Dungeon Crawler Carl

Over the last few months, I saw this book everytime I went into Orell Füssli. I always thought about getting it but somehow I hesitated….WHAT A MISTAKE THAT WAS! Last week I finally bought it and once I started reading, there was no going back. I read it in like 3 days and immediately ordered the following books! Dungeon Crawler Carl is a mix of Dungeons & Dragons, Hunger Games, Squid Game, The Witcher and Reality TV. It is hard to describe, you have to experience it yourself. Be prepared for a lot of WTFs and a lot of AHAHAHAHs. The main character is of course….NOT Carl but Crawler Grand Champion, Breed Winner Regional, National Winner Princess Donut the Queen Anne Chonk instead. If you hesitate like I did…DON’T! DO IT!

When I saw it first in the bookstore, I was looking at the cover of the fourth book in that series and thought "What the hell is with that Cat?". When I saw it was the fourth one, I looked for the first one and the cat was on it too. I got curious, read the description and thought that it sounds quite funny. Let's buy it. I'm honest...in the past months or even years I bought a lot of books from Japanese authors with cats in it and I see a theme with my choosing. That's because I'm quite tired of the Fantasy and romantasy books, which in my opinion, sound all the same in the past years of looking for new books. That's also why I don't look for new book inspirations via YouTube or TikTok and just wander in the store and look what's new. This book is the complete opposite of my "feel-good" Japanese Books but so so good. My expectations wasn't that hight but damn, it got beyond that. It's funny as hell and the Achievement got me every time but it's also has depth, gore and some interesting characters. The Bond between Carl and Donut is very cute and amusing at times. I'm not only invested in those two but also some side characters like Mordecai or Lorelei and Rory. I have not much left of Book two, bought already the third one and read the webtoon graphic novel of it. Never thought I would be so obsessed with that series but here we are.

Ganz ehrlich? Ich kann mich nicht erinnern, wann mich ein Buch das letzte Mal so dermaßen aus den Socken gehauen hat – was irgendwie passend ist, da Hauptcharakter Carl die meiste Zeit sowieso nur in Boxershorts und Lederjacke durch den Weltuntergang stolpert. Diese Story ist so herrlich gaga, dass ich beim Lesen abwechselnd fassungslos den Kopf geschüttelt und Sekunden später laut losgelacht habe. Ich meine, wer kommt bitteschön auf drogendealende Lamas und explodierende Goblins? Die Mischung aus Action und diesem komplett schrägen Humor ist absolut suchterzeugend. Carl ist als unfreiwilliger Held extrem sympathisch, aber die wahre Queen ist Prinzessin Donut. Eine sprechende Katze mit Star-Allüren, die in einer sadistischen intergalaktischen Spielshow ordentlich aufräumt? Ich feiere es so sehr! Matt Dinniman hat hier ein Feuerwerk gezündet, das mich völlig süchtig zurücklässt. Ich habe das Buch regelrecht gefressen und sitze jetzt auf glühenden Kohlen. Ich brauche jetzt – und ich meine wirklich jetzt – den nächsten Band. Wenn ihr Bock auf ein Buch habt, das keine Grenzen kennt und einfach nur Spaß macht: Gönnt euch Carl und Donut. Ihr werdet es nicht bereuen!

Geht sofort los mit Weltuntergang, Action und Humor. Macht super viel Spaß. Auch für lesefaule Jugendliche geeignet. Sofort Band 2 gekauft. Und für alle die Katzen und tolle und fantasievolle Charaktere mögen.

I've read this series four times, and it's easily my favorite of all time. This book is a brilliant masterpiece of dark humor and non-stop action. It follows a man and his ex-girlfriend's cat, Princess Donut—and trust me, the cat is the one you'll be quoting. Matt Dinniman's writing is just phenomenal; he crafts characters you will absolutely fall in love with and a story that is incredibly clever and addictive from the very first page. A quick note: if you enjoy audiobooks, the narration for this series is genuinely the best I have ever heard. Seriously, give this book a try. It’s the kind of story that sticks with you, and I can't recommend it highly enough.