
Member Reviews

The Gate Of The Feral Gods is the fourth book in The Dungeon Crawler Carl series, by Matt Dinniman and oh boy is this one a doozy. My favorite thing to do when starting these books is be on the lookout for where the title comes from and although this one wasn’t clever, it sure became useful the further into this very long story we got. like all of these books there’s so much in it it’s hard to give a summary just know Carl, Princess Doughnut and their enclave is trying to get to the sixth floor. While fighting their way through they will make new friends including a possessed sex doll watch Gods fight. This inclueds a building sized Godzilla who’s into S&M. Carl finally see something in the dungeon crawler whirl that amazes him they become friends with a prostitute who’s also a loving mom to a brewd of changelings and Carl princess doughnut in the gang make history in the galaxy. Last but not least, the most important thing someone that Carl kind of trusted turns out to be not trustworthy at all. This book unlike the other books which we know is going to be the predecessor to a future book this is an absolute cliffhanger and I cannot wait to start the next book because OMG this book ended with me saying oh what the F just happened, OMG what the hell just happened? So I need to read the next book to find out what the actual F happened to my favorite galaxy game show and my favorite contestants. It seems this storyline just gets better and better in the author even recall things from Books before that I’m like OMG he’s talking about… This is such a great series and I cannot wait to start the next one anyone wanting a great reality game show type story needs to read this cause it includes the whole galaxy and it’s so freaking good! #NetGalley, #BerkeleyBooks, #TheBlindReviewer, #MyHonestReview, #MikeDinnimen, #DungeonCrawlerCarl, #TheGateOfTheFerrilGods,

Thank you @MattDinniman and @AceBooksPub for the free book! #BerkleyPartner #Berkley #BerkleyBookstagram
📚 #BOOKREVIEW 📚
The Gate of the Feral Gods (Dungeon Crawler Carl, Book 4) by Matt Dinniman
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ / Pages: 586 / Genre: Sci-Fi/Fantasy
Hardback Release Date: March 11, 2025
If you haven’t started this series yet, I highly recommend starting with the first book to fully understand the brilliance of this series. In this fourth installment, Carl and his talking cat Donut are still fighting for their survival through the fifth level of a reality game show created for the amusement of all the aliens in the universe.
I loved this level because Carl finally starts fighting back. Rather than just focusing on survival for himself and his team, he starts fighting for all the humans. We get to meet more contestants and NPCs. Carl starts using the game’s own rules against them and it’s glorious. And this one ended with a surprise that will have you clamoring for Book 5.

This installment of the Dungeon Crawler Carl series feels more bridge and expository, and less developmental, than the first three. Carl, Princess Donut, and Katia develop only incrementally, and similar to the previous book, a great deal of time is spent on world-building. Dialog remains sharp, and several new characters are introduced--with promising story implications. The core of the series remains the delightful dialog between Carl and Donut. The ending is cinematic to the core, with sharp imagery, epic deeds, and witticisms galore. While this isn't my favorite volume in the series, I felt it both necessary and an excellent appetizer for the remainder of the series.
Thanks to the author, NetGalley, and Berkley Publishing Group for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

I have been flying through this series!! There is something about Carl and Princess Donut that has me in its grips!!! I would definitely recommend starting at the first book for this series.
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Honestly, I'm not sure how to describe this series except that it's just like a role-playing game. But if you die here, there is no starting over, and the stakes are as high as can be with the fate of not only the other players but Earth, too.
.This series has me laughing out loud, and continually on the edge of my seat waiting to see how our MC's are going to get out of each new horrible situation, and how they are going to make it to the next level of the Dungeon.
I can't wait to continue on and see how Carl, Princess Donut, and Mongo are going to mess stuff up for the game runners and how they'll manage to survive the horrors to come.
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A continuation of the adventures of Carl and Donut. Nonstop action, banter, comedy. These books are such a fun read. Great world building, great characters. Excellent installment. On to the next one!

If you’re not reading this post apocalyptic book series where the main characters (including a talking cat) are fighting for survival in a dungeon controlled by an AI with a foot fetish, what are you waiting for?
The Gate of the Feral Gods is book 4 in the Dungeon Crawler Carl series. If you’ve been following me for any amount of time, you know I’m completely obsessed with this series. This book introduces some of my favorite side characters - Juicebox and Samantha. I can’t talk too much about this book without spoilers, but I will say this series just keeps getting better with each release, and I truly believe if you’re not reading it, you’re missing out. I was provided this ARC for review, however I love this series I have already purchased both the audiobook and a signed copy of this book from @signedpage
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
The Gate of the Feral Gods will be released March 11! Thank you to @netgalley and @acebookspub for the Advanced Reader Copy for review.

"Follow Carl, Princess Donut, and Mongo as they fight their way to the next level in the USA Today bestselling Dungeon Crawler Carl series by Matt Dinniman - now with bonus material exclusive to this print edition!
New Achievement! Total, Utter Failure.
You failed a quest less than five minutes after you received it. Now that's talent.
Surviving in a multilevel dungeon that also happens to be the set of the galaxy's most watched game show has taught Coast Guard vet Carl and his ex-girlfriend's cat, Princess Donut, that there's only one thing they can count on apart from each other: they never know what's coming next. And this floor is no exception.
A floating fortress occupied by warrior gnomes. A castle made of sand. A derelict submarine guarded by malfunctioning machines. A haunted crypt surrounded by lethal traps.
It was supposed to be easy. One bubble. Four castles. Fifteen days. Capture each one, and the stairwell is unlocked. Here's the thing. It's never easy. Going it alone is not an option this time, so Carl and his team must rely on the help of the low-level, I-can't-believe-these-idiots-are-still-alive crawlers trapped in the bubble with them. But can they be trusted?
Welcome, Crawlers. Welcome to the fifth floor of the dungeon."
Oh, I remember several quests I'm had that ended in less than five minutes with total failure. None were this entertaining though.

If you’re hooked on the Dungeon Crawler Carl series, you’ll enjoy this installment: Gate of the Feral Gods, the fourth in this darkly hilarious series. The book continues to deliver everything I love—non-stop action, humor, and even the some emotional depth from our heroes.
As usual, we're thrown into a new world with new challenges for our heroes. Carl and Donut's journey remains a wild, chaotic ride, but we also see more of Carl's fierce determination and empathy shine through, even when his choices seem reckless or borderline insane. Also, this time around, the story starts to peel back the curtain on what’s happening outside the dungeon, introducing new mysteries that deepen the world and raise the stakes for our team and the rest of the crawlers.
Matt Dinniman's signature humor that made the first three books so addictive is still front and center—expect plenty of laugh-out-loud moments amid the madness. And just when you think you can take a breather, our team is in trouble again and the relentless action will pull you back in. This one, like the others, left me eager to see what the next floor has in store.

The Gate of the Feral Gods by Matt Dinniman
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I mean what is there to say about Carl and Princess Donut at this point that hasn’t already been said?
They are awesome. The end.
Ok BUT I loved, loved, loved the scene were they went on the pet toy commercial. 😈😈😈
Absolutely adored that Carl is out there saving NPCs now.
There is a flying house. Think Up, come on.
Mongo is still awesome.
Carl and Donut make new friends. And they’re still awesome.
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5⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ I mean the only way I can think of that would make this series better is if there were a scene where Carl has to fly an alicorn, but there are three more books so I still have hope.

The Gate of the Feral Gods by Matt Dinniman. This book is a masterpiece! This whole series is absolutely amazing—packed with action, humor, and surprisingly tender, emotional moments. And that epilogue?! Shocking. Jaw-dropping. I’m still recovering.
I’ve already started the next book because I just can’t get enough of Carl, Princess Donut, and the crew. You never know what Carl will do next, and the journey and character development are truly top-notch. This book is action-packed—and I mean nonstop action. It’s hilarious (I laughed out loud so many times), emotional (yes, I cried), and full of twists that left me speechless.
I will never stop recommending this series to anyone who will listen. If you haven’t started it yet—go read it now!
The Gate of the Feral Gods is the fourth book in the series. Thanks to NetGalley for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

The most addictive book series of the decade!
Coast Guard veteran Carl enters the fifth floor with Princess Donut, his ex-girlfriend's cat. Their friends are scattered across bubbles. Each bubble consists of four different environments each with a castle to be conquered.
Matt Dinniman's worldbuilding is incredible! This is the most creative and fun floor yet. The level feels like a video game and reminded me of navigating Mario through oceans, air fortresses, and deserts. The bosses that show up are insane! This is a page-turner that I could not put down!
The greatest strength of these books is the characters. While the thought of a man in his underwear and a talking showcat sounds absurd, Dinniman writes them with surprising depth. Carl is an easy hero to root for and as much as Donut makes me laugh out loud, she also tugs at my heartstrings.
I want to thank NetGalley and Berkley Publishing for providing this advanced review copy. I previously read the first edition and listened to the audiobook, and I am thrilled to see this series gain recognition. The new editions are fantastic! I have the first three in hardback and have already placed my preorders for the next three. The covers are gorgeous! I love the colors and artwork, and I am also enjoying the bonus stories added to the end of each book.
This new edition is a perfect opportunity for fans to revisit the series. They look incredible on the shelf and hold up on rereads. I highly recommend this series to anyone looking for a fun fantasy adventure with heart. For fans, these new editions are a must-buy!

“And it reminded me that Ife wasn’t the only one. That there is good in this world. There is something left to fight for. I might die tomorrow, but it won’t be because I’ve given up.”
Oh man did I get lucky when @netgalley and @acebookspub gave me the chance to check out @mattdinniman’s fourth book in his #DungeonCrawlerCarl series, #TheGateOfTheFeralGods. I kicked the year off by binging the first three, and here we are diving into the next two. This series has quickly become a favorite of mine as Dinniman’s world building is exciting and fresh each book/floor.
Book 4 finds Carl, Donut, and Katia on floor 5 of the dungeon facing a new mystery to solve to get to the next floor. Stuck in a desert arena, they must take down the goblin stronghold - one of four in their world that has to be destroyed to move on. Getting other crawlers to work with them, however, might be a little hard as their friends inside find themselves in other parts of different worlds.
Where the last book had a sort of confusing puzzle to follow as a reader, Dinniman lays out this floor clearly and very much in line with the fantasy element of the story; it felt like a quest you’d play in a video game or TTRPG game. Of all four books so far, this one felt there was some real character development in relation to the system they’re in, and the end of the book kind of blows open the world setting up for a great direction of where the next books will go.
I find it hard to put these down, even when I have video games that I should/need to be playing, I just want to find out what happens next with Carl and Donut. Excited for the continued adventures!
Rating: 4/5

Love this series omg. Carl. The cat. The creatures in this series. I eat it up!! Highly recommend if you need a book that makes you laugh out loud!

My thanks to NetGalley for making an eARC of this book available to me.
Dungeon Crawler Carl continues to entertain us in this 4th book in the series. As in the previous books, the organizations that control the dungeons continually put new obstacles in the way of the dungeon crawlers, changing things in realtime so that it becomes more and more difficult to progress to the end of the current dungeon. Those abuses of power are offset by the ingenuity of Carl and his peers, and we keep reading just to see what new things will erupt from Princess Donut's mouth. The author has really captured the mind of a cat when it comes to how Princess Donut is portrayed, as her dialog and actions prove time and again.

This was another winner in the Dungeon Crawler Carl series, it had that feel that I was looking for and enjoyed from this type of book. It continued this story perfectly and was everything that I was expecting from the world and from Matt Dinniman. I thought it had that feel that I was looking for and was glad I read this.

The best DCC yet! The blend of humor and pathos continues to increase in this series and the plot is absolutely insane in this one. The boss battles were great, and the depth of the characters makes rooting for Carl, Donut, and co to be fist-pumpingly great.

I am obsessed with the Carl the Dungeon Crawler series, and this book was just as good as the rest in the series. Every single one of his books has a unique distinct plot, with such a fleshed out world that is easy to understand. The book has a good mix between hilariousness and seriousness, and these genuinely really beautiful emotional moments (that are absurd!). Truly a fantastic book, and a fantastic series!

Ace Books and Berkley Publishing Group provided an early galley for review.
Last year, this series was a big part of my reading activity, so I am pleased to see the aggressive schedule of releases from the publisher continuing into 2025. Clocking in at close to 600 pages, this one is the largest installment to date.
Despite the length, this one again was a faster reader. This is likely due to several factors: Dinniman's pacing of the narrative is urgent, his methods of recapping through the daily broadcasts and the loot-drop descriptions are quick and breezy, and his dialogue is dominant yet informal. All of this works in this lit-RPG subgenre of the fantasy genre.
Dinniman also has a knack for creating multi-layered "worlds" for each level of this adventure, filled with interesting challenges to face and puzzles to solve. While the books are following a formula with many reoccurring elements, the changes in location really go a long way to make each subsequent novel in the series feel fresh.
For fans of the series, this is another solid addition.

3.5 stars, Metaphorosis reviews
Summary
Carl, Donut, et al have reached level five, where dungeon crawlers have been split into hundreds of 'bubbles', each with four different quadrants. And of course, there are quests all over. This time, many of them involved gods, feral and otherwise.
Review
The seams began to show in the previous book, and here the stretch to keep things fun is even more evident. There are so many groups and characters and quests to keep track of that it’s all something of a muddle. Dinniman does a great job of keeping the characters engaging, but not so well on clarity of his overcomplicated plots. That said, this was a lot more fun and quicker to read than the much shorter book I read just before it.
As noted previously, part of what’s appealing is that Carl is smart and practical, and makes all the right choices. Unlikely as it may be, he probably falls in what some call the ‘noblebright’ category, because he’s compassionate and make the ‘right’ moral choices. In a world that’s awful and violent (I mean his), it keeps the tone lighter in that he’s clearly a good person many of us can identify with.
Dinniman’s juggling a lot of balls in this series, and I find it hard to keep track of most of them. I can’t say they drop, exactly, but they do vanish from sight for long enough that you just have to take on faith that they’re in the right place the next time you see them. The physical environment in particular can be hard to keep track on. It’s not a crisis, but it would be more fun if I could consistently picture what in the hell was happening.
As with book three in the series, the loot boxes, etc. are beginning to wear thin. There are only so many amazing tools you can find. Dinniman clearly recognizes this, and is introducing some new dynamics. He also leans more heavily in this volume into the arc of the series overall – Carl’s long-range plans for the sadists (or maybe just capitalists) that run the dungeon. That’s a very good thing, as the story is beginning to really need more than just level-based scenery. However, to achieve Dinniman’s goals, Carl’s intentional hiding of information from the reader has become much more evident.
There’s an odd little epilogue to the book that is interesting, perhaps important, info to have, but doesn’t feel it fits well in the book. That’s preceding the official ‘backstage’ extra, which is more obviously stuck on and not (so far) essential to the plot.
All in all, still fun, but starting to wear. Happily, the next level/book should bring the capitalist dungeon investor factions more directly into focus, allowing Dinniman to bring out that side of the story more. He’s also clearly slimming down the immediate cast, though I didn’t see that as a major need.
I received this book for free in exchange for an honest review.

With the crazy ending of book 5, I wasn't sure what to expect going into this. I think the concept of the card game was really cool and I love that each level feels so different than the last. Humor was still present as usual. This book felt more serious, which makes sense as the characters are experiencing violence that hits much closer to home than they have dealt with previously. I thought parts of this were a little bit slow, making it not quite as bingeable as the previous book but I still loved it overall. The ending was ominous and dark and makes me nervous to see where we're heading going into book 7.