Reviews

I really enjoyed this book! This was technically a reread for me, but it's been six or seven years, so I really didn't remember much. The book was told in alternating points of view between Cal, a sentient dungeon, and Dale, a young adventurer who discovers the dungeon. I love books where a weak main character discovers/ is given power and grows in strength, and this book has that twice in the same book! I loved the balance of action and humor, and the cultivation and leveling aspects of LitRPG without being too heavily stat-loaded. The narrator did a fantastic job differentiating the voices. I'm looking forward to continuing the pentalogy!

vecttor42's review

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5.0

Very creative and different from the usual, this book feels like looking into a living backbone of a role-playing game, the idea of seeing the POV of a living dungeon is brilliantly unique. It is very niche and not for everyone, but I super recommend it for tabletop RPG players and dungeon masters, video-game players, and essentially everyone curious about fantasy world-building.

the_rabble's review against another edition

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The identity death up top is disconcerting and (after jumping to the last few chapters) doesn't seem to be addressed. Then there is a lot of rankings talk that's just not my jam for an audiobook.

Seems like good DnD inspo but doesn't seem like I need to listen to the whole thing to catch the vibe.

Narrator does a great job and is the reason I initially picked it up.

jackdziatkowiec's review against another edition

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adventurous funny lighthearted fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.0

This really surprised me. Lovable characters. Complex backstory. Ingenious world building.

roboghostworld's review

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adventurous fast-paced

5.0

tadhgerman's review

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4.0

The thing I enjoy about Krout's writing is that it's very bingeable and entertaining. This book wouldn't be called high art but I really enjoyed reading it. It was fun and interesting and the hard magic system is something I always enjoy learning more about. I also remember the game this is based on and so there is a certain amount of nostalgia for me in reading it. If you're looking for a fun, light, read with an interesting and tongue in cheek take on fantasy tropes then definitely give it a go.

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