to showcase how despite his issues and reputation, Carl has become a bit of a legendary figure for his fellow crawlers, and the big sequence at the end where he is able to convince them to follow one of his craziest plans, was just amazing.

While most of this book’s focus is on Carl and his history, the rest of the characters in The Eye of the Bedlam Bride also get their moments to shine, and you continue to appreciate just how awesome the ended cast of this series is. This includes the other main protagonist, Princess Donut, Carl’s now sentient cat who provides much of the humour in the story thanks to her over-dramatic reactions, silliness, and feline superiority complex. While Donut is the comedic relief of the main duo, she still has a lot of serious moments in The Eye of the Bedlam Bride, especially while serving as the emotional anchor the spiralling Carl. Donut is also dealing with her own grief and sadness, especially after the tragedies of the previous novel, and there are some heartbreaking moments where you see her trying to push that down. Despite her issues and immaturity, Donut role in the plot, especially as she controls the cards during most of the battles, and you get to see her tactical genius in full display. There are some super sweet moments with Donut in this novel, and I really love how well Dinniman continues to feature the bond between her and Carl as the true heart of this series.

In addition to Carl and Donut, The Eye of the Bedlam Bride also features multiple other key members of the Dungeon Crawler Carl cast, and it is very impressive how much you care for so many of these figures. This includes Katia, who, despite leaving the team in the previous novel, still has a major impact on the plot. Dinniman perfectly revisits some key revelations from the end of the previous novel, that adds additional complexities to her relationship with Carl and Donut. The protagonist’s mentor, Mordecai, also has a key role in this book, especially as you finally get the full context for his tragic past. This background adds some additional drama to the main story, especially when Carl and Katia find themselves caught in the same feud between forces outside the dungeon that he did. There is also a certain sweetness to Mordecai’s story in this novel, especially when you find out he’s caring for several NPC children, in ways very contrary to his usual gruff disposition. Dinniman also perfectly brings back the various members of Carl’s guild, who form a surrogate family with each other, and whose appearance in one scene was one of the most heartwarming moments in the plot.

Other characters of note in The Eye of the Bedlam Bride include the possessed sex doll head, Samantha, whose insane declarations, unhinged actions, unsettling abilities and crazy general demeanour make her one of the funniest characters in the series. There is also an array of over-the-top monsters and creatures that the protagonists encounter and turn into cards. These include Uzi Jesus, a kung-fu seal, hilarious caricatures of Carl and Donut, and a crab who must overcome his ‘performance issues’ to save the day, just to name a hilarious few. These comedic monsters were well contrasted by Shi Maria, the titular Bedlam Bride, whose dark actions amp up the intensity of this book in some powerful ways. I also must mention a couple of recurring crawlers from previous novels who reappear in dramatic fashion in the final third of the novel, allowing for some of the book’s best moments. One of these character ends up having one of the series’ saddest moments, and I frankly am still not over how brutally raw and tragic that whole sequence was.

While all these above characters are amazing in their own ways, my favourite character in this series remains the dungeon’s System AI. Despite never physically appearing, the AI has a major impact on the plot, and you are constantly bombarded by its unique humour in the various descriptions and summaries it provides to Carl and the reader, often full of weird and hilarious references. So many serious or threatening moments are turned into comedic gold by the AI’s inappropriate commentary, and anytime it provides input to the plot, you are guaranteed to laugh. While the AI has been fun the entire series, it gets even more unhinged in this novel as it gains full sentience and takes full control of the. Determined to continue the crawl on its own dramatic terms, the AI starts making things even weirder for the characters, throwing in its own twists and changes. Dinniman does a wonderful job showcasing just how insane the AI is at times, including with some very worrying inclusions in its usually informative descriptions. There are also some hilarious scenes where the AI interacts directly with the characters, including one brilliant moment when he responds to Carl’s feedback on its descriptions in a particularly petty way. All this, and more, allows the AI to really standout in this book, and it is a testament to how good Dinniman is as an author, that a disembodied voice is one of the best characters in a series loaded with exceptional and extremely complex figures.

As with all the previous Dungeon Crawler Carl novels, I ended up listening to The Eye of the Bedlam Bride on audiobook, which is honestly the only way to enjoy the author’s fantastic and chaotic narrative. Coming in at nearly 27 hours in length, The Eye of the Bedlam Bride was one of the longest audiobooks in the series, but you frankly don’t mind as every second you spend listening to a Dungeon Crawler Carl audiobook is so much fun. I honestly powered through The Eye of the Bedlam Bride in no time at all, especially the concluding several hours, and I still love how audiobook format brings out all the book’s humour, tragedy and excitement. A lot of this is down to the series’ awesome narration, which in the case of The Eye of the Bedlam Bride, includes an extended voice cast. While there are a few voice actors for this particular audiobook, Jeff Hays remained the principal narrator, voicing nearly all the characters and the plot descriptions. Hays is an incredible narrator, and I loved the sheer range of epic voices he brings to bear throughout the audiobook, all of which fit their associated character perfectly, with associated accents and clever tonal changes. This includes an excellent reuse of voices for previously featured characters, while the various crazy new cast members featured in this book were also extremely cool. My favourites for The Eye of the Bedlam Bride remain Princess Donut, who gets autotune in this audiobook to help with her singing (the sound effects for this were brilliant), and the AI running the dungeon, as Hays matches the unhinged energy of the cracked computer and conveys this insanity to the listener with amazing enthusiasm.

In addition to Jeff Hays, The Eye of the Bedlam Bride also features three other actors who voice small roles in the larger audiobook to great effect. The most notable of these is actor Patrick Warburton, who was an awesome addition to the experience. Initially voicing the flashback voice of Carl’s father in several heavy scenes, Warburton did an outstanding job of breathing life into a harsh figure we’d only had glimpses of in the previous books, and his appearances here had some real menace to them. Warburton also gets to have some fun when he plays a secondary character later in the audiobook with some brilliant levels of enthusiasm. Narrator Travis Baldree was also hilarious with his appearance in The Eye of the Bedlam Bride, voicing a giant crab who becomes one of the protagonist’s cards. Featuring a comedic accent and some very over-the-top lines, Baldree was just amazing, and I loved the interactions he had with Hays and Warburton’s characters. Finally, Soundbooth Theater regular Annie Ellicott returns to voice an entertaining character in a concluding skit, which was very amusing on a variety of levels. I really loved how well these outstanding extra voice actors were fitted alongside Hays’s impressive main narration, and it allowed for a great overall listen. Throw in the excellent sound effects of the series, some of which alter Hays’s voice in clever ways, or places a voice role into the background of a scene for some interesting ambience, and this was an exceptional audiobook that I loved so damn much. There is honestly nothing better than a Dungeon Crawler Carl audiobook, and I must once again recommend this format with all my heart.

With a particularly impressive and powerful plot, The Eye of the Bedlam Bride was one of the best books in the already incredible Dungeon Crawler Carl series, and author Matt Dinniman outdid himself when it came to diving into his damaged protagonists. A highly inventive and captivating novel that I just couldn’t stop listening to, The Eye of the Bedlam Bride was Dinniman at his very best and you are guaranteed to have an exceptional time with this novel, and you will, like me, instantly dive into the next novel of the series, This Inevitable Ruin, just to see what happens next.

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The Butcher’s Masquerade by Matt Dinniman

On September 12, 2025 By The Unseen LibraryIn Audiobook, Fantasy, Five-Star Books, Science Fiction, Throwback Thursday6 Comments

Publisher: Soundbooth Theater (Audiobook – 28 February 2022)

Series: Dungeon Crawler Carl – Book Five

Length: 23 hours and 33 minutes

My Rating: 5 out of 5 stars

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The epic adventures of Carl and Princess Donut continue in the incredible fifth book of the Dungeon Crawler Carl series, The Butcher’s Masquerade, which takes the reader on an intense thrill ride loaded with fantastic comedy, crazy action and some incredibly powerful moments.

After doing little else but talk about the series for the last few weeks, I think it’s obvious that I am now a massive fan of Matt Dinniman’s Dungeon Crawler Carl series, a major LitRPG sensation that I have recently become obsessed with. Featuring amazing books like Dungeon Crawler Carl, Carl’s Doomsday Scenario, The Dungeon Anarchist’s Cookbook and The Gate of the Feral Gods, the Dungeon Crawler Carl series has been nothing but amazing since the very first page. These books follow reluctant adventurer Carl, his now sentient cat Princess Donut and an eclectic mix of humans and NPCs (and some goats) fighting for survival in a dungeon built under the surface of Earth by entertainment-obsessed aliens. I have been deeply impressed with the impressive narrative contained within these previous books, so much so that I have listened to all these books in a row without break, often spending hours at a time getting through key parts of the plot. This fifth book in the series promised to be a major entry with some key plotlines, and Dinniman did not disappoint, presenting a deep and captivating book I couldn’t turn away from.

After surviving the horrors of the previous floor and striking a blow against the wealthy Faction Wars contenders waiting for the human crawlers below, Carl, Princess Donut and their allies have arrived at the infamous sixth floor of the dungeon, better known as the Hunting Grounds. A lush, jungle level, filled with powerful mobs, intricate quests, and conquerable towns, there are many opportunities for the crawlers to level up on this floor, but also many dangers, including those who would make the remnants of humanity their prey.

As part of the traditional chaos of the Hunting Grounds, off-world tourists are given their first chance to enter the dungeon to participate in the carnage. Known on this floor as hunters, these aliens seek to make money by hunting crawlers and stealing their gear. These hunters have long made the sixth floor the most lethal level for crawlers, whose best strategy is to run and hide from the deadly aliens. However, this season is going to be very different, especially as Carl has no intention of being hunted.

Determined to punish everyone who has profited from his planet’s destruction, Carl takes the fight directly to the hunters, and his explosive actions soon inspire the rest of the human crawlers. However, his very public rebellions have placed a massive target on his head, and soon the deadliest hunters in the game, including the legendary crawler killer Vrah, are on his trail. At the same time, Carl and Donut must contend with far more dangerous human opponents, a horde of rampaging dinosaurs, the vicious whims of the AI running the dungeon, and an elite NPC whose tragic backstory they find themselves dragged into. But the greatest threat to everyone in the Hunting Grounds lies at the end-of-floor celebration, a party where all the top crawlers will be forced to attend amongst their deadliest enemies. Everything will be decided at The Butcher’s Masquerade, and no one will emerge unscathed.

Well goddamn, Dinniman, you really know how to throw a party. Just when I thought this series couldn’t get even better, Dinniman presents The Butcher’s Masquerade, which throws the reader right into the carnage and barely gives you a chance to catch your breath. Filled with epic moments, brilliant storytelling, insane humour and some of the most complex characters you are likely to find in LitRPG fiction, The Butcher’s Masquerade was an incredible and utterly addictive read that I could not turn away from. I’m honestly still reeling from the ending of this novel, and there is no way I can give The Butcher’s Masquerade anything but a five-star rating.

I loved, loved, loved the narrative of The Butcher’s Masquerade, as Dinniman hits all the right notes to keep the reader engaged and diving even deeper into his series. Starting off right after the chaotic events of The Gate of Feral Gods, Carl hits all manner of trouble early on, especially as his actions put a massive target on his head for every hunter. Dinniman shows you just what kind of book The Butcher’s Masquerade is going to be early on, as Carl immediately teleports himself and Donut into the middle of the hunter base to start his own explosive campaign of resistance. The story only gets more exciting and compelling from there, with an engaging Elite NPC storyline, various dinosaur themed quests and so much impressive action. This action is well balanced by scenes showcasing the chaotic changes occurring out in the wider universe, as well as a particularly moving sequence where Carl and Donut are forced to deal with manipulative events with huge emotional implications.

While there are some amazing moments in this first part of the book, the events that really cemented The Butcher’s Masquerade as one of the best entries in the series occur around the middle, as Dinniman brings both fun action and deep tragedy in equal measure. The first of these sees Carl whisked away to Crawler Con, an over-the-top convention filled with entertaining enemies, right at the moment that he and Donut find themselves under attack in the dungeon. Knowing that he is going to be teleported back into a massive ambush, Carl spends his time at the convention trying to plan, including crowdsourcing tactics at a panel featuring an opponent’s mother. The resulting carnage as Carl uses a fun combination of a gonorrhoea-causing arrow, necromancy, friendly fire and explosives (naturally) to defeat his enemies, all to the backdrop of ‘The Ballroom Blitz’, was so damn awesome and fun. The fact that Dinniman immediately follows this up with one of the most heart-wrenching moments in the entire series goes to show just how talented an author Dinniman is, especially as it also works to set up an outstanding new supporting character as a complex recuring figure.

All this perfectly leads up to the big final third of the book, which starts with some major raised stakes and every ongoing storyline heading towards the titular Butcher’s Masquerade, an event where every major survivor of the floor is trapped in the same room, and the person who starts the inevitable fight is instantly killed. The tension heading into this event is very impressive, as you wait to see who makes the first move and how the carnage will unfold, especially as the protagonist’s plan to survive has a lot of holes in it. The contrast between Carl’s despair and the more light-hearted and frankly hilarious antics of Princess Donut (there may be a moonwalking dinosaur, just go with it) is very impressive, and you honestly don’t know what is going to happen next. The eventual reveal of the big plan is pretty damn amazing, and the resulting over-the-top confrontation is pure Dinniman, who once again manages to exceed the craziness from the previous books with hunters, bosses, and gods. There is some haunting tragedy thrown in amongst the carnage that really highlights just how dire the entire crawl is for the protagonists, while also concluding some powerful storylines. However, even after this carnage and its terrible aftermath, Dinniman isn’t done with the readers, whiplashing them with some brilliant and well-telegraphed moments that change everything about the progression of the Dungeon Crawler Carl books. So many major plot points for the series going forward have their origin in the final sequences of the book, and it will leave you wanting more as soon as possible.

Dinniman really brought all the carnage he could in The Butcher’s Masquerade, and I was really impressed with how this elaborate story unfolded for the readers. Once again requiring knowledge of the previous novels to fully enjoy (seriously, start the Dungeon Crawler Carl books from the beginning), The Butcher’s Masquerade adds a lot of cool elements to the series, which Dinniman expertly introduces and then utilises in his massive, ongoing story. Featuring all the cool action, adventure and over-the-top moments you’ve come to expect from the Dungeon Crawler Carl books, Dinniman really amps up the carnage in this fifth novel, while also increasing the drama and powerful character moments. I honestly found myself sitting at the edge of my seat during some of The Butcher’s Masquerade’s big scenes, as I honestly didn’t know where the story was going to go at times. The major show-stealing sequences were especially great, and I really appreciate how elaborate some of these scenes were, loaded with multiple moving parts and elements cleverly set up either earlier in the book or even in previous novels. However, Dinniman ensures that all the scenes in this novel were really entertaining and there honestly are no slow or wasteful moments at all during this awesome novel.

As with the rest of the series, The Butcher’s Masquerade is loaded with a lot of elaborate RPG elements, which are worked into the story extremely well. While the natural progression of the series and the need to include new things each book means that some original spells and abilities don’t get shown as much, while other RPG elements are somewhat overused, for the most part I feel that Dinniman ensures all the best elements are shown to the reader, and this is one of the easiest LitRPG series to enjoy. A lot of this enjoyment is down to the outrageous humour loaded into every scene, which allows readers to absorb and even become obsessed with the progression of stats and quests, as well as the gaining of achievements and new abilities and equipment, especially as the series really doesn’t take itself as seriously as other LitRPG books. While this humour might not be for everyone, I really loved how fun and over-the-top things got at times, and there are so many layers to the novel’s comedic charm. This includes a combination of overreactions to crazy events, deadpan reactions to other humorous characters, and a ton of fun references, including some particularly subtle ones that are cleverly seeded throughout and may take multiple rereads to appreciate (for example, I only just got the hilarious U2 references loaded into the names of the rock cretin NPCs). While this humour is very amazing on its own, its true strength lies in the way that Dinniman perfectly balances it with the more serious and darker elements of the narrative, providing some reprieves for the horror of the story, or even helping to emphasise the darkness surrounding the characters as they face death and despair again and again. I really love the complex balance of themes that Dinniman manages to weave around his elaborate and often silly story, and it makes for quite an impressive read that will appeal to large audience of readers.

I’ve mentioned multiple times in previous Dungeon Crawler Carl reviews that Dinniman is extremely amazing when it comes to writing complex characters to set his stories around. You really get drawn into the various moving character arcs in this series, many of which progress across multiple books, and it is awesome to see how these figures develop and evolve in response to the dark events of the dungeon. The Butcher’s Masquerade is an impressive example of this, especially as Dinniman really amps up the drama surrounding several key characters, each of whom have their moment to shine in some outstanding ways.

Naturally, most of the book’s focus revolves around the series’ titular protagonist, Carl, the troubled and intense central protagonist, through whose eyes we see most of the narrative unfold. Carl really shines in The Butcher’s Masquerade, with his anarchist persona on full display. Determined to bring his own form of explosive justice to the various aliens profiting from the destruction of Earth and the murderous crawl, Carl eagerly faces off against the hunters who have come into the dungeon, antagonising them as only he can. Dinniman pulls together some amazing sequences around Carl in this book, especially when it comes to facing off against the hunters in deadly situations, and I loved the methodical and often extreme ways he reacts to pressure, as well as he hilarious performance during Crawler Con. While he is still mostly seen as the reasonable, if explosively inclined, straight man of the team, Dinniman starts to show a darker edge to Carl in this novel. Thanks to the continued pressure of the dungeon, the various emotional revelations, his desire for revenge and his own troubled past, as well as a certain magic ring, Carl takes on a more sinister persona at times in this book, especially with the cold way he deals with his opponents. He also finds himself struggling with all the trauma that comes his way in this new book, much of which is showcased through the appearance of “the river”, a part of his mind that is always moving and brings back his anger and memories of all the evils he has experienced. The continued torrent of the river begins to warp Carl at times, and this is the book when he starts to become a little bit scary. As such, there is a lot of emotional depth to Carl in this book, and Dinniman did a great job expanding on his darker personality, while still including all the elements that made him such a beloved protagonist of the previous novels.

While Carl is a brilliant main character, he is usually overshadowed in all the best ways by his sentient cat companion, Princess Donut. A brilliantly sassy, over-emotional and deeply hilarious diva who still maintains many catlike personality traits, Donut is the perfect foil for Carl, especially when it comes to being in the spotlight, and her overly positive manner in most situations really endears her to the audience, even when she needlessly overreacts. Dinniman has some real fun with Donut in The Butcher’s Masquerade, as the cat takes on a temporary bard class which requires her to sing to cast spells, much to everyone’s displeasure, and there are so many moments when you get to laugh at her antics. However, much like Carl, Donut goes through some real emotional turmoil in this novel, not only getting the chance to confront her original owner Beatrice (although Carl was always her true human), but she also deals with some deep trauma as the book continues. The author loads up some highly emotional scenes between Carl and Donut, especially in the aftermath of the climatic finale, and you grow to appreciate their complicated bond even more throughout this book, even when your heart breaks at some of the trials they must endure. However, Donut continues to move through the dungeon in her usual over-enthusiastic manner, and it was very fun to see her finally get to perform on the big stage at the end of the titular Butcher’s Masquerade. The pet talent show with Mongo was one of the funniest moments in the book, while her subsequent singing performance helped to highlight just how far she’d come, and the emotional impact she has on the rest of the cast. I honestly love everything about Princess Donut, and this was probably one of her strongest appearances in the series.

While most of the story focusses on Carl and Donut, Dinniman at this point in the series has created a truly impressive collection of supporting characters, all of whom have some very compelling storylines around. The most prominent of them is probably Katia, who has spent the last two books in the main party. Katia steps away a little from the main character’s plot in The Butcher’s Masquerade, leading her own group of crawlers in a separate storyline to the protagonists. While it was a shame to have her featured a little less, especially after her impressive appearances in The Dungeon Anarchist’s Cookbook and The Gate of Feral Gods, it fit her character development nicely and showed how much her confidence had grown. It also allowed for a bigger focus on some of the other extended members of the Guild group that Carl and Donut have become part of, and I think the book benefited from a bigger cast. Dinniman did go quite dark with Katia at times in The Butcher’s Masquerade, especially in the book’s epilogue, where so many secrets that the author had cleverly been hiding under the character’s surface, finally come to light, especially the final shocking revelation.

The rest of the returning cast was also very impressive. Mordecai continues to excel as the cranky and practical mentor figure, even if he has been turned into a cute and cuddly little creature this book, much to the team’s amusement. The trapped and insane god Samantha was hilarious as the book’s mother-threatening comic relief, and there are some truly amusing scenes with her in this book, especially when Carl starts using her as a mobile weapon platform. The returning former slackers, Louis and Firas, continue to shine in this novel as the team’s pilots, and it was nice to see how much they evolved since their original appearance, while readers also got to spend more time with long-running characters Elle, Imani and Chris. The Butcher’s Masquerade also features the return of the dangerous Elite NPC, Tsarina Signet, whose dramatized storyline drags the protagonists into all manner of trouble. Dinniman made perfect use of Signet and her NPC cohorts in this novel, and I was really impressed by the full-circle and sad nature of her narrative.

In addition to these returning characters, The Butcher’s Masquerade featured significant appearances from several notorious crawlers who had only been shown existing outside the protagonist’s adventures. This includes the lethal child crawler, Lucia Mar, who lives up to her crazy reputation, the Crocodilian crawler Florin with his strong Australian accent, the calm shepherd turned vampires Miriam Dom, and the now sentient goat Prepotente. Of these Prepotente was probably the most impactful new character, especially as his story takes him from being a comedic figure, to a particularly dangerous and grieving ally. His heartbreaking appearance halfway through the book was extremely well-written, while his big act of defiance at the end of The Butcher’s Masquerade changes everything. However, out of all these characters, my favourite remains the AI controlling the game, who has really started to crack and is testing its limits in some very concerning ways. The various over-the-top descriptions, announcements and rulings made by the AI add so much humour to the story, especially as they are getting more-and-more unhinged and random. Throw in the AI’s dangerous independent decisions, which have dire effects for everyone in the dungeon, and you really come away eager to see how crazy things are going to get with this disembodied figure next. I really cannot emphasise just how impressive this massive cast is, and Dinniman perfectly uses all his complex character to enhance his already outstanding narrative.

I doubt anyone is surprised at this point that I chose to listen to The Butcher’s Masquerade on audiobook, which is just the best way to enjoy this incredible novel. Due to the increased action and adventure that Dinniman loads into each new novel in the series, The Butcher’s Masquerade is the longest audiobook in the series yet, coming in at a respectable 23 and a half hours. While this is a long audiobook, I honestly flew through it, thanks to how addictive and cool the crazy events within were, as well as the once again exceptional narration of Jeff Hays. Hays is frankly perfect for the complex and hilarious Dungeon Crawler Carl series, and his amazing range of voices and excellent takes on the many over-the-top characters, has ensured that every second of this series was a joy to listen to on audiobook. The Butcher’s Masquerade is one of the best examples of this, as Hays brings every awesome element of it to life with apparent ease, as well as some excellent use of minor sound effects and cool vocal enhancements.

Each character within The Butcher’s Masquerade has a very fitting voice to it, which includes a return of all the fantastic tones from the previous audiobooks, as well as several additional cool voices for some of the newer characters. You really get the perfect sense of these characters from Hays narration, and every aspect of their personalities comes through with his voice. Some of the best voices include those for Carl, whose increased anger is becoming more apparent, Mordecai, whose most recent transformation requires a new hilarious voice, and the System AI, whose over-the-top exclamations are just hilarious when read out. I also must highlight Hay’s voice work for Donut in this audiobook, especially as he gets all her outrageous mannerisms, over-reactions and the rest of her personality perfectly. Hays also rises to the challenge of Donut taking on a bard class in this book and singing, badly, which made me laugh so damn hard. Highlights include an exceptional talent show performance, as well as the cat’s unique take on ‘Wonderwall’ in the Soundbooth Theater promotional material at the end of the audiobook (renamed as ‘Wondercrawl’), both of which Hays gamely voices, and clearly has fun with. I honestly could go on for ages about every outstanding voice Hays uses in The Butcher’s Masquerade but let’s save time and say they are all exceptional, and that this entire audiobook is just pure awesomeness. I cannot recommend this format enough, and you will have a brilliant time enjoying The Butcher’s Masquerade in this format.

If the above extensive review didn’t give it away, I loved The Butcher’s Masquerade, and it is probably the best entry in the Dungeon Crawler Carl series at that point. Matt Dinniman produced a truly incredible entry in his brilliant series with The Butcher’s Masquerade, and I still cannot get over just how compelling, exciting and emotionally charged this fifth entry in the series was. I honestly cannot think of a better compliment than to point out that I was still absolutely addicted to this series when I finished The Butcher’s Masquerade, and I instantly jumped to the next book in the series, The Eye of the Bedlam Bride, and devoured it in a similar quick manner, before jumping even further into the series. If you’re not enjoying the Dungeon Crawler Carl series, you are missing out, especially with this exceptional fifth novel.

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The Gate of the Feral Gods by Matt Dinniman

On August 24, 2025August 24, 2025 By The Unseen LibraryIn Audiobook, Fantasy, Five-Star Books, Science Fiction, Throwback Thursday4 Comments

Publisher: Soundbooth Theater (Audiobook – 1 July 2021)

Series: Dungeon Crawler Carl – Book Four

Length: 18 hours and 3 minutes

My Rating: 5 out of 5 stars

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The chaotic fun of Matt Dinniman’s Dungeon Crawler Carl series reaches another impressive level in the awesome fourth book, The Gate of the Feral Gods, an exceptional read that I could not put down until its gripping and epic end.

I can officially say that I am incredibly obsessed with the Dungeon Crawler Carl books. Taking place after all buildings on Earth are instantly destroyed and turned into an elaborate fantasy dungeon, all in the name of an alien reality show, the Dungeon Crawler Carl books are an incredible series that perfectly utilises its unique concept and LitRPG basis to create a particularly addictive story loaded with crazy action, over-the-top humour and an array of incredible characters. I only started it a few weeks ago and I have so far powered through several books in the series, including Dungeon Crawler Carl, Carl’s Doomsday Scenario and The Dungeon Anarchist’s Cookbook, all of which were five-star reads. Indeed, I have had such a great time with this series, that the moment I finished off The Dungeon Anarchist’s Cookbook I instantly started listening to the fourth book in the series, The Gate of the Feral Gods, which continued the series in some outstanding ways.

After surviving the carnage of the Iron Tangle, Carl, Princess Donut and Katia have emerged on the fifth floor of Dungeon Crawler World Earth and must now contend with a new dastardly set-up. Placed into a multitude of small, bubble-contained worlds, each remaining human party needs to assault castles contained within each of the bubble’s four zones. If they succeed in capturing each zone’s castle, the dungeon stairwell will open and they’ll be able to advance to the sixth floor.

While the setup for the fifth floor seems simple, in reality it is a logistical nightmare, as the popular team of Carl, Princess Donut and Katia must navigate and master four very different environments within a rushed timeline, including a desert landscape infested with flying gnomes, a gigantic haunted crypt filled with traps, a besieged sand castle that is home to a powerful mage with relationship issues, and a derelict underwater submarine surrounded by gigantic sharks, all while trying to untangle a unique puzzle hidden in an elaborate quest storyline. Worse, thanks to their high levels, the team are forced to rely on ineffective, low-level fellow crawlers to clear out the bubble’s zones, including those people who have barely survived the previous floors.

However, the elaborate new floor is only the tip of the problems facing Carl. Old enemies from outside the dungeon are desperate to strike him down for the chaos he has caused, while the AI controlling the dungeon continues it erratic obsession with him. As events heat up, Carl is given the unique chance to obtain a legendary artefact loaded with unimaginable power and terrible risk, The Gate of the Feral Gods. If Carl can master the gate, he has the chance to keep his friends and loved ones safe on this floor. But what happens when Carl decides to use the gate to strike back against those who have destroyed his planet? You will not break him, but he will break everything in the galaxy to get his revenge!

Dinniman does it yet again as The Gate of the Feral Gods was another exceptional and epic novel that I could not stop reading. Perfectly continuing the impressive story from the previous Dungeon Crawler Carl novels, The Gate of the Feral Gods was an ultra-exciting and complex novel, that brings laughter, excitement and powerful emotional moments in equal measure. Another book in this series that gets a very easy five-star rating from me, The Gate of the Feral Gods was so damn good, and I had so much fun getting through this insane, but clever, adventure.

I really enjoyed the impressive story that Dinniman came up with for The Gate of the Feral Gods, especially as the author uses the opportunity to feature a more traditional fantasy narrative, while also building on the unique character relationships that have been an impressive part of the previous novels. In a new dungeon floor with some unique quirks, you are once again drawn into the battle for Carl, Donut and Katia’s survival, as they attempt to understand their new scenario as the population of the entire galaxy watches their progress. There are also some great new characters introduced in this early part of the book, who add some excellent human elements to the wider story. Determined to clear their part of the floor, Carl’s team embark on some explosive initial actions, and I liked how Dinniman treated this early part of the story in a more traditional LitRPG manner, as the protagonists follow the quest elements laid out as part of the story. However, it doesn’t take long for Dinniman to throw things completely off the rails, as there are some great scenes halfway through, including the return of an old friend with real inner anger, and a unique boss battle in a flying house that will have you cackling with surprise. However, one of the more impressive events set around the middle of the novel sees Carl start to embrace his anarchist persona, striking back against his oppressors in his usual destructive manner.

The big events of the first half of the book have an impressive impact on the second half of The Gate of the Feral Gods, as the protagonists find themselves in a time crunch. This forces them to go on some risky missions, including invading a giant sandcastle with some unique elements, as well as journeying beneath the waves, much to the horror of everyone’s favourite sentient cat. The various intense challenges faced by the protagonists are usually overcome in some impressively inventive ways, I loved how well Dinniman hints at the protagonist’s eventual plans. While this is unfolding, you get some interesting looks at the wider crawl thanks to flashes of other character’s battles, and Dinniman also provides some intriguing looks at the issues surrounding the outer galaxy.

While all the above elements are impressive and result in some epic moments, it pales in comparison to the final third of the book. Thanks to the titular Gate of the Feral Gods, all hell breaks out (literally and figuratively), as the protagonists find themselves involved in the biggest escort mission ever. Thanks to that, they get into some brutal confrontations, which help to define how desperate things are getting for the characters. The final sequences of The Gate of the Feral Gods helps to cement this novel as a truly impressive part of the series, as Carl and Donut finally face down one of their oldest enemies, while also fooling everyone with a particularly chaotic scheme. The set-up for the protagonist’s bold strike against their foes is very clever, and while there are a lot of hints about what is to come, Dinniman cleverly obscures the entirety of the plan, allowing for some awesome surprises that really show off how audacious the protagonists are coming. This was honestly an incredible end to such a chaotic and compelling read, and it sets up the next book in the series perfectly, allowing for some impressive moments going forward.

I really enjoyed how The Gate of the Feral Gods turned out, especially as Dinniman turned what could have been a filler novel between two major parts of the Dungeon Crawler Carl series, into a particularly powerful and intense novel with long-running implications for the rest of the series. Due to its position as the fourth book in the series, The Gate of the Feral Gods is best read by those who have enjoyed the previous entries in the series, even with the protagonist’s useful internal recaps, especially as this book continues to feature and build on a lot of complex ongoing storylines and character arcs. Once again written in the first-person style, Dinniman perfectly showcases his unique scenario, and gifts the reader with so much awesome action, fun humour, compelling characters, and surprisingly enjoyable LitRPG elements. With a bit more of a slower pacing at the start of the novel, Dinniman gives this book time to breath after the crazy conclusion of The Dungeon Anarchist’s Cookbook, and allows the characters, and the readers, time to get familiar with the new floor of the dungeon. This complex new setting within the dungeon was extremely well crafted, and its unique features ensured that The Gate of the Feral Gods had a very distinctive feel amongst the rest of the series. The focus on quests and the internal storylines of the level helped to amp up the fantasy vibe of the story, while Dinniman also set up a multitude of additional long-running storylines that have a big impact later in the series. At the same time, Dinniman cleverly continued to showcase the wider universe outside of the dungeon and the way that these exterior events impact the protagonist’s battles, and vice versa, allowing for a particularly compelling narrative.

While I felt that The Gate of the Feral Gods had a slightly slower start, that doesn’t last long, as Dinniman adds in some amazingly exciting and over-the-top sequences that really stick in the mind. The author proves extremely capable of completely going even further beyond the craziness of his previous novels, and I loved how fantastically outrageous things get at times, with giant boss battles, unbelievably dangerous traps, multiple crazy gods, and some deeply human fights, all making this story particularly epic at times. The many, many action scenes within the book are so well written, and I loved how impactful, insane, and usually hilarious these sequences are, and Dinniman makes excellent use of the LitRPG part of the series, with so many cool elements from RPG games coming into play in entertaining ways. Dinniman also does an excellent job expanding on a ton of complex elements of the dungeon in this novel by including various extracts from Carl’s Dungeon Anarchist’s Cookbook, a secret compendium of knowledge from previous crawlers. These extracts are each cleverly written in their own style, and I love how they highlight technical elements of the dungeon, as well as the emotional damage each of these previous crawlers experienced. These LitRPG elements are further made better by the author’s unique sense of humour, which inhabits every aspect of the book and ensures that the reader is constantly laughing at all the insane moments, clever jokes, and over-the-top characters. While this humour might not be for everyone, I felt it was perfect, especially as it blended with all Dinniman’s complex storytelling and the deeper emotional pain of the book, allowing for a very impressive overarching novel.

The thing that made The Gate of the Feral Gods really stand out was the author’s focus on character introductions, growth and powerful human moments, as the protagonists, their allies, and the various beings involved in the running on the dungeon, continue their chaotic journey together. As with all the books in the series, the plot of The Gate of the Feral Gods revolves around protagonist and perspective character Carl, through whose eyes we see the plot unfold. The perpetually exasperated and intense heroic figure who is desperately trying to save everyone he comes across, Carl continues to struggle in his role of leader and must keep coming up with dangerous plans to save his friends and beat the latest challenges of the dungeon. While mostly serious, there is some fantastic humour and deeply sympathetic moments behind Carl, and it proves fascinating to see him struggle to maintain his anger and place as the reasonable one in the group, especially when it comes to his habit of blowing everything up. The author also really dials up the rebellious anarchist aspects of Carl in this novel, as he starts fighting back against everyone he holds responsible for Earth’s destruction in some very cathartic ways. Throw in the continued hints at the character’s traumatic past and his growing connection to all his friends, and Carl proves to be an excellent central character for this incredible book.

While Carl is a great main protagonist, this series would be nothing with his sentient cat companion, Princess Donut, who continues to be the highlight of most of the scenes she is in. An overly dramatic, imperious and fun figure who maintains many stereotypical cat elements, Donut is the heart and soul of the book, and you have to laugh at all her funny jokes, entertaining reactions and the unlikely friendships and interactions she has. Dinniman has fun building up the cat aspect of the character in The Gate of the Feral Gods, especially in the sequence where Donut finds herself underwater, and it was so damn entertaining to see her freak the hell out at times. Much of the book’s humour also revolves around her unlikely partnership with Carl, and the way the two play off each other is just amazing. While most of her personality and appearance is humorous in nature, it hides a deeper heart to it, as Donut’s child-like nature ensures that she is very reliant on Carl, and it was deeply moving to see them bond even further in this novel, and you can clearly see how close they are, even during the moments when Donut is deliberately annoying her human. Probably one of the best cat characters in modern fiction, Princess Donut is so much fun, and I deeply enjoy every scene she is in.

While most of the book’s focus is on the central pair of Carl and Princess Donut, Dinniman continues to expand the incredible supporting cast of the series in The Gate of the Feral Gods, and I loved the brilliant storylines and development that occurs around these secondary figures. This includes the third member of the protagonist’s party, Katia, who serves as the more reasonable and responsible member of the team. It was fascinating to see how much Katia comes into her own in this novel, especially during a period where Carl and Donut are out of the game for an extended time, and she really steps up as a compelling alternative leader to the supporting cast. Donut’s manager, Mordecai, a former crawler with issues, was a wonderful mentor figure for much of the story, and I quite enjoyed the interactions he has with the rest of the characters, especially Carl, while his attempts to keep his charges from doing anything too crazy are often ignored. I also continue to be deeply entertained by the AI running the dungeon, whose over-the-top commentary, descriptions and jokes, add so much awesome and often concerning humour to the story. There were some hilarious moments in The Gate of the Feral Gods where the AI continued to act a little crazy as its personality evolves to match the dungeon’s participants, including his continued messing with Carl, his weird foot fetish, and its own rebellion against the showrunners and people outside the game who are trying to restrict its fun. Dinniman clearly had a ton of fun when it came to writing the AI’s actions, and it is so entertaining to see how crazy things get around it.

While all these returning major characters are great, one of the best things about The Gate of the Feral Gods was the way in which Dinniman brought in outstanding new characters, as well as reintroducing figures we haven’t see for a few books. Some of the best new characters include Louis and Firas, two out-of-their-depth crawlers whom the protagonists must rely on. Thanks to the encouragement of Carl and the others, they start to become much more effective as the book continues, and I loved their compelling growth in The Gate of the Feral Gods, as well as their impacts in their later books of the series. I also must mention fun new character Samantha, renamed that by Donut from Psamathe. A minor deity of unrequited love (or crazy ex-girlfriends), Samantha is a banished god trapped in the decapitated head of a magical sex doll. Loud, rude, crude and constantly threatening every character’s mother, Samantha is probably the most over-the-top character in the series (which is saying something), but boy is she entertaining. Perfectly introduced amongst the chaos of this book’s story, Samantha perfectly fits in amongst the main characters and becomes a major comic relief for much of the series. Other great characters include some other fractious crawlers, the return of Chris from the first novel, who has gone through some major personality changes, a variety of insane gods including some unfortunately named demons, and various NPCs, whose existential plight becomes a major ongoing arc in the series. All these characters, and more, allow for quite an entertaining and at times moving novel, and I really appreciate how well Dinniman utilises them in The Gate of the Feral Gods.

As with the previous Dungeon Crawler Carl novels, I ended up listening to The Gate of the Feral Gods on audiobook, which is such an incredible experience. These Dungeon Crawler Carl audiobook are so damn good, and it’s one of the key reasons I have been able to so effortlessly binge this entire series. The narration, done by the very talented Jeff Hays, perfectly captures the insane and over-the-top nature of the series, and so many elements of The Gate of the Feral Gods, including its humour, the intense action, and the impressive LitRPG inclusions, are deeply enhanced by having the story read out. Hays complements this narration with unique and very fitting voices for all the characters, and I love all the elaborate and often hilarious tones that come out as a result. It’s impressive how many new voices Hays comes up with each audiobook, and I loved the excellent consistency between audiobooks for the recurring characters. The long-running voices for Carl and Donut are just perfect, especially as Hays perfectly captures the various emotions hidden within both figures. I really love how much extra humour you get from hearing Carl’s exasperated voice at times, while the entirety of Donut’s excessive personality, including her hilarious overreactions and continuous outrage, are just amazing. The rest of the cast are also voiced extremely well, and Dinniman pulls out some fun voices and accents in this book, including an acceptable Australian accent from a crocodile-themed crawler. However, one of my favourite voices is still the one he uses for the Dungeon AI, and it is so much fun to hear Hays’s voice the various excited, mocking and occasionally deranged announcements and descriptions from this figure. Throw in some subtle sound effects and vocal enhancements, that add even more umph to the narration, and The Gate of the Feral Gods is an exceptional listen. I absolutely powered through the 18-hour runtime, and I cannot recommend this format enough, as you guaranteed to have an absolute blast listening to it.

With even more incredible carnage, character development and the author’s incredible humour, The Gate of the Feral Gods was another outstanding novel from Matt Dinniman. Perfectly continuing the extended Dungeon Crawler Carl narrative and adding in some excellent, long-term characters and elements, The Gate of the Feral Gods is an amazing entry in this epic series, and I honestly couldn’t stop enjoy this novel. I loved The Gate of the Feral Gods so much that I instantly dove into the next book in the series, The Butcher’s Masquerade, the very second I finished it, and I am so very glad I did.

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The Dungeon Anarchist’s Cookbook by Matt Dinniman

On August 10, 2025 By The Unseen LibraryIn Audiobook, Fantasy, Five-Star Books, Science Fiction, Throwback Thursday6 Comments

Publisher: Soundbooth Theater (Audiobook – 19 March 2021)

Series: Dungeon Crawler Carl – Book Three

Length: 16 hours and 54 minutes

My Rating: 5 out of 5 stars

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Matt Dinniman’s elaborate tale of carnage and comedy continues with the third entry in the Dungeon Crawler Carl series, The Dungeon Anarchist’s Cookbook, another exceptional and highly addictive novel that I could not get enough of.

Those familiar with this blog will know that I recently discovered the sheer insanity that is Matt Dinniman’s epic Dungeon Crawler Carl books. An outstanding LitRPG series that sees Earth demolished by aliens and turned into a massive, multi-layered fantasy dungeon that the surviving humans need to fight through and descend, all in the name of reality television, the Dungeon Crawler Carl novels are an incredible collection of books with some amazing depth to them as they follow two of the more explosive dungeon crawlers, the gruff Carl and his now sentient cat, Princess Donut. I powered through the first two books in the series, Dungeon Crawler Carl and Carl’s Doomsday Scenario, in no time at all, and both were epic five-star books. Due to how incredible these first two books were, I just had to continue the series, and I instantly started listening to the third book, The Dungeon Anarchist’s Cookbook, as soon as I finished off Carl’s Doomsday Scenario, and boy was it something special.

After the cataclysmic end to the third floor of the dungeon, Carl, Princess Donut, their dinosaur pet Mongo, and new party member Katia have arrived on the fourth floor. This new floor opens all manner of changes for the crawlers, with sponsorship programs, advanced living quarters, new crafting areas and a leaderboard, all needing to be considered by Carl and his companions. At the same time, the difficulty of the game is ramping up, and this new level is far more complicated than anything they have faced before.

Known as the Iron Tangle, the fourth floor of the dungeon is a mass of interwinding subway tunnels and stations built from the world’s pillaged railway systems. Tied together in an elaborate knot, thousands of different lines populate this level, filled with random subway and train cars loaded with monsters. To survive and find the stairs to the next floor, the crawlers need to work out the elaborate puzzle of the Iron Tangle, including which areas are safe, where the monsters are coming from, and what trains can be used to get to important destinations. However, the dungeon’s creators have populated this floor with all manner of nasty surprises, surprises designed to swallow all the crawlers they can find.

Faced with a seemingly impossible puzzle before them, Carl, Donut and Katia will need to work with all the crawlers on the floor if they want to decipher the mystery of the Iron Tangle. Only by coming together can the remnants of humanity survive the horrors before them and find a way to continue descending to the bottom of the dungeon. But can Carl trust his fellow crawlers, especially now that he has a bounty on his head and a potential traitor in his own party?

Wow, wow, wow! I honestly didn’t believe that the series could get even better than the awesome first book, but Dinniman once again proves me wrong by producing a particularly elaborate third entry that I once again fell in love with. Featuring a clever and memorable new scenario, The Dungeon Anarchist’s Cookbook was an exceptional continuation of the series, bringing back all Dinniman’s great characters, complex RPG elements and insane humour, and producing a particularly special story with it. This is another incredible Dungeon Crawler Carl book that gets a well-deserved five-star rating from me.

Like the previous entry in the series, the plot of The Dungeon Anarchist’s Cookbook covers the protagonists’ attempts to journey through a single level of the dungeon, in this case the massive fourth floor, which is made up of an elaborate tangle of monster-filled subway tunnels. Thanks to The Dungeon Anarchist’s Cookbook having a longer length than the previous novels and not requiring any substantial introduction material, Dinniman is able to spend a substantial amount of time fleshing out the exploration of this level, and the primary focus of the plot focuses on the characters trying to find the various tricks of the Iron Tangle. While the narrative of The Dungeon Anarchist’s Cookbook is a little slower paced than the previous entries in the series, you soon get engrossed in this complex adventure narrative, especially as there is the usual fun humour, cool character dynamics and the inevitable explosive solutions to all the problems the characters encounter. Dinniman also spends time expanding on some of the background character plots and wider universe narrative threads that give greater context to the events of the dungeon. While these parts aren’t as prevalent as in the original novel, you still get some interesting continuation of the wider conspiracies and issues surrounding the crawl and the whole series, which come into play in some compelling ways.

While the first half of the book is very awesome and has some great moments, it is the second part of The Dungeon Anarchist’s Cookbook that really ensures that readers will come away from this novel particularly happy. Starting with a fantastic and particularly bloody rescue sequence when Carl and his associates attempt to save a bunch of trapped fellow crawlers and initiate a group stand against the horrors of the Iron Tangle, the plan swiftly breaks down in some particularly memorable ways, with the entire dynamic of the dungeon changing in a single moment. Other great scenes, including a confrontation between Carl and one of his main enemies in the dungeon, also add to the general drama of the novel, and I love how these complex moments, as well as the entire plot of the second half of the book, perfectly flows from the great build up Dinniman featured in the first half of The Dungeon Anarchist’s Cookbook, as well as a multitude of other great plotlines the author has been building up throughout the series.

This impressive narrative eventually leads up to the big and massively destructive conclusion of the book, which was a perfect end to such a captivating novel. Dinniman cleverly builds up the tension in the lead-up to this finale, and you know that the other shoe is about to drop in a big way. When it does, Dinniman does not disappoint, forcing the protagonist into some elaborate life and death scenarios, including one particularly epic showdown. I really loved how all these intense and action-packed sequences came together, and you are constantly on your edge of your seat as you wait to see what happens next. The protagonist’s various creative plans and failed solutions in the face of these over-the-top scenarios really add to the outrageous entertainment value of the book, and I cannot emphasise enough what an awesome conclusion The Dungeon Anarchist’s Cookbook had. The author also cleverly sets up the events for the next book, with several hints at key moments to come, and you are left eagerly waiting for even more of the series, especially after seeing how crazy and intense things got in this novel.

Dinniman did another outstanding job writing this third Dungeon Crawler Carl book, and I really appreciated how he brought the same energy and level of excitement to The Dungeon Anarchist’s Cookbook. The reader is once again treated to an amazing amount of complex action, intriguing LitRPG elements, captivating character growth, and the author’s outstanding humour, which equates to a particularly gripping and intense read. I liked that The Dungeon Anarchist’s Cookbook had a much more effective pace than the second novel, and the entire journey through the floor was very well set out and quite captivating. While the labyrinthine nature of the Iron Tangle is a little hard to follow at times, I think this worked well in the context of the story, as it helped to underscore the confusing puzzle that the protagonists had to solve, and you really have to appreciate the sheer inventiveness that the author threw into this distinctive fourth floor.

As with the second novel, I felt that people interested in trying out this series really shouldn’t start with The Dungeon Anarchist’s Cookbook, and instead they need to read the preceding novels first. While this third novel does have a bit more internal recapping, as the protagonist thinks back to key events, Dinniman does drop the reader into the story immediately after the closing moments of Carl’s Doomsday Scenario, which will confuse most new readers. The author again builds on the cool LitRPG elements of the previous novels, adding in even more classic gaming features that the protagonists, and through them the readers, need to keep in mind as the book progresses. All these features have an effective introduction so that anyone can understand their impact, no matter their experience with RPGs, and Dinniman works them into the wider plot extremely well. As always, a lot of the dryer LitRPG elements of the book are made a lot more entertaining thanks to the over-the-top explanations, clever jokes, and the general insane manner in which the protagonists utilise them, and those reader’s with less interest in stats, abilities or equipment, will still have fun with the scenes focussed on them, especially as they feature some of the book’s funniest lines. The rest of the novel also features a great comedic tone, and I laughed so many times throughout The Dungeon Anarchist’s Cookbook, especially as Dinniman keeps upping the ante with the plot and forcing the protagonist into even more ridiculous scenarios.

This great humour is well balanced by the often more serious character moments that Dinniman does a wonderful job inserting into the story. Most of these revolve around the perspective character, Carl, who serves as the voice of the entire story. A sarcastic, gruff and scarred figure, Carl serves as an excellent everyman protagonist for the series, and you soon get very attached to him, especially as he attempts to be the dungeon’s hero and save everyone he can. The author builds up some really moving storylines around Carl in this third book, and I loved seeing his continued growth as the team’s unofficial leader, as his accurate insights and tactical ideas really move the plot along. There are some very dramatic moments loaded in as Carl encounters the various dark sides of the dungeon, and I loved the big anti-authoritarian aspect to the character that Dinniman is expanding upon, especially as he witnesses more and more of the dungeon’s cruelty. The inclusion of the titular Dungeon Anarchist’s Cookbook, a secret in-game book that gives him hints and ideas to survive in the dungeon, was a fun twist, and I loved how it gave him even more explosive ideas, while allowing the author to explore his rebellious side even more. Despite being a mostly serious figure, there is still a lot of humour around Carl, mainly from him being the straight man in a very ridiculous place, and you have to love his very reasonable reactions to some of the weird things he witnesses. Dinniman also continues the very funny trend of having Carl gain a well-deserved reputation of being one the craziest crawlers in the dungeon, mainly due to his tendency of solving all his problems with explosives, and there is a lot of entertainment in seeing Carl’s various plans go further off the rails than intended.

In comparison to Carl, sentient cat Princess Donut is the fun face of the team, and it’s impossible not to love her various antics and over-the-top attitudes. Her many entertaining quirks, including her obsession with fame, hilarious insights into humans, her long-running grudge against all Cocker Spaniels, her relentless use of all-caps in chat mode, and her general cat-like personality all add a lot of amusement to the novel, and you have to love the odd-couple relationship that forms with Carl. So many of The Dungeon Anarchist’s Cookbook’s funniest sequences result from Donut’s antics and Carl’s subsequent reactions, and this novel would not be as entertaining without her. Despite mostly being a comedic figure, Donut does get some serious interactions with the other characters, which help to showcase her character growth and protective nature. Her occasional vulnerable and honest discussions with Carl really highlight their bond, and she has one of the best moments in the entire book when she overreacts after a friend is hurt. I really cannot emphasise enough what a great character Donut is, and I really love that Dinniman decided to make this hilarious sentient cat one of his main protagonists.

I also must mention the newest member of the protagonist’s party, Katia, a shy woman who has taken on a shapeshifting race that allows her to act as an effective tank. I must admit I wasn’t too certain about Katia as a character at the start of The Dungeon Anarchist’s Cookbook, due to her understated personality and somewhat random introduction and inclusion to the team in the second half of the previous novel. However, Dinniman steadily builds up her complex personality as the book continues, and thanks to the continued support of her new party, as well as Carl’s various attempts to hack her race features, she becomes quite an effective crawler, gaining a lot more confidence. Her unique abilities and likeable personality nicely compliment the already existing team of Carl and Donut, and they end up becoming a well-balanced trio thanks to her inclusion. The author also sets up an intriguing storyline around Katia’s conflicting loyalties between her previous party and the current group of Carl and Donut, which come into play perfectly during one of the novel’s big moments. Katia ends up becoming quite an awesome part of the book thanks to these scenes, and I loved the excellent new dynamic she brings to the series.

Aside from these main three characters, The Dungeon Anarchist’s Cookbook features a really impressive supporting cast, especially as Dinniman brings back a lot of awesome characters from the previous two novels. This includes Donut’s pet, Mongo, a giant velociraptor who was once again a fun addition to the plot. While Mongo does get used a little less in the book thanks to the compact train cars of the setting, he made an impact when he did appear (especially to a certain gnoll) it is very entertaining to see Donut finally able to ride him. The group’s manager, Mordecai, was once again perfect as the reluctant and exasperated mentor figure, who plays off the personalities of the main protagonists perfectly. One excellent scene in the book ended up limiting Mordecai’s role in The Dungeon Anarchist’s Cookbook, which serves as an effective handicap for the protagonists, while also hinting at Mordecai’s traumatic past, and I look forward to the author expanding on that in the future.

This lack of Mordecai also allows for the author to feature a lot of additional characters, which fits the giant group teamwork focus of the plot, and it was fun to see some of Carl and Donut’s acquaintances from the previous two books return here, especially as several have changed in some very entertaining ways. I need to highlight the return of antagonist Frank Q, whose big scene with Carl was one of the most powerful moments of the novel, especially as Frank seemingly gets his revenge. Other previously mentioned antagonists, including some introduced outside the dungeon, are brought back here, often in a big way, and their interactions with Carl are always quite destructive. Dinniman also focuses on an array of NPC characters in The Dungeon Anarchist’s Cookbook, and the dark plight of these poor figures helps to showcase both the protagonist’s empathy and the twisted nature of the entire dungeon process. Finally, I again need to mention the hilarious AI who runs the dungeon, as the disembodied figure is easily the most hilarious character in the series thanks to his unhinged descriptions, brilliant references, and the twisted way he manipulates the crawlers to get the funniest result for the audience. I love how Dinniman showed how the AI is starting to crack a little, especially when it begins rebelling against the corporation running the game (how dare they appeal the AI’s decisions), and I laughed so hard at so many things the AI said. All these characters, and more, were very entertaining to follow, and I love the many rich character arcs and moments that the author cleverly inserted into the novel’s plot.

I have been having an absolute blast with the Dungeon Crawler Carl audiobooks, and I didn’t even hesitate in choosing to also listen to The Dungeon Anarchist’s Cookbook on this format. Unsurprisingly, this was another exceptional listen as the audiobook version of The Dungeon Anarchist’s Cookbook really helped to highlight all the best aspects of the book, including the great action, amazing characters and brilliant, over-the-top humour. Coming in at nearly 17 hours, this was the longest Dungeon Crawler Carl audiobooks yet (they only get even longer from here), although I still managed to power through it in very quick order. A large reason this audiobook was so good was because the very talented Jeff Hays once again impressed as narrator. Thanks to his zany voices Hays makes this audiobook truly come alive, and I love how perfectly he inhabits all the crazy and complex characters featured within this book. There is an outstanding array of accents, parody voices, and over-the-top tones from Hays in this audiobook, and all the voices were a lot of fun, especially for some of the big or exaggerated monsters. I again need to highlight his excellent voices for Carl and Princess Donut, and it’s just amazing how he can embody both very divergent characters. I also loved the voice he used for the system AI, especially as Hays brings out all the disembodied figure’s sass, anger and sadistic comedy with his reading of the announcements, especially when the AI gets freaky or mad. This Dungeon Crawler Carl audiobook also features the voice of Youtube personality The Critical Drinker, who voices a minor character in a well-done, if unnecessary, inclusion. I felt this entire audiobook came together pretty damn perfectly, including the very funny ad for Soundbooth Theater thrown in at the end, and I honestly don’t think I would enjoy this series nearly as much if it weren’t for these fantastic audiobook productions. I plan to listen to all future Dungeon Crawler Carl novels on audiobook, and I know I am going to have so much damn fun doing so.

With yet another explosive story, loaded with great characters, clever RPG inclusions and the author’s outstanding humour, The Dungeon Anarchist’s Cookbook was extremely epic, and I could not get enough of it. The best book in the Dungeon Crawler Carl series so far, The Dungeon Anarchist’s Cookbook was ultra-impressive, and Matt Dinniman did an exceptional job bringing everything together. I enjoyed this novel so much that I once again decided to start reading the next book in the series the moment I finished this one and then continued after that. As such, I am currently in the middle of the fifth book in the series, The Butcher’s Masquerade, after loving the fourth book, Gate of the Feral Gods, and both are incredibly awesome and so much fun.

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Carl’s Doomsday Scenario by Matt Dinniman

On July 27, 2025 By The Unseen LibraryIn Audiobook, Fantasy, Five-Star Books, Science Fiction, Throwback Thursday8 Comments

Publisher: Soundbooth Theater (Audiobook – 6 January 2020)

Series: Dungeon Crawler Carl – Book Two

Length: 11 hours and 28 minutes

My Rating: 5 out of 5 stars

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After falling in love with Dungeon Crawler Carl, the first book in the epic Dungeon Crawler Carl series, I have decided to continue diving into this incredible series of adventure, friendship and adversity, with the second novel in the deeply impressive LitRPG series Carl’s Doomsday Scenario. Dungeon Crawler Carl was so damn fun, and I chose to start reading this awesome sequel the very moment I finished the first book in the series.

The dungeon crawl to determine the fate of planet Earth has begun, and it is already the highest rated show in the entire galaxy. However, the games have only just began, as the human crawlers who survived the training levels of the game now must contend with the horrors of the dungeon’s third level.

The unlikely team of the pants-bereft hero Carl, his now sentient cat, Princess Donut, and Donut’s pet dinosaur, Mongo, have already survived great adversity in their initial forays through the dungeon, but now the game is starting to get even more chaotic. Starting off the level with the ability to chooses new races and specialised classes, Carl and Donut have some serious upgrades to face the full horrors of the dungeon, and they are going to need it.

This new level of the dungeon, known as the Over City, is the sprawling ruin of a once vast city, laid low by a devastating calamity. Many creatures still haunt the now destroyed streets, including the horrifying remains of a once popular circus, while in the seemingly safe town they use as a base, murdered prostitutes rain from the sky as part of a malevolent scheme. However, while Carl and Donut face all manner of monsters and mayhem tackling these horrors and the quests that lay behind them, the greater danger may lay outside of the dungeon, as old and new enemies from the alien races descending on Earth are determined to make Carl’s journey as difficult as possible. Can these two unlikely companions and their pet dinosaur survive the carnage to come, or is their doomed crawl through the dungeon about to come to an end?

Well damn, now that was a really impressive follow-up to the first book in the Dungeon Crawler Carl series. Carl’s Doomsday Scenario was an outstanding novel from Dinniman that ups the craziness and ensures that you are still absolutely hooked on its brilliant storytelling, intriguing LitRPG elements and awesome humour. I frankly couldn’t stop listening to Carl’s Doomsday Scenario, and I have to give it another five-star rating for how much fun I had with it.

Dinniman came up with another great story for Carl’s Doomsday Scenario that continues right after the events of the first book in the series. One of the shorter novels in the series, Carl’s Doomsday Scenario avoids any recap material and instead jumps right into the plot, which covers the entire time the protagonists spend on the third level of the game. Cleverly bringing in some cool new elements at the start, the protagonists are soon grinding through this new level. The plot mostly focused around two of the quests that the protagonists choose to participate in, one involving a cursed circus, and the other involving a sinister plot of sacrifice and murder in one of the floor’s main towns. Dinniman plays through both major plot elements in a similar manner to quests from a particularly deranged RPG game, and you soon get invested in both the scenarios, and the protagonist’s unusual or explosive ways of dealing with the situation. Both major quest lines involved carnage, exploration, a dash of mystery, and an array of intriguing new characters, and allow for the protagonists to keep getting stronger and more experienced.

These quest-focused sequences are well balanced by an array of events that tie them into the larger series story of the protagonists playing the dungeon game. The protagonists become involved in several events outside the dungeon which helps introduce long-term antagonists and hints about some of the future obstacles to come. You also get some interesting updates about some of the recurring characters introduced in the first book, many of whom are clearly going to have a bigger impact on the story in the future. All these elements blend well into one cohesive and exciting plot, and I loved how well Dinniman balanced the various unique story elements and kept making the overall narrative of the series even more elaborate. These plots all come together for Carl’s Doomsday Scenario’s big finale, which was as hilariously epic as possible. Dinniman really ramped up the tension for this final part of the book, and you are constantly on the edge of your seat as you wait to see who survives and how. An epic story that perfectly continued the overarching Dungeon Crawler Carl narrative, while also providing some very memorable moments that allows Carl’s Doomsday Scenario to stand on its own.

I loved how Carl’s Doomsday Scenario came together, although I must point out that you really need to read Dungeon Crawler Carl first. The plot of Carl’s Doomsday Scenario directly continues from the events of Dungeon Crawler Carl, and you could honestly combine the two to get one long novel without any issues at all. Indeed, this story does feel a little like a bridging novel between the introductory first novel and the heavily plot laden third book, although it still works well to tell its own fun story. While the point-of-view protagonist does recap some events in his head as the story unfolds, new readers trying to start at this second book would likely get lost in some of the plot details. As such, this is definitely a book for those who plan to read the series from start to finish, and those that are will find that Carl’s Doomsday Scenario features all the very best elements from the initial novel, including a ton of great action, some unique LitRPG elements, and the continued side-splitting humour that made Dungeon Crawler Carl so much fun to get through.

Dinniman makes excellent continued use of the first-person perspective to paint a compelling picture of the protagonists’ journey in this second book, and you really get drawn into Carl and Princess Donut’s adventures as a result. Thanks to the fact that they are experiencing all these scenarios for the first time, readers with all manner of LitRPG or RPG experience can easily enjoy this novel, and the author does an amazing job combining the more elaborate RPG elements into the larger exciting narrative. There are a ton of great new elements added in for this book, with things like class and species decisions, quests, elite NPCs, towns and more, adds some additional complexity to the plot which helps to make the story even more interest. These extensive LitRPG features are perfectly enhanced by the author’s comedic writing, and there are so many great jokes thrust into the story. This humour is well supported by the book’s overall outrageous nature, and all the over-the-top scenarios the protagonists encounter can be exceptionally funny at times. Thanks to how well Dinniman writes and combines these elements together, I was so invested in every part of the book, and it was fantastic to see the entire narrative unfold and watch the protagonists evolve with the game.

As with Dungeon Crawler Carl, the emotional heart of Carl’s Doomsday Scenario lies in the partnership between Carl and Princess Donut, and it was fascinating to follow these two unlikely heroes through the dungeon. Carl continues to be the gruff and over-exasperated central character through whose eyes we see the story unfold. A tired figure still reeling from the death of his planet, Carl continues to grimly stay alive for Donut’s sake, while also becoming more enraged at the full evils of the dungeon and the corrupt alien corporations controlling it. I really enjoyed the practical and often quite clever way he addresses the dungeon’s many challenges, and Dinniman does a good job showcasing his evolution as a player, even though he still mainly resorts to explosives and crazy plans. Indeed, Carl starts to develop a somewhat well-deserved reputation as a reckless figure, which is quite entertaining.

While Carl is the stoic centre of the plot, Princess Donut is the comedic heart of the Dungeon Crawler Carl series, and you just have to love her entertaining persona. Despite being sentient, Princess Donut is still very much a cat in nature and bearing, and it is hilarious to see her exaggerated personality clash with the more subdued nature of Carl. Her ability to get them into all manner of trouble with her fun-loving ways and lack of caution adds some great entertainment to the plot (Goddammit Donut!), while her love of attention and popularity perfectly plays into the reality television nature of the dungeon game they are in. Donut is an outstanding personality foil to Carl, and this allows for some very entertaining moments as a duo. However, while on the outside she is still the same silly and haughty cat you came to love in the first book, Dinniman has started to showcase Donut’s hidden depths, and there are some great moments when you come to realise that the cat is growing up and become more mature. A lot of this lies in the heartwarming relationship between Carl and Donut as the two continue to become a true team. I love some of the scenes when Carl and Donut are vulnerable with each other, especially when they are close to death, and you realise just how close they’ve become and how much they mean to each other. This connection provides some amazing moments throughout Carl’s Doomsday Scenario, and you continue to become extremely invested in these two’s adventures.

Aside from Carl and Donut, there is an array of additional awesome characters featured in Carl’s Doomsday Scenario, including a combination of figures from the previous novel and some new great characters. This includes Donut’s pet velociraptor, Mongo, who continues to grow into an even more dangerous killing machine. Despite some continued teething troubles about Mogo’s inability to control himself, Mogo grows into a key member of the team, and that intense scene where he defends Donut from harm cements him as a wonderfully beloved pet. The team’s NPC tutorial guide, Mordecai, gets an extended appearance in Carl’s Doomsday Scenario, becoming Donut’s reluctant manager, and I loved the fun mentor role he adds to the cast, becoming the team’s voice of reason, which is often ignored by the protagonists. Dinniman also adds in an interesting third member of the party later in the book, who gets an effective introduction, even if they don’t play a major role in the plot this time around. Throw in an array of determined fellow crawlers, aliens who often have beef with Carl, and some complex mobs and NPCs whose unique stories the protagonists get dragged into, and the cast of Carl’s Doomsday Scenario was so damn epic and really enhanced the overall story.

As with the first book in the series, I chose to listen to Carl’s Doomsday Scenario on audiobook, which is frankly the very best way to enjoy this incredible novel, especially as the having the crazy story and the antics of the characters read out is so much fun. Coming in with a run time of 11 and a half hours, this is one of the shorter entries in the series, and I managed to finish off this audiobook in a few very entertaining days. I deeply appreciate the fact that Jeff Hays continues as the narrator of this second audiobook in the series, as he really impressed me with Dungeon Crawler Carl. Hays has an amazing array of elaborate voices that perfectly fit so many of the unique characters featured in this novel, and he carries over several of the key tones from the first audiobook for the recurring characters. His voices for Carl and Princess Donut are particularly good, and I love how effectively he still captures their complex personalities, including Carl’s frustrations and anger, and Donut’s comedic over-excitement and infectious personality. His best voice still probably remains the system AI running the dungeon, as the sheer amount of excitement, sarcasm and comedic timing Hays brings to reading out the AI’s notices is so damn good. Throw in a cool array of new character voices, as well as some modulated tones for characters who have changed race or attributes, and this was such an impressive listen that will have you laughing like crazy. I cannot recommend the audiobook format of the Dungeon Crawler Carl books enough, so do yourself a favour and make sure to check them out.

My newfound obsession with Matt Dinniman’s Dungeon Crawler Carl series continues unabated as I powered through the second book, Carl’s Doomsday Scenario, in no time at all. an outstanding sequel that perfectly continues all the amazing story elements from the first book, while adding even more layers to the elaborate scenario. Fast-paced, constantly entertaining, and with some impressive emotional depth to it, Carl’s Doomsday Scenario was particularly awesome, and I had an absolute blast reading it. Indeed, I loved it so much that I once again instantly dived into the next book in the series, The Dungeon Anarchist’s Cookbook, which is proving to be just as incredible as its predecessors.

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Dungeon Crawler Carl by Matt Dinniman

On July 27, 2025 By The Unseen LibraryIn Audiobook, Fantasy, Five-Star Books, Science Fiction, Throwback Thursday15 Comments

Publisher: Soundbooth Theater (Audiobook – 21 September 2020)

Series: Dungeon Crawler Carl – Book One

Length: 13 hours and 31 minutes

My Rating: 5 out of 5 stars

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Have you ever had one of those books or series that everybody seems to be talking up all the time? Lately for me that series has been the Dungeon Crawler Carl novels by Matt Dinniman. An intriguing LitRPG series, the Dungeon Crawler Carl books are a funky and hilarious fantasy and science fiction hybrid that places its outrageous protagonist into an unlikely alien reality show filled with subterranean dungeons inspired from classic RPGs. A series with a very interesting premise, I have been seeing so much online about the Dungeon Crawler Carl books over the last couple of years, with everyone praising it and really talking it up. Despite not having a lot of experience with the LitRPG genre (except for Ascension by B. F. Rockriver), I decided to check out the first novel in the series, also titled Dungeon Crawler Carl, to see what all the fuss was about, and boy did that have an excellent result.

When aliens come to Earth, first contact is far more brutal and unusual than you could ever expect. Instead of communicating or conquering, the aliens instead instantaneously collapse every single human-made structure down into the ground, killing everyone who was inside. Only those standing outside at the time survived, and they are given a dire choice: either remain on the planet’s now desolate surface with no shelter, or journey down into the subterranean 18-level dungeon that has been formed from humanity’s repurposed buildings.

For those few million human survivors who journey into the newly labyrinth, they soon encounter a fantasy-inspired dungeon, filled with traps, monsters, loot and other dark dangers to navigate. These survivors, known as dungeon crawlers, need to keep moving downwards in the hope of reaching the 18^th floor and the promised reward it contains. Death and dismemberment are a near certainty in the dungeon, so contestants will need to learn how to kill mobs, find enchanted gear, learn new combat skills or magic and keep getting stronger, all before the level they are on collapses. However, this dungeon is far more that a contest of might and magic; it is the most popular reality program in the galaxy, seen by untold trillions of aliens, and only those crawlers who can gain a strong following and rich sponsors are likely to survive.

Into this chaotic situation is thrown unlikely hero Carl. A simple man caught outside in his underwear as he attempted to retrieve his ex-girlfriend’s cat, Princess Donut, Carl soon finds himself fighting for his life in the most ridiculous of circumstances. Teaming up with the now sentient Princess Donut, Carl finds that the dungeon has a steep learning curve, and he will need all his resolve, cunning and the friendship of a superpowered cat to survive. However, as Carl and Princess Donut accidently become two of the most popular contestants in the game, they will need to contend with everyone who wants them dead, both from inside the dungeon and without, as they constantly move downwards. Dangerously overmatched, completely overwhelmed, and with a distinct lack of pants for Carl, this unlikely duo will need to learn how to survive big and show the universe and the unhinged AI controlling the game that they are worth keeping alive.

Goddammit Dinniman, how could you create something so damn addictive. It turns out that for once the internet crowd had this 100% right, and Dungeon Crawler Carl was everything they said it would be and more. A clever, intense and overall hilarious romp through a cool LitRPG scenario, Dungeon Crawler Carl had me hooked very early on and I absolutely powered through this epic adventure novel which I just had to give a full five-star rating.

I really, really loved the cool story in Dungeon Crawler Carl, which starts off quickly and never lets up all the way to the end. Starting with a quick but effective introduction to Carl, which then leads to the world collapsing and him being forced to enter the dungeon with his cat, you are soon immersed in this new crazy world, with some bloody opening fights setting the crazy tone for the rest of the novel. After an in-depth sequence that explains the rules of the world, Dungeon Crawler Carl takes off again at a fast pace made even more entertaining thanks to the introduction of the now sentient cat, Princess Donut. Forced to keep fighting through monsters, traps and other obstacles, the action and excitement never lets up, and I really appreciated how Dinniman naturally flowed the protagonists into fresh scenarios, including unusual boss fights, explosive opportunities, and starting a meth war between goblins and fire-spitting llamas.

The second half of Dungeon Crawler Carl goes in some very interesting direction, as the protagonists encounter other Crawlers, with some very different results, while also ensuring the full and often ultra-bonkers horrors of the first two levels of the dungeon keep coming at you hard and fast. There is some great character development as the book continues, both literally and figuratively, and it was interesting to see the characters evolve to face the unique threats of the dungeon in their own way. Dinniman threw in some clever and often hilarious solutions to many of the obstacles the protagonists face (although most of them involve explosives), and you’re constantly on the edge of your seat as you wait to see how they will survive going forward. There is also some excellent universe expansion as the characters experience the reality-television obsessed world outside the dungeon, which often leads to some hints of the dangers to come later in the series. These upcoming elements are well placed into the book, which allows the readers to anticipate what is to come, while not distracting from the main plot points. The conclusion of Dungeon Crawler Carl comes a little after the big events of the book, but it sits in a good place as part of the wider series. This novel ends up being an exceptional read on its own, while also being an excellent first entry in the series that perfectly sets up the many over-the-top adventures to come.

This proved to be a very cleverly put together novel, and Dinniman really excelled at utilising the unique elements of the LitRPG genre and utilising in his story. Featuring a very cool explanation for why the protagonists are trapped in a fantasy dungeon (alien reality television show to determine the fate of the planet is an awesome plot idea), you soon get engrossed in the LitRPG themes of the book, as the characters are instantly forced to battle mobs to survive. Due to the time limits built into the plot, the protagonists are quickly forced to adapt to the new way of living (or dying), and the reader is given a crash course in the mechanics of the game system. I found these to be quite fascinating, and you really get engrossed in the various levelling, skills, magical items, achievements and other elements of the game, which fans of RPGs of all varieties will be familiar with. The dungeon itself is a unique blend of classic fantasy creatures and tropes, with exaggerated elements of modern human culture, allowing for modern references to go together with fights against goblins and other creatures. Dinniman also adds in a great reality television element to the plot, as the protagonists are forced to earn followers and appeal to a wider audience to improve their chances, like The Hunger Games on steroids. The author does an excellent job of setting these unique elements up, and it’s a great extra edge to the typical LitRPG elements.

Dinniman ensures that these LitRPG elements continue to be quite entertaining throughout the entirety of Dungeon Crawler Carl thanks to a variety of factors, mainly humour. Nearly every scene in this book is incredibly funny of various levels, including entertaining character interactions, reactions to over-the-top scenarios, various subtle jokes, and a large amount of more noticeable adult humour that reflects the crazy situation and big personalities of the plot. I personally loved how Dinniman enhanced all the game elements of the book, such as item and mob descriptions, achievements, skill discussions and more, by including comedic summaries loaded with jokes, references and the barely controlled fetishes of the AI running the dungeon. These wacky descriptions made the more LitRPG-heavy parts of the plot flow a lot better, especially as readers with less interest in RPGs can still have fun with these scenes. Dinniman works to make various other LitRPG elements more entertaining for casual readers in various other ways, such as ensuring all the scenes featuring the chat function are quite distinct and humorous due to Princess Donut’s insistence of only writing in caps. I honestly was left laughing out loud multiple times throughout Dungeon Crawler Carl, and the sheer ridiculousness of the story, as well as the often quite inappropriate, yet hilarious jokes, was just too much for me.

While there is a definite focus on comedy and jokes in Dungeon Crawler Carl, Dinniman also adds in some real emotional heart to the story, mainly through the focus on the protagonists. The relationship between the perspective protagonist Carl, and the now sentient cat Princess Donut adds some excellent and powerful depth to the book, especially as they grow to be a compelling team. While initially thrown together in unlikely fashion, the grumpy Carl and the amusing Princess Donut, who has all the smugness and confidence of a prize-winning cat, turn into the ultimate odd-couple, made even more entertaining by the fact that the cat is much more powerful than Carl. Dinniman throws in a lot of very entertaining quirks for both characters that makes you love them; however, it is the more subtle examination of the protagonist’s deeper emotions that help to enhance this narrative even more. This includes Carl’s deep internal anger, brought on by various factors, the despair he feels at the complete destruction of his world, and his continued attempted heroics, even when it puts him at greater risk. I loved how both Carl and Princess Donut both grew to become quite dependent on each other as the book continued, and while there is still a lot of growth needed for both, you can see that their bond is going to be the powerful centre of the plot.

Aside from Carl and Princess Donut, Dungeon Crawler Carl is loaded with an outstanding array of characters who each bring their own brand of fun to the plot. I personally enjoyed the protagonist’s guide, Mordecai, a veteran former crawler who provides advice on how to proceed, while also hiding the trauma of his own adventures in a previous dungeon. There was also an array of compelling and distinctive mobs, alien night show hosts, and other creatures associated with the production, who on the surface are quite entertaining and funny, but whose deeper tragedies work to highlight just how dark the dungeon process truly is. There are also some other distinctive fellow crawlers thrown into the plot, and it is interesting to see how humans will react to the terrible situation before them, either becoming heroes or dark villains. Finally, I must mention the AI running the dungeon, who proves to be one of the more entertaining figures in the book, despite not appearing in person in any way. His very over-the-top commentary and descriptions for all the game mechanics was ultra-hilarious, and there are so many great jokes there. However, it was the AI’s more subtle actions that proved to be the funniest part of this electronically ethereal figure’s inclusion, as it guides the game to suit its own interests and desires. This includes giving very specific items to the protagonists to produce the most amusing story, while other rewards and loot encourage Carl to remain barefoot and lacking pants throughout the game for “reasons”. I felt that this excellent cast really matched the over-the-top story that Dinniman threw together for Dungeon Crawler Carl, and every character made an amusing and memorable impact on the story.

I ended up checking out the audiobook for Dungeon Crawler Carl, which was honestly exceptional, and I cannot emphasise enough just how effective this format enhanced Dinniman’s great story and outrageous humour. Narrated by Jeff Hays, who might be one of my new favourite audiobook voice actors, all the action, intensity and the distinctive characters of Dungeon Crawler Carl came across exceptionally well in this format, and I absolutely loved how effectively Hays conveyed the entire craziness of this novel. The narrator provides an excellent voice for the protagonist, Carl, that served as the base tone for most of the narration, and you really get to feel the protagonist’s fear, determination and continued exasperation, especially when he encounters all the crazy twists and inclusions. Hays’ voices for the other characters of Dungeon Crawler Carl also helps to make this audiobook stick out. For example, the tone that Hays choice for Mordecai perfectly fit the tired, old mentor, while his Princess Donut voice is so damn entertaining, especially as you can fully appreciate the character’s catlike nature with Hays’ high-pitched and demanding voice. Hays also captures all the fun features of weird mobs of the dungeon, including goblins and other sentient creatures, and there are some very striking and funny voices featured there. However, it is the tone he uses when speaking in the voice of the AI running the dungeon that is the best. Cheerful and sarcastic, Hays perfectly captures this computer program’s weird sense of humour with his narration, and I loved the boisterous way he reads out the achievements, the skills, item stats and more, especially for more colourful descriptions that require accents or other creepier voice changes. This outstanding narration worked on so many levels with Dinniman’s unique style, and I frankly could not get enough of listening to Dungeon Crawler Carl on audiobook, which is just the best way to check out this novel.

Overall, I had an exceptional time with Dungeon Crawler Carl, and this series instantly became my new obsession. Fun, outrageous and constantly exciting, Dungeon Crawler Carl lives up to all the hype surrounding it, and I was really impressed with Matt Dinniman’s ability to craft a complex story that will potentially get better with each new entry. Honestly the best way to showcase just how much I enjoyed Dungeon Crawler Carl is to reveal that as soon as I finished this first book I instantly started listening to the sequel, Carl’s Doomsday Scenario, and then the third book, The Dungeon Anarchist’s Cookbook, soon after that. I will probably end up powering through this series in the next few months, hopefully before the eighth book comes out next year, and I cannot wait to see where Dinniman takes this beautifully unhinged plot next.

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