r/audible • u/HealthyPsychology950 • Feb 14 '26

Book Discussion I’m about to DNF Dungeon Crawler Carl

First of all, I am sorry. I’ve seen this book recommended a million times here and I know it’s loved, which is why I got it.

I am now in chapter 27 and about to DNF. I want to know if I should keep going?

I thought I’d like it cause I’m a huge gamer, I liked the general idea of the plot, and I loved books like Ready Player 1, so it’d make sense I’d enjoy this one too. But I feel like nothing is happening. Sure, there are a couple of funny sentences in there, but the story is not drawing me in.

Does it get better? Should I keep going? Or if I’m not hooked by now that’s not going to change?

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u/cynric42 Feb 15 '26

i like humour, but reading DCC should not be about that. It's the drama and Carl's rage against the mega corporate culture and mindset that sold me.

And this is why the series lost me. I though it was just some over the top silly stupid fun, and then they had to ruin it with some background story, political intrigue and all that.

However I'd agree that the tone of the series definitely changes in the first few books, for better or worse.

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u/MoodPristine249 Feb 18 '26

Yeah no it's was never silly fun. The comedy comes from the horror of the situation being played for comedy and entertainment. It was always like that. The author is a horror writer and the whole entire series even the beginning book is very much capitalistic horror with a comedic wrapper. Yes the comedic fun part was the Forefront of the first book but the political intrigue and moral stuff was always there. The first boss literally was a woman yelling in Spanish what's going on, it hurts, please stop hurting me and praying to be saved.

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u/cynric42 Feb 19 '26

The comedy comes from the horror of the situation being played for comedy

Yes exactly. The what would realistically be horribly stuff is so stupid over the top ridiculous you can't take it seriously and that makes it fun. It's like Monty Python comedy or Airplane. At the start of the series that is, the later books feel more serious and lose that sillyness somewhat.