Briar WestWhen I finished the first Dungeon Crawler Carl, there wasn’t much debate about what I was reading next. I downloaded book two almost immediately because I wanted to know what fresh nightmare Carl and Princess Donut were going to stumble into next.
If you missed my thoughts on the first book, you can read that review here:
👉 https://briarwestbooks.com/dungeon-crawler-carl-review/
Going in, I honestly wondered if the second book could live up to the first. The original spent so much time building this bizarre world and teaching readers how everything worked that I wasn’t sure lightning could strike twice.
It turns out I had nothing to worry about.
What impresses me most about this series is that every new floor feels like a natural extension of the last one. The rules evolve, the stakes get higher, and the dungeon keeps throwing out ideas that make me think, “Who comes up with this?” Even when something sounds completely ridiculous on paper, it fits once you’re back in Carl’s world.
The biggest surprise wasn’t the dungeon itself, though.
It was how invested I’ve become in these characters.
Princess Donut is still one of my favorites, but this book reminded me that she’s more than comic relief. There are moments where she drops the act just enough to let you see what’s really going on beneath all the pageantry and confidence. Those scenes hit harder than I expected, and there were a couple of times I caught myself getting emotional.
Then there’s Mordecai.
I don’t know exactly what it is about him. I like him, and I don’t have any reason not to trust him, but I keep feeling like there’s another layer we haven’t seen yet. Every little glimpse into his past leaves me wanting more, and I’m hoping future books spend more time exploring who he really is.
By the time Carl and Donut reached the fourth floor, I wasn’t thinking about whether I liked the book anymore. I was rooting for them. I wanted them to survive, keep climbing the leaderboard, and somehow make it through another floor that clearly wasn’t designed for anyone to survive.
That’s probably what surprised me most about this series.
I came for the crazy dungeon, the monsters, and the game mechanics. I stayed because I genuinely care about what happens to these characters.
Needless to say, book three is already waiting for me.
Read the Series (paid links)
If you’re ready to jump into Carl and Donut’s adventure, I’ve put together the complete series in reading order.
📚 Read the series here: https://amzn.to/4wdu5hS
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Have you started the Dungeon Crawler Carl series yet? I’d love to know what you think. And if you’re farther along than I am, no spoilers! I’m looking forward to finding out what happens next on my own.
If you’re interested in my other book reviews, you can also check out my thoughts on This Wretched Valley, the first horror novel I’ve ever read:
👉 https://briarwestbooks.com/reading-my-first-horror-novel-this-wretched-valley-review/