You know what’s worse than breaking up with your girlfriend? Being stuck with her prize-winning show cat. And you know what’s worse than that? An alien invasion, the destruction of all man-made structures on Earth, and the systematic exploitation of all the survivors for a sadistic intergalactic game show. That’s what.
Join Coast Guard vet Carl and his ex-girlfriend’s cat, Princess Donut, as they try to survive the end of the world—or just get to the next level—in a video game–like, trap-filled fantasy dungeon. A dungeon that’s actually the set of a reality television show with countless viewers across the galaxy. Exploding goblins. Magical potions. Deadly, drug-dealing llamas. This ain’t your ordinary game show.
Dungeon Crawler Carl by Matt Dinniman was first published in 2020. On August 27, 2024, it is getting a new re-release. Ace and Berkley Publishing Group provided an early galley for review.
As a long-time dungeon dweller myself (a D&D player since 1982), this title and concept was perfect for me.
Dinniman wastes no time getting the concept down; in chapter 1 we and Carl are thrown right into the thick of things. It is literally do the dungeon crawl or wait to die. Of course, there are questions: Who? How? Why? Unfortunately, there is no time for answers as the world bombards Carl right out of the gate - much like the tutorial phase of a videogame. Of course, once arriving at the first safe house, the true tutorial begins (the perfect way of disguising a lot of expository information for the reader). Dinniman draws from many gamer sources and elements, again a perfect fit for someone like me.
The combat action is described very clearly and quite violently to boot. Again, very videogame like. It takes on this vibe quite well.
Despite the length, it moves fairly quickly. Of course, it is just book 1 of a longer series; the publisher appears to have an aggressive release schedule for the follow-ups so there won't be too long a wait for the story to continue. I am certainly onboard for the ride.
No comments:
Post a Comment