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Dungeon Bound 5
Having drained his mana pool in a series of brutal battles, Gabriel is exhausted. His bonded are likewise weary but unbowed.
They fought back powerful invaders from a foreign world, then crushed a coup that threatened Lostbarrow.
But even as they hope to rest and recover, the Mistress remains an imminent threat. Increasing undead attacks threaten the Dungeon Core and risk drawing the Guild's undesired attention.
And Vesrah continues to claw at Gabriel, sinking her corrupted talons ever deeper into his very soul.
Can Gabriel and the incredible women bonded to him defeat both foes?
They fought back powerful invaders from a foreign world, then crushed a coup that threatened Lostbarrow.
But even as they hope to rest and recover, the Mistress remains an imminent threat. Increasing undead attacks threaten the Dungeon Core and risk drawing the Guild's undesired attention.
And Vesrah continues to claw at Gabriel, sinking her corrupted talons ever deeper into his very soul.
Can Gabriel and the incredible women bonded to him defeat both foes?
- GenresFantasy
706 pages, Kindle Edition
Published December 20, 2023
35 people are currently reading
20 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 14 of 14 reviews
February 19, 2024
The story went off the rails for me about halfway through. I have to immerse myself and at least like the protagonists a little bit and be able to understand why they would make their choices. Well, I don't once the heroes get humbled, humiliated and forced into a disgusting situation.
Trigger warning -- blackmail rape.
I really hope the author will hit the reset button and declare the 2nd half a bad dream and start over. Or maybe the new undead conquering crew could sacrifice themselves to defeat Vesrah. If they are going to be a large part of the story, I'm probably done.
I really loved this series and went out of my way to talk it up and recruit other fans, but now I really feel betrayed. The first four books just got wiped out and invalidated and there is a real feeling of bait and switch.
I just can't make myself understand why the author thought taking the story in this direction was a good idea.
Trigger warning -- blackmail rape.
I really hope the author will hit the reset button and declare the 2nd half a bad dream and start over. Or maybe the new undead conquering crew could sacrifice themselves to defeat Vesrah. If they are going to be a large part of the story, I'm probably done.
I really loved this series and went out of my way to talk it up and recruit other fans, but now I really feel betrayed. The first four books just got wiped out and invalidated and there is a real feeling of bait and switch.
I just can't make myself understand why the author thought taking the story in this direction was a good idea.
April 17, 2025
The story telling is good.
I feel there are a lot of retcons and unreasonable hidden it was there all along stretching credibility to breaking. Many story teller plot convenience rather than character driven behavior.
The power scaling jump and convenience I guess was always there. I can still take it light heartedly and enjoy the book.
Because the stakes seem wrongly low I'm not taking the threats seriously. I don't like how accepting of someone.
The big bad of the story complains about betrayal and trust and continues with threats acting with force and deception against consent. I'm not saying the main character can't make exceptions but it's contrary to established character and an inconsistent standard.
Strategies like informing on a mutual enemy or dead man switch for retaliation by a third power if you fail are ignored.
I feel there are a lot of retcons and unreasonable hidden it was there all along stretching credibility to breaking. Many story teller plot convenience rather than character driven behavior.
The power scaling jump and convenience I guess was always there. I can still take it light heartedly and enjoy the book.
Because the stakes seem wrongly low I'm not taking the threats seriously. I don't like how accepting of someone.
The big bad of the story complains about betrayal and trust and continues with threats acting with force and deception against consent. I'm not saying the main character can't make exceptions but it's contrary to established character and an inconsistent standard.
Strategies like informing on a mutual enemy or dead man switch for retaliation by a third power if you fail are ignored.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
February 1, 2024
Taken on its own, this is a good story. I think it misses greatness for the same reasons most of the other books in this series do, specifcally:
As always, the plot is structured in a seemingly straightforward fashion. There's a clear goal (retrieve the McGuffin, kill the antagonist, whatever), and a seemingly clear path to achieve it, but obstacles keep arising and being overcome.
That's fine as far as it goes, but becomes problematic when the obstacles are almost never signposted, defeating them is generally done via a formulaic combat sequence, and the end result doesn't seem to bring the end goal any closer.
It's like climbing a set of stairs, but *almost* every time you take a step it turns into an escalator and drops you back one step. Yeah, you're making progress, but it's weirdly slow, and you have no real idea how close you're actually getting to the top of the stairs.
Don't get me wrong, some plot twists and surprise ambushes are great, but too much of this series seems to be "with his goal finally in reach, the protagonist reaches out to grab the McGuffin only to be unexpectedly ambushed by a bunch of undead for the 8th time!" Cue a long fight scene, a heroic victory, some licking of wounds, rinse, wash, and repeat. Made a bit worse by the long fight scenes being, well....long. And often repetitive. A bit more politicing and world building and dealing with nobles and cute dates in town would be nice!
That being said, it's still a fun story, and I particularly liked . And the character all continue to be great, overall there's a lot to like, and I'm looking forward to the sequel.
...but if this had been structured as, say, one book of setup and introducing the characters, then it becomes clear the protagonist must defeat five different antangonists (or whatever) and each book after that knocks one off until we reach the finale, it would have been an improvement in my eyes. Aimless meandering stories work better for cozy slice of life stories, which for good or ill, this series is not.
But if we evaluate this book not on its own, but as book 5 in a series, then the rating has to be significantly lower, because that same is a huge issue, because
In some ways this book, in the context of the series, represents a complete reset of much of the previous 4 books, and while it leaves us in a good spot....I mean...what was the point of those books then?
Despite enjoying basically every page of all 5 books, I'm not sure I'm going to pick up book 6 when it is published.
As always, the plot is structured in a seemingly straightforward fashion. There's a clear goal (retrieve the McGuffin, kill the antagonist, whatever), and a seemingly clear path to achieve it, but obstacles keep arising and being overcome.
That's fine as far as it goes, but becomes problematic when the obstacles are almost never signposted, defeating them is generally done via a formulaic combat sequence, and the end result doesn't seem to bring the end goal any closer.
It's like climbing a set of stairs, but *almost* every time you take a step it turns into an escalator and drops you back one step. Yeah, you're making progress, but it's weirdly slow, and you have no real idea how close you're actually getting to the top of the stairs.
Don't get me wrong, some plot twists and surprise ambushes are great, but too much of this series seems to be "with his goal finally in reach, the protagonist reaches out to grab the McGuffin only to be unexpectedly ambushed by a bunch of undead for the 8th time!" Cue a long fight scene, a heroic victory, some licking of wounds, rinse, wash, and repeat. Made a bit worse by the long fight scenes being, well....long. And often repetitive. A bit more politicing and world building and dealing with nobles and cute dates in town would be nice!
That being said, it's still a fun story, and I particularly liked . And the character all continue to be great, overall there's a lot to like, and I'm looking forward to the sequel.
...but if this had been structured as, say, one book of setup and introducing the characters, then it becomes clear the protagonist must defeat five different antangonists (or whatever) and each book after that knocks one off until we reach the finale, it would have been an improvement in my eyes. Aimless meandering stories work better for cozy slice of life stories, which for good or ill, this series is not.
But if we evaluate this book not on its own, but as book 5 in a series, then the rating has to be significantly lower, because that same is a huge issue, because
In some ways this book, in the context of the series, represents a complete reset of much of the previous 4 books, and while it leaves us in a good spot....I mean...what was the point of those books then?
Despite enjoying basically every page of all 5 books, I'm not sure I'm going to pick up book 6 when it is published.
October 10, 2024
Please release book 6 already.
Man I need to next installment, Reynas fate is explained, though I could do with "alpha" stuff being cut out,
This still felt like set up to a decent ish payoff, it reveals more of the world but still not many answered questions.
Sthuza was abit of a mess but I'm hoping we finally dig into more of her past, not to mention the big reveal.
Cindra is just to adorable and loyal to a fault it's too endearing.
Man I need to next installment, Reynas fate is explained, though I could do with "alpha" stuff being cut out,
This still felt like set up to a decent ish payoff, it reveals more of the world but still not many answered questions.
Sthuza was abit of a mess but I'm hoping we finally dig into more of her past, not to mention the big reveal.
Cindra is just to adorable and loyal to a fault it's too endearing.
December 25, 2023
I am loving this series!
Gabriel Grimm needs a break! Poor guy can't even get a chance to fill his mana pool! Let alone finish healing from all his battles!
But it sure does make for an adrenaline filled read. Gotta love that!
I just hope Isomyra, the "certified fun-sized" new addition gets a chance to join the rest of Grimm's growing harem
Gabriel Grimm needs a break! Poor guy can't even get a chance to fill his mana pool! Let alone finish healing from all his battles!
But it sure does make for an adrenaline filled read. Gotta love that!
I just hope Isomyra, the "certified fun-sized" new addition gets a chance to join the rest of Grimm's growing harem
June 1, 2024
A good twist on a persistent enemy
I read the whole series back to back, and I love. The undead have been a persistent enemy that have been causing problems. This book took a very unexpected turn with them. While I'm still waiting for Reyna's situation to be resolved, it's now clear that it will turn out to be an easy fix. I'm really looking forward to the next book!
I read the whole series back to back, and I love. The undead have been a persistent enemy that have been causing problems. This book took a very unexpected turn with them. While I'm still waiting for Reyna's situation to be resolved, it's now clear that it will turn out to be an easy fix. I'm really looking forward to the next book!
January 12, 2024
Love this series
Great book 5. Lots of exciting fights and the book does NOT end the way you think it will. No spoilers but definitely not what I was expecting, but in a good way. Hope there are a lot more books in this series because this is a very fun series.
Great book 5. Lots of exciting fights and the book does NOT end the way you think it will. No spoilers but definitely not what I was expecting, but in a good way. Hope there are a lot more books in this series because this is a very fun series.
October 8, 2024
Gets better and better.
I started this series after reading the first book of his latest series and there wasn't any more. So I started his series and read them all back to back. Now I am sad because there aren't anymore.
I started this series after reading the first book of his latest series and there wasn't any more. So I started his series and read them all back to back. Now I am sad because there aren't anymore.
December 6, 2024
Another good one.
I enjoyed reading this book. It was fun and entertaining. The story and characters were incredibly interesting and engaging. I'm looking forward to seeing what happens next. This book and series are definitely worth checking out.
I enjoyed reading this book. It was fun and entertaining. The story and characters were incredibly interesting and engaging. I'm looking forward to seeing what happens next. This book and series are definitely worth checking out.
December 24, 2023
Just as fun as the last
There are no slow enduring points this book is just as fast paced and fun as the others.please keep them coming, maybe add the baroness next?
There are no slow enduring points this book is just as fast paced and fun as the others.please keep them coming, maybe add the baroness next?
December 30, 2023
really enjoyed
I really enjoyed this continuation to the series. Lots of growth and development. Looking forward to the next one. Let’s see what happens to the swarm
I really enjoyed this continuation to the series. Lots of growth and development. Looking forward to the next one. Let’s see what happens to the swarm
January 4, 2024
Another great story!!!
As always a fantastic story in this series!!! A great mixture of gore filled humor and adult fantasy activities mixed throughout!!!
As always a fantastic story in this series!!! A great mixture of gore filled humor and adult fantasy activities mixed throughout!!!
February 19, 2024
Good read
Slow burn with some unexpected twists and turns. So far has been a good series to read, a little slow at times but good
Slow burn with some unexpected twists and turns. So far has been a good series to read, a little slow at times but good
November 16, 2024
Latest DB5
5 was done very nicely. I enjoyed 5 the most so far, can't wait to see where the storyline goes next. I can see endless possibilities.
5 was done very nicely. I enjoyed 5 the most so far, can't wait to see where the storyline goes next. I can see endless possibilities.
Displaying 1 - 14 of 14 reviews