If you’ve glanced at the New York Times bestseller list lately, you probably saw a peculiar title creep towards the top. Dungeon Crawler Carl isn’t your typical thriller, romance, or even mystery — instead, it brings the genre of LitRPG to the masses in a way readers have never seen before. It’s a niche genre that applies video game rules to the story’s plot and characters, which basically applies health stats, levels, skills, and classes, which makes earning XP and health points essential to survival and plot progression.
If you haven’t read any LitRPG books before, don’t worry — Dungeon Crawler Carl is beginner-friendly, though completely addictive. So what is it about?
The series follows Carl — a seemingly average ex-Coast Guard veteran — who is among the few survivors of the human race after an abrupt alien invasion atomizes every man-made structure on earth, effectively killing everyone inside of anything with a roof. If that wasn’t bad enough, the very same aliens who brought on the apocalypse force the remnants of humanity into a survival competition that will be broadcast to the entire galaxy in some sick version of a reality TV show.
Carl and his unlikely allies (including his ex-girlfriend’s cat, who is very important) must not just survive, but make the debacle entertaining — their very lives depend on the ratings. The series has seven books out so far and an eighth releasing in May, and fans can’t get enough of it. Brimming with dark humor and fast-paced action, Dungeon Crawler Carl is completely unique and topping charts across genres.
If you’re just jumping on the train, you’re here at the right time. While it’s unknown how many books the series will finish with, we do know a TV show is confirmed to be in the works at Peacock (per Variety). So, before it comes out, you’ll want to be caught up on all the action. Here’s how to read Dungeon Crawler Carl in order, plus a little bonus content many readers don’t even know exists!
- Title
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Dungeon Crawler Carl
- Author
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Matt Dinniman
- Genre
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LitRPG/GamLit
- Pages
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464
Ex-Coast Guard veteran Carl is one of the few remaining human survivors of a devastatingly abrupt alien invasion. His only chance of survival is to fight his way through an alien-run dungeon with his ex-girlfriend’s cat. What could go wrong?
The best order to read Dungeon Crawler Carl
Hold off on the bonus content
It’s simple: the best way to read Dungeon Crawler Carl is in publication order. The story is written in complete chronological order, which is especially important when it comes to keeping all the dungeon levels straight and organized in your head. That means you’ll start with the original seven books and move on to the eighth (A Parade of Horribles) when it releases on May 12. Here’s that order:
- Dungeon Crawler Carl
- Carl’s Doomsday Scenario
- The Dungeon Anarchist’s Cookbook
- The Gate of the Feral Gods
- The Butcher’s Masquerade
- The Eye of the Bedlam Bride
- This Inevitable Ruin
- A Parade of Horribles (scheduled for release on May 12)
So what about this bonus content? Well, while it’s official from Matt Dinniman himself, many readers don’t even know this particular version of Carl’s story exists: an official, illustrated WEBTOON.
WEBTOON is a popular app and website for digital comics, known for its vertical scrolling format that readers can use to devour graphic stories without turning any pages. It allows artists to use a lot of creative freedom, too. Dinniman worked with artist Aethon to create this comic version of the Dungeon Crawler Carl story, and it’s totally worth the read. The best part is that it’s free, too.
Because of how fast-paced the story is, I suggest reading at least the first Dungeon Crawler Carl book before devouring the WEBTOON. You can read the whole series and come back to it later while you wait for A Parade of Horribles, but I do think the illustrated element lends itself well to visualization for the rest of the series. You’ll have spoilers, of course, because the comic is just the first book illustrated so far, but it will only enrich reading the rest of the series for the first time.
