SciFi and Fantasy Book Club discussion

A few questions to get us started:


1. What did you think of the world?
2. What did you think of the characters?
3. What worked or didn't for you?
4. Overall thoughts?

I have just finished reading book 1 and I have to admit that I thoroughly enjoyed it. I'm definitely going to read book 2 and I expect I will go on to read the entire series. This is my first time reading LitRPG and now I get it. In the same way as playing actual RPG's can get quite addictive as you grind to level up your character and unlock new skills and abilities, so it is with reading the book. I get that same feeling of accomplishment as Carl hits each new level. As an experienced RPG player I love the way different elements of these games are brought into the world. I can't wait to read about race and class selection which will be in the next book. And crafting - that should be fun.

The story does a great job of slowly revealing answers to the questions you have while creating new questions that make me want to keep reading to find out the answers to those. It has also set up some good villains which Carl will no doubt have to face off against in future books. If I have one criticism, it is that the book does sometimes go a bit too far in making Carl out as a noble character. He can be just TOO good to be believable. But overall this is a fun read that should not be taken too seriously.

So... I read the entire series at the end of last year, and I have to say, the first book is a grand introduction to the basics of Carl's life. Here's the thing:

This book is pure, unadulterated deep fried Twinkies coated in caramel popcorn. it's TERRIBLE but amazing at the same time. The book is foul, it is dark humor, and it is for the kind of person who really, really enjoys the Borderlands video games. That's okay, but it's clearly not for a lot of people.

For anyone who is wondering, the real metaplot of the books only really kicks into gear in the 3rd novel, The Dungeon Anarchist's Cookbook. That doesn't make it any more serious or any less offensive, but it does change the driving motivation to keep going.

Side note: In the hardcovers, there's a short story at the end of each book that covers some interesting territory: what happens with the NPCs who are still alive when the floors collapse.

Finished last night! I had a lot of fun. I think the execution could have been a little tighter… but I can appreciate that it’s written in a way that a reader who has never played an RPG could pick this up and understand it. Is it too much? Eh, hard to say. I think it’s a lot but a lot of it is fun. The rewards and hovering over the tools and the monster types are often some of the funniest lines.

I thought the addition of the tv shows was a fun add. Kinda like Caesar Flickerman in the Hunger Games. I’m excited to see where it can go and what Dinniman could do with it. We already saw how Carl could potentially weaponize it with Porky boy.

I love Donut. I’m intrigued by Agatha. I’m hoping it’s not the last we see of the nursing home folks, at least the nurses.

I’ll definitely continue!

I found this to be strangely comforting at this point in time. Mostly because Carl does what everyone says to do when fighting an oppressive regime: stay true to your core values and build community.

I was told by friends I'd either love or hate this book. I really got hooked! The audio is outstanding and probably a significant reason I got so immersed. I often co-read print/book and audio and this definitely increased the whole experience for me. Like someone said above, it seems like the hardcover has an extra story/chapter that created another layer on top of the main narrative. I wanted to devour book 2 immediately, but I'm making myself read/finish a few other books first 😅🤣😂

I only gave the first one 3 stars, but 4 stars to the next two books in the series. I'm taking a break and will probably read the others later.