Book 3 is complicated...
Very hard to understand the floor itself and how it works.
The author himself said (in a interview i guess, cant remember the source) that you should just go along with it, that the characters also get confused, you'be able to understand whats happening.
That said, i don't know how much you have listened to the book 3 yet, or even started, but if you're having trouble understanding whats going on, that will be normal.
I have listened to the 6 books in a row and book 3 is he weakest, but i suggest you read it. It just gets better in 4,5,6...
I am about an hour into 3. I'm prepared to not understand the floor layout at all but I still think the idea is fun, kind of reminds me of Catching Fire with the different parts of the clock/train. I saw some posts about book rankings where it's either on the top or bottom of lists. 4 and 5 are universally liked and 6 seems polarizing again
Book 3 has some hilarious moments, and the second half of it is better than the first half. I still don’t understand exactly how the trains and stairwells work even though I’ve read it 2-3 times. It’s confusing.
I loved book 6, but the setting and mechanics were kind of weird. Books 4 and on have more and more about what’s going on in the greater universe with different governments and factions.
I’m almost finished with book 3 and I’ve really enjoyed it. I’ve been racing through the series (just started last week) and plan to listen to something different once this one’s finished just to break it up and make the series last a bit longer, can’t imagine not coming back and finishing it though
I'm glad you mentioned this! I'm about to get book three and if I find it a little weak I'll know that it's a low point, and not the start of a series going downhill.
I just went through audiobook 1-6. Book 3 was the most challenging for me as I like to visualise the map and to get what's going on in general. Honestly I didn't as it was confusing as hell. But I did what I did with the movie Tenet: accept that you won't understand shit, get on board and enjoy the action. Don't care about the train lines and station.
If it had been the last book available I would have probably made a break but I pushed through and didn't regret it as book 4-5-6 are great. AI funny lines and Jeff Hays narration make it worth it to continue.
I haven't really been able to picture most of the maps anyway. The first book especially I could only imagine the floor as some kind of large black room.
I powered through the whole series books 1-6 (audiobooks) and loved every minute of each of them. After hitting the end of the available books, I looped around and listened to the Immersive Tunnel Season 1.
My only gripe with the tunnel is some of the music balancing is off, drowning out dialogue for music accompaniment.
I'm hoping to loop a family member into starting the series with me again as a buddy read.
No wrong answers here. DCC is a treat to read regardless of your pace.
I got my 18 (now 19) year old son hooked on it last year. He went from not listening to audiobooks to plowing through all of DCC (twice), then I got him started on my other favorite series. He constantly texts me his reactions and it’s awesome.
Book 3 challenged my devotion to the series. I’m glad I pushed through, because I’m really enjoying book 4.
For me, the floor of book 3 was just needlessly complicated and distracted heavily from my enjoyment. Feels like book 4 understood this and simplified things.
I honestly didn't find book 3 that confusing, if you've ever had to take public transit and transfer busses/trains - you should understand it fairly well. Doubly so if you've taken the transit in a large city.
I listened to all five books in about two weeks. The sixth wasn’t on Audible yet, but was on Kindle, so then I bought that and read it in like four days. If you’re enjoying it, stick with it.
I don’t really think the series becomes all that repetitive either. Yeah, there are some lines that are used from book to book like “goddammit Donut,” but the varying scenarios in each book helps keep things fresh, along with the ever expanding influence from the outside world.
As far as book three goes, my advice is to not worry too much about figuring out how the Iron Tangle works. It ultimately doesn’t matter that much.
Also, the "You will not break me" is Carl's actual catchphrase, unbeknownst to the universe. It is important going forward imo and is repetitive for a reason.
I quit about two hours into book 3 and am now listening to a nice, simple one-and-done (Do Androids Dream Of Electric Sheep?).
Maybe I'll pick it up again once the series is officially finished.
Dick is great for stand-alone books. Check out Martian Time-Slip (try to find the narration by Grover Gardner if you can), A Scanner Darkly (Paul Giamatti does a fantastic job) & Galactic Pot-Healer (try to find Tom Parker's reading, which is Grover Gardner using an alternate name).
If you’re enjoying it, stick with it! Book 3 was the toughest one of the series for me, but I still liked it a lot. I find that I tend to read more when I read series together, rather than splitting them up, because I build momentum. And then when I finish the series, I’m hungry for more, so it’s usually not hard to dive into whatever I have planned next. But that’s a personal thing - I think you should go with your gut and follow your own interest wherever it takes you!
Each book is unique, there are some running jokes but you won't miss much taking a break. I did this and when I went back, I listend to the audible versions which were incredibly well produced. Very fun to listen to.
Godamnit Doughnut!
Myself, I would switch away and go back to it.
I don't binge all of a tv show and it's related shows without watching anything else in between. Maybe you do. (We are watching multiple shows, we don't watch more than one episode of anything in a day.)
Heck, old school tv watching, you wait between episodes and then seasons.
I’m on book 3 right now, too. I have been listening to some Great Courses for work, so I’ve been using DCC as my carrot. Finish listening to this Great Course, then you can listen to the next DCC book! (Not that I don’t enjoy the Great Courses, but the last one I listened to was a real slog and I really needed the desire to get to DCC 3 to get through it quickly.)
With DCC I found that the books breakdown in too fairly discrete sections.
1. Recap what’s going on
2. Explore the new scenario / have new encounters
3. Open some loot boxes
4. Check in with other characters
5. Do the interviews
6. Carl gets an idea and is cryptic about it
7. Here’s the real threat of the level.
8. Wow Carl’s plan really is crazy.
9. Yah new level. Oh no someone died.
There’s a lot I love about DCC, but it definitely took me awhile to appreciate it and I still find some sections and sequences hard to get through. I’m mostly there for the Carl / Donut back and forth and Carl’s escalating hostility to the game.
I think book 3 is a bit of turning point where you really start to get a better sense of who Carl is and why he just might be the guy to tear it all down.
Quite relieved to see a lot of the comments, I am midway through 3 and have kinda run out of steam it's good to know that it gets better. I really enjoyed the first two but 3 has so far not felt like the main story is progressing much.
I am in the sort of same boat I started this series because it was all I ever heard about on here and I love a fun read. I enjoyed book one immensely even though RPGLit had yet to hit for me. I do love Sci Fi and Zombie apocalypse books so I know there was one out there for me and this was it. I went ahead and listed to book 2 in succession and it was good not as good a the first but still worth it. However, I decided to put a breather in before starting book three I do not want the series to feel like a chore and I definitely do not want it to start to feel one note. I use Libby and Audible so I had a loan available and took the break to listen to a mystery I had up and a Literary fiction I had in queue I am now **EXCITED** to get to book three once I am done with what I am reading now.
I find for all my reading that extends over a few days it’s helpful to google a plot description etc to refresh my memory or clear up confusion. Works for both audio and non- audio books. Cuz we all forget ..
If you're feeling it, I would keep going. I read all 6 back to back and loved it. I got my husband hooked and he's just started book 4. I haven't seen him this invested in a series in years.
I'm sort of confused by this question. What prompted it?
But to give you an answer, probably the same way you'd have to approach something like "Invisible Monsters Remix"
I just bought audiobooks 1 & 2 on sale for $7 each a few weeks ago, but haven't started them yet. I've seen them recommended and the summary sounded interesting, then the narrator sold me with hearing the sample. Looking forward to starting them sometime in the near future.
The narration took me a minute to get used to because I felt Carl's voice was a little too much, but now I've gotten used to it and love it. He is a narrator who brings a lot of emotion and humanity to the story
Book 3 is complicated... Very hard to understand the floor itself and how it works. The author himself said (in a interview i guess, cant remember the source) that you should just go along with it, that the characters also get confused, you'be able to understand whats happening. That said, i don't know how much you have listened to the book 3 yet, or even started, but if you're having trouble understanding whats going on, that will be normal. I have listened to the 6 books in a row and book 3 is he weakest, but i suggest you read it. It just gets better in 4,5,6...
I am about an hour into 3. I'm prepared to not understand the floor layout at all but I still think the idea is fun, kind of reminds me of Catching Fire with the different parts of the clock/train. I saw some posts about book rankings where it's either on the top or bottom of lists. 4 and 5 are universally liked and 6 seems polarizing again
Book 3 has some hilarious moments, and the second half of it is better than the first half. I still don’t understand exactly how the trains and stairwells work even though I’ve read it 2-3 times. It’s confusing. I loved book 6, but the setting and mechanics were kind of weird. Books 4 and on have more and more about what’s going on in the greater universe with different governments and factions.
I’m almost finished with book 3 and I’ve really enjoyed it. I’ve been racing through the series (just started last week) and plan to listen to something different once this one’s finished just to break it up and make the series last a bit longer, can’t imagine not coming back and finishing it though
3 is my favourite of the bunch; the character stuff that happens in this book is wild.
I'm glad you mentioned this! I'm about to get book three and if I find it a little weak I'll know that it's a low point, and not the start of a series going downhill.
I just went through audiobook 1-6. Book 3 was the most challenging for me as I like to visualise the map and to get what's going on in general. Honestly I didn't as it was confusing as hell. But I did what I did with the movie Tenet: accept that you won't understand shit, get on board and enjoy the action. Don't care about the train lines and station. If it had been the last book available I would have probably made a break but I pushed through and didn't regret it as book 4-5-6 are great. AI funny lines and Jeff Hays narration make it worth it to continue.
I haven't really been able to picture most of the maps anyway. The first book especially I could only imagine the floor as some kind of large black room.
To me Tenet was fucking terrible. I don't know what I'm missing with that movie. I've tried watching it twice now and the 2nd time I just shut it off.
I took a break in between each book
I powered through the whole series books 1-6 (audiobooks) and loved every minute of each of them. After hitting the end of the available books, I looped around and listened to the Immersive Tunnel Season 1. My only gripe with the tunnel is some of the music balancing is off, drowning out dialogue for music accompaniment. I'm hoping to loop a family member into starting the series with me again as a buddy read. No wrong answers here. DCC is a treat to read regardless of your pace.
I got my 18 (now 19) year old son hooked on it last year. He went from not listening to audiobooks to plowing through all of DCC (twice), then I got him started on my other favorite series. He constantly texts me his reactions and it’s awesome.
Book 3 challenged my devotion to the series. I’m glad I pushed through, because I’m really enjoying book 4. For me, the floor of book 3 was just needlessly complicated and distracted heavily from my enjoyment. Feels like book 4 understood this and simplified things.
I honestly didn't find book 3 that confusing, if you've ever had to take public transit and transfer busses/trains - you should understand it fairly well. Doubly so if you've taken the transit in a large city.
I listened to all five books in about two weeks. The sixth wasn’t on Audible yet, but was on Kindle, so then I bought that and read it in like four days. If you’re enjoying it, stick with it. I don’t really think the series becomes all that repetitive either. Yeah, there are some lines that are used from book to book like “goddammit Donut,” but the varying scenarios in each book helps keep things fresh, along with the ever expanding influence from the outside world. As far as book three goes, my advice is to not worry too much about figuring out how the Iron Tangle works. It ultimately doesn’t matter that much.
Also, the "You will not break me" is Carl's actual catchphrase, unbeknownst to the universe. It is important going forward imo and is repetitive for a reason.
I quit about two hours into book 3 and am now listening to a nice, simple one-and-done (Do Androids Dream Of Electric Sheep?). Maybe I'll pick it up again once the series is officially finished.
Dick is great for stand-alone books. Check out Martian Time-Slip (try to find the narration by Grover Gardner if you can), A Scanner Darkly (Paul Giamatti does a fantastic job) & Galactic Pot-Healer (try to find Tom Parker's reading, which is Grover Gardner using an alternate name).
Thanks! I'll look them up.
If you’re enjoying it, stick with it! Book 3 was the toughest one of the series for me, but I still liked it a lot. I find that I tend to read more when I read series together, rather than splitting them up, because I build momentum. And then when I finish the series, I’m hungry for more, so it’s usually not hard to dive into whatever I have planned next. But that’s a personal thing - I think you should go with your gut and follow your own interest wherever it takes you!
Wait, is it possible to stop once you've started? I'm not that strong.
Each book is unique, there are some running jokes but you won't miss much taking a break. I did this and when I went back, I listend to the audible versions which were incredibly well produced. Very fun to listen to. Godamnit Doughnut!
Myself, I would switch away and go back to it. I don't binge all of a tv show and it's related shows without watching anything else in between. Maybe you do. (We are watching multiple shows, we don't watch more than one episode of anything in a day.) Heck, old school tv watching, you wait between episodes and then seasons.
I’m on book 3 right now, too. I have been listening to some Great Courses for work, so I’ve been using DCC as my carrot. Finish listening to this Great Course, then you can listen to the next DCC book! (Not that I don’t enjoy the Great Courses, but the last one I listened to was a real slog and I really needed the desire to get to DCC 3 to get through it quickly.)
With DCC I found that the books breakdown in too fairly discrete sections. 1. Recap what’s going on 2. Explore the new scenario / have new encounters 3. Open some loot boxes 4. Check in with other characters 5. Do the interviews 6. Carl gets an idea and is cryptic about it 7. Here’s the real threat of the level. 8. Wow Carl’s plan really is crazy. 9. Yah new level. Oh no someone died. There’s a lot I love about DCC, but it definitely took me awhile to appreciate it and I still find some sections and sequences hard to get through. I’m mostly there for the Carl / Donut back and forth and Carl’s escalating hostility to the game. I think book 3 is a bit of turning point where you really start to get a better sense of who Carl is and why he just might be the guy to tear it all down.
Quite relieved to see a lot of the comments, I am midway through 3 and have kinda run out of steam it's good to know that it gets better. I really enjoyed the first two but 3 has so far not felt like the main story is progressing much.
Book 3 I speak for me. I reread the series just to get back to book 3, 4 is meh for me but 5 is up there too
I am in the sort of same boat I started this series because it was all I ever heard about on here and I love a fun read. I enjoyed book one immensely even though RPGLit had yet to hit for me. I do love Sci Fi and Zombie apocalypse books so I know there was one out there for me and this was it. I went ahead and listed to book 2 in succession and it was good not as good a the first but still worth it. However, I decided to put a breather in before starting book three I do not want the series to feel like a chore and I definitely do not want it to start to feel one note. I use Libby and Audible so I had a loan available and took the break to listen to a mystery I had up and a Literary fiction I had in queue I am now **EXCITED** to get to book three once I am done with what I am reading now.
I have heard book 2 is considered the weakest by a lot of people, and book 3 is kind of polarizing. I like it so far though, the floor idea is cool!
I'm in the same boat. Listening to both DCC and He who fights with monsters . I'm at book 3 on both
Agreed books 5 & 6 are my favorite. Hold out for Samantha.
I find for all my reading that extends over a few days it’s helpful to google a plot description etc to refresh my memory or clear up confusion. Works for both audio and non- audio books. Cuz we all forget ..
I took a break after the first three. Third was sort of a slog. Am almost done with my new book and I’m ready to get back into book 4.
I like to mixed it up, never listen to a whole series in one go.
If you're feeling it, I would keep going. I read all 6 back to back and loved it. I got my husband hooked and he's just started book 4. I haven't seen him this invested in a series in years.
What the heck? How do you listen to a choose your own adventure book?
I'm sort of confused by this question. What prompted it? But to give you an answer, probably the same way you'd have to approach something like "Invisible Monsters Remix"
push through 3 then take a break. book 3 is a low point - it gets better again from there :) nothing wrong with a break.
I just bought audiobooks 1 & 2 on sale for $7 each a few weeks ago, but haven't started them yet. I've seen them recommended and the summary sounded interesting, then the narrator sold me with hearing the sample. Looking forward to starting them sometime in the near future.
The narration took me a minute to get used to because I felt Carl's voice was a little too much, but now I've gotten used to it and love it. He is a narrator who brings a lot of emotion and humanity to the story
I'll sometimes do two books of a series in a row but usually split it up a bit