Killer Dungeon

I'm a bit conflicted on this one.

On the one hand, the story is my favorite in the series. I loved the emphasis on working together rather than simply powering up. Chris is used to being a famous gamer, but he has to navigate Euphoria Online as one of its weaker players. While he creatively solves the problems he encounters and levels up quickly, this final book forced him to admit the need to accept help from others and adopt an almost managerial role.

I loved this. There was even a particularly delightful “side quest” where Chris spent his time leveling up some of his friends instead of himself.

On the other hand, I felt this book (especially the later parts) had a significant departure in theme from the rest of the series.

Minor spoilers ahead. I'll be as vague as I can.

After emphasizing the need for teamwork for 2.5 books, Chris decides to just do his own thing. Side characters that have had a wonderful arc so far are killed off and never mentioned again. We don't see their impact on Chris, they're just... gone. Heavy ideas such as the whole concept of a Death March mode are pretty much brushed aside to quickly show how evil a villain can be. And Chris's relationships with both Brianna and his brother Justin don't get the attention I was hoping for.

The disappointing ending didn't hurt my love of the book much, though. As quickly as I read this series, I finished the audiobook and was left with a feeling of euphoria (heh) at experiencing such a fun story. Most of the issues I had with the book were only apparent days later, after the story had time to sit a little.

All in all, I thought this was the weakest book in the series, but it was still a great book. If you enjoyed the first two books, I think you'll like this, too.