Tag: favorite series

Top Ten Tuesday | Books with Found Family

Posted March 30, 2026 by Haze in Top Ten Tuesday, Weekly Book Memes / 20 Comments

Welcome to Top Ten Tuesday, a weekly bookish meme hosted by Jana @ That Artsy Reader Girl that features a different bookish topic every week.

Today’s topic is Buzzwords or Phrases That Make Me Want to Read (or Avoid) a Book 

I am a sucker for “found family” tropes. If a book has a found family element, I’m probably going to read it, and I’m probably going to cry. If you’re thinking it’s because I have some deep-seated family trauma, you’d be right, but it really doesn’t take a psychologist to tell me that’s why I crave stories about happy found families. Even so, if anyone is looking to adopt an adult woman in her 40s, I’m available. Just saying.😂😭😂

Top Ten Books with Found Family

  1. Wayfarers series by Becky Chambers – All the books in the Wayfarer series are amazing! They’re all different stories featuring different characters, but the connections these characters make with each other are so heartwarming, especially considering how they are all different species and come from different cultures. The whole series is just such a gorgeous look into how well different people can get along if we come into our relationships with the intent to understand each other.
  2. Fred, the Vampire Accountant series by Drew Hayes – This series gets better as we get deeper. We meet so many different characters, and we get more and more attached to each one of them as we go. Fred is our unlikely hero, and he’s the one who connects everyone and creates those bonds. It’s wonderful to see.
  3. Dungeon Crawler Carl series by Matt Dinniman – Carl and Donut are the best found family duo, but there are so many other characters we meet in this series that become a part of their family as well, and I love every single one of them. You start out not taking this series seriously, but it gets really deep and emotional the more you get into it, while still keeping a sense of humor. There are parts where I literally laugh at one paragraph, and cry at the very next. The next book in the series is coming out soon and I’m planning to reread it all over again.
  4. A Man Called Ove by Fredrik Backman – I love that the MC was such a grouchy but relatable character. I love how the story progressed, and how all his neighbors loved and cared for him despite his best efforts to discourage them. I watched the movie adaptation with Tom Hanks and ugly cried, and then I read the book and ugly cried all over again even though I already knew the story.
  5. Anne of Green Gables series by L.M. Montgomery – This series probably ignited my love for found family stories. It’s one of my favorite childhood stories, and I still love it today. I love that Anne found love with Matthew and Marilla, and they found love with her. And Anne just kept creating found families all over the place with every next book. This series is pure magic.
  6. Fairy Tale by Stephen King – Stephen King has a surprisingly strong theme of found family in a lot of his stories; The Body, It, The Institute, Joyland, Mr. Mercedes, Dolores Claiborne… just to name a few of the recent ones I remember. I chose to feature Fairy Tale today just because of the dog. I would die for Radar.
  7. The House in the Cerulean Sea by T.J. Klune – I was resistant to reading this book at first because of the hype at the time, but I’m so glad I did because I loved it. I loved how adorable all the kids were, how distinct each of their personalities, and I also loved the adults and the way they were not too old to learn new things. The magic, the whimsy, the love for each other, my heart melts all over again thinking about it.
  8. Rook and Rose series by M.A. Carrick – This series has higher stakes compared to some of the other ones on this list, but the found family story is just as sweet and heartwarming. There’s so much richness to the world-building and magic system, and so much thought and nuance to the characters and their motivations. I love how the found family find each other here, the way they learn to love and trust each other, everything that they go through together… It’s one of my favorite stories.
  9. The Wild Robot series by Peter Brown – I didn’t know this was a book when I first watched the animation, but I loved it already even then. Then I saw that it’s not just one book but a series. I read them all, and I love that even a robot could have a found family, that they would love so much and be loved so much. Oh no, I’m tearing up just thinking about it!
  10. The Murderbot Diaries series by Martha Wells – Well, here’s another robot with found family. Murderbot is a little more stoic than the Wild Robot, but no less lovable, kind, and caring, even if it doesn’t realize that about itself. It warms my heart because if Murderbot has family who loves it, there must be hope for me, right?!

Have you read any of these books? What did you think of them? Would you read any of these books?

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Top Ten Tuesday | Best Books I Read in 2025

Posted January 5, 2026 by Haze in Top Ten Tuesday / 44 Comments

Welcome to Top Ten Tuesday, a weekly bookish meme hosted by Jana @ That Artsy Reader Girl that features a different bookish topic every week.

Today’s topic is Best Books I Read in 2025 

I read so many good books in 2025, it was so hard to choose! It’s a blessing though, I think, and I’d rather have too many good books than not enough to choose from. I also reread several favorite books that may or may not have a higher standing than some of the books I’ve listed here, but I didn’t think I should add them to this list in order to be fair to first time reads. The one exception is Dungeon Crawler Carl – I read the first two books the year before, but reread them, and the rest of the five books for the first time in 2025.

Top Ten Best Books I Read in 2025

  1. Dungeon Crawler Carl series by Matt Dinniman – This is hands down my favorite books read in 2025. I know I’m cheating because it’s a whole series but it’s technically one story, and all seven books (so far) are so good! If I didn’t give the series a spot, it would be all seven books in seven spots on this list, and we gotta give the other books a chance!
  2. Lady Astronaut Universe series by Mary Robinette Kowal – Another cheat because it’s also a series. There are four books so far, and they are tangentially related but I really loved them and had to include them. I didn’t realize they were alternate historical fiction and initially expected something more sci-fi, but I loved what I got! I especially love how much attention to detail Kowal gave the story, and how nuanced the issues with societal and cultural prejudices were presented. It was very well-written.
  3. Perdido Street Station by China Miéville – This book is incredible and lives rent free in my head. There is so much to it; the worldbuilding, the characters, the emotions! OMG, the emotions! It was difficult to read at times because of how intense it got. It’s one book I know I want to reread because I know I’ll get more out of it, but not any time soon because I need to recover from the first time I read it!
  4. Purple Hibiscus by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie – I tend to not remember much of the details of books I read, especially if it was a while ago, but I remember impressions, and this book really packed a punch. It’s especially painful for me to see small and vulnerable people getting hurt by big, authoritarian people, and this book made me rage and cry.
  5. Killers of the Flower Moon by David Grann – Another story that highlights racism, genocide, oppression, and the injustice of powerful people towards vulnerable people. Except that this is a true story and I hate that it happened and is still happening in less obvious ways. It hurts to see the evil that people are capable of, and especially with the current political climate we live in, that they get away with because other people allow them to, and even condone their actions. It frightens me and I really hope history doesn’t repeat itself.
  6. A Man Called Ove by Fredrik Backman – This was a beautiful book about found family, which everyone knows I have a soft spot for. I can understand the despair and loneliness Ove initially felt and why he was so curmudgeonly at first, but I love seeing the journey of how things changed for him. It was such an emotional read for me.
  7. A Sorceress Comes To Call by T. Kingfisher – I love Kingfisher’s books because I love fairytale retellings and the kind of stories she writes in particular, but some are better than others and I think this is one of them. I’m not very familiar with the original fairytale it’s based on (Goose Girl) but I love this story on its own. I especially loved the characters because they were all so different but so strong in their own ways.
  8. Christine by Stephen King – I was good and only put one Stephen King book on my list. I was so surprised by how much I loved this one. I never prioritized this book from his vast catalog because I was not very interested in cars, but of course, it’s not about the car, it’s about the story and the way he tells it. King is a master at creating the most interesting characters; I love how even the side characters stand out and reminds us of real people in our lives. I love the way he writes the relationships between the different characters in the book and how relatable they are in different ways. The characters are always the best part of any King book.
  9. Into Thin Air by Jon Krakauer – I don’t know where to start with this. The fact that it’s a true story and such a tragedy made it really hard to read, but also so hard to put down. It doesn’t matter that it happened years ago, Krakauer wrote it when it was relatively fresh for him and even though he tried to be objective, his emotions are obvious on the page. I had so many thoughts and feelings while reading this that I write about more in the review, but oof, I’m still processing even now.
  10. Little Fires Everywhere by Celeste Ng – I love this book because of how subtle and nuanced the issues with classism and racism are. Don’t get me wrong, it’s also pretty blatant, but there are so many little details; the micro-aggressions, that you don’t see and don’t realize unless you’re living it or it’s pointed out to you. The topic of motherhood and what makes a good mother is also explored deeply here, and it’s emotional. I’m both traumatized and healed by this book.

Have you read any of these books? What did you think of them? Would you read any of these books?

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Book Review | Dungeon Crawler Carl Series (Books 1-7) by Matt Dinniman

Posted December 11, 2025 by Haze in Book Reviews / 4 Comments

Dungeon Crawler Carl Series by Matt Dinniman

The apocalypse will be televised!

A man. His ex-girlfriend’s cat. A sadistic game show unlike anything in the universe: a dungeon crawl where survival depends on killing your prey in the most entertaining way possible.

In a flash, every human-erected construction on Earth—from Buckingham Palace to the tiniest of sheds—collapses in a heap, sinking into the ground.

The buildings and all the people inside have all been atomized and transformed into the dungeon: an 18-level labyrinth filled with traps, monsters, and loot. A dungeon so enormous, it circles the entire globe.

Only a few dare venture inside. But once you’re in, you can’t get out. And what’s worse, each level has a time limit. You have but days to find a staircase to the next level down, or it’s game over. In this game, it’s not about your strength or your dexterity. It’s about your followers, your views. Your clout. It’s about building an audience and killing those goblins with style.

You can’t just survive here. You gotta survive big.

You gotta fight with vigor, with excitement. You gotta make them stand up and cheer. And if you do have that “it” factor, you may just find yourself with a following. That’s the only way to truly survive in this game—with the help of the loot boxes dropped upon you by the generous benefactors watching from across the galaxy.

They call it Dungeon Crawler World. But for Carl, it’s anything but a game.

The Reason

There was so much hype I couldn’t ignore it!

The Quotes

“Cats are assholes. I get it. But do you know why people like cats, despite their asshole-ness? It’s because they don’t fucking talk.”

“If we get to the point where we don’t help each other anymore, that’s when we stop being human.”

“New achievement! You’ve killed an armed mob with your bare fucking hands! Holy crap, dude. That’s kinda fucked up. Reward: You’ve received a Bronze Weapon Box!”

“You’re not going to break me,” I said. “You might hurt me, or kill me, but you’re not going to break me.”

The Narrator(s)

Jeff Hays. For all the books in the series. I have insufficient words to describe how incredible his narration is. I am spoiled by his narration!

My Thoughts

I decided to do one post for the whole series because I’m so far behind with my reviews and I’m too lazy to do one for each book, so I’ll just put them altogether here in this post.

Book 1 – Dungeon Crawler Carl
This is a reread; I first read this (and the second book in the series) in November last year and loved it, but I wasn’t able to finish the series at the time so now I have to reread to refresh my memory. I had a lot of other books on my TBR and wasn’t initially planning to pick this series back up now, but life has been kicking my ass and I felt like I needed a story that was fun and easy to read but also thrilling and exciting at the same time to keep my interest throughout everything else happening in my life.

This book is such perfect balance of being light-hearted while still dealing with some heavy issues. I love Carl and Donut as a team; they have the cutest relationship and the best chemistry as a duo. It makes me wonder about the kind of relationship I would have with my cats if they turned sentient! Now that I’m back in the DCC world, I intend to complete the series this time and I’m so ready to start the next books!

Book 2 – Carl’s Doomsday Scenario
Continuing the saga of Carl and Donut but now we also have Mongo! I love that they picked their Classes in this book that allow them to get all the perks and upgrades. The side quests are interesting as hell, I am also waiting to see where this goes when they reach the lower levels! I loved the ending of the book and I loved the epilogue even more! It was hilarious! It was incredible! It was amazing! It was (insert all your favorite adjectives here)! I’m sure I’ll be back with another glowing review after I finish the next book!

Book 3 – The Dungeon Anarchist’s Cookbook
This is the third book in the series and I think it might be my favorite one so far! One of the reasons the first book pulled me in is because of the humor and how easy it is to read, but it should be acknowledged that there are some very disturbing themes in the book and a lot of emotional trauma as well. This book delves deeper into some difficult topics that are handled so beautifully and serves to show us the growth and development of the characters. I love them more now than ever. I love that although there is more focus on character development, there is no detraction from the excitement of the Dungeon Crawl and the missions, quests, and scrapes that Carl, Donut, and their friends get into.

Book 4 – The Gate of the Feral Gods
Fourth book in and I am still caught off-guard by how this story manages to surprise me! I love that we are getting to know more of the other characters better now. As we get deeper into the levels and more Crawlers die, we naturally get fewer characters left, of course, and we see some of them over the course of the books as well. It’s weird how Carl creates community and found family without getting too sappy about it, but in a way that makes my heart swell even more. They show love and care through actions rather than cheesy words (although there’s nothing wrong with that!).

There are several characters whose motives I’m still unsure about though, and I guess we’ll find out as we go. I also love how much more openly defiant Carl has gotten, and how he uses his ratings and popularity as leverage. I can’t help it, guys. I wanted to take a break to read other books, but I already started the next book!

Book 5 – The Butcher’s Masquerade
Fifth book in and still going strong! Book 5 gets better and also more traumatic at the same time. I laughed out loud so many times while reading, and probably teared up an equal amount of times. The relationships are the best thing about this book, but there’s also the plot and the humor, and oh, everything! The fact of the premise really allows Dinniman to go crazy with the cast and plot but it also highlights just how f’d up the events in the books are if they happened in real life. There are things set up in previous books that come to fruition in this book, but there are also a lot more that have not come to pass, and I’m sort of scared of what’s going to happen because the story does not go easy!

Book 6 – The Eye of the Bedlam Bride
Book 6 and it’s still so good and hilarious, and completely outlandish in a good way! Where do I begin? The fact that we are now on Book 6 and there’s still so much I can say about it because it never gets boring, there’s always something new, and I only fall more and more in love with the characters.

The fact that this freaking book can make me laugh out loud in one paragraph only to make me cry like a baby in the next, to the point that my husband sitting beside me stared at me worriedly and wondered if I was having a neurological event. The fact that the traumatic events that happen in this book is handled so sensitively and seriously, and at the same time so irreverently and humorously, and still makes me relate to the human condition and everything it means to be human for these characters.

I am excitedly anticipating reading Book 7, but also dreading it because once I finish it, I’ll have to wait a while for the next books and I know I’ll miss Carl and Donut. I’m going to read some other books before starting Book 7, but I’m pretty sure I can’t put it off too long!

Book 7 – This Inevitable Ruin
This is Book 7 in the DCC series, and the last one to date until the next one, which is expected to be released in May 2026. I don’t know how I can wait that long without going crazy. I don’t often do well with long-running series because I forget details, or get bored with the same story and characters, especially if the author tends to be formulaic. But every single book in this series has only gotten better and better, and just when you think it can’t get better, it gets better!

This book plays with my emotions; making me cry, making me laugh, making me feel awed at the plots, missions, side quests, power plays… making me disgusted because some really disgusting things happen, making me scared and on edge with suspense, making me feel so much! I thought I was already so deeply in love with these characters, but I find myself falling more and more in love with them with every book.

I cannot praise this series enough, but I also feel like I should maybe tone it down because it might raise expectations sky high and I don’t want anyone to be disappointed. It is that good though, for me at least, and now that I’ve finished the latest book and have to wait for the next one, I have no idea what to do with myself!

My Rating

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐/5 stars. I love the whole series and each book only gets better and better!

Have you read this series? Would you read this series? Did you like it or do you think you would like it?

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Top Ten Tuesday | Satisfying Book Series

Posted October 6, 2025 by Haze in Top Ten Tuesday, Weekly Book Memes / 39 Comments

Welcome to Top Ten Tuesday, a weekly bookish meme hosted by Jana @ That Artsy Reader Girl that features a different bookish topic every week.

Today’s topic is Satisfying Book Series 

This was a dangerous topic for me; I ended up reminiscing about so many of these series and wanting to reread them! Plus, it also reminded me of many series I haven’t finished and now I have more books on my TBR!

Top Ten Satisfying Book Series

  1. The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins – Whether you count this series as just the original trilogy, or also include the two prequels, this is one of my favorite series that only gets better with every reread. I get more out of it and see things I missed before every time I read it.
  2. Super Powereds by Drew Hayes – I had so much fun with this series. The writing is definitely not sophisticated at all, but the storytelling is so immersive and I love all the characters! It was fun and thrills all the way from start to finish.
  3. The Prison Healer by Lynette Noni – Objectively, this isn’t as well known as the other books on the list but I have fond memories of reading it, and I think maybe one of the reasons I loved it is because I came in without any expectations and ended up loving it.
  4. The Green Bone Saga by Fonda Lee – This series is incredible in a way I’m not sure how to describe. It feels real. It feels important. It feels like an epic that should be in the realm of LOTR but for urban fantasy. It is intense, and just so good.
  5. Rook & Rose by M.A. Carrick – I love the world-building and magical system in this series. I also really love the characters and their chemistry with each other. It’s one of the newer series I’ve finished (that wasn’t a reread) and that I know I will love even more with every reread.
  6. Oz: The Complete Collection by L. Frank Baum – This is my first time reading the Oz books and I was so surprised at how much more there is to them compared to the movies and Wicked retelling. I’m sure I would’ve loved these stories as a child, but honestly, they are pretty incredible reading as an adult too!
  7. Anne of Green Gables by L.M. Montgomery – These are books I read as a child and they have remained one of my favorite series ever since. They are some of my favorite comfort reads and I know I can never go wrong with them.
  8. Daughter of Smoke and Bone by Laini Taylor – It’s been a while since I read this series but I remember loving them so much at the time. I’m definitely feeling the itch to reread!
  9. Dragonlance: Chronicles by Margaret Weis and Tracy Hickman – I just reread the first three books and have put it on hold because I’m missing the fourth book. I’d forgotten so much of the details and was quite surprised, and shocked, by some of the things that happened, but they are still amazing!
  10. The Lunar Chronicles by Marissa Meyer – Another series I haven’t read in a while. I love fairytale retellings and I loved the different perspectives this series offered. It’s time to schedule a reread for these books too!

I’m usually good about limiting my TTT list to ten, but here are some notable ones I loved but didn’t put on the list because they are still ongoing or unfinished, or some other reason. They are all still worth reading though, imho!

  1. Dungeon Crawler Carl by Matt Dinniman – Currently reading for the first time and I’m on the 6th book. It’s still ongoing but I love every book so far!
  2. Red Rising Saga by Pierce Brown – If you count only the first three books, they’re finished and very good on their own, but the story that started from Book 4 onwards isn’t finished yet and I’m still waiting anxiously to find out what happens to my beloved characters!
  3. Wayfarers by Becky Chambers – This series is finished as far as I know, and I love it more than some of the other books in the TTT list, but every book is pretty much only tangentially related and can be read as standalones, so I decided to keep it off the TTT list.
  4. Fred, The Vampire Accountant by Drew Hayes – This is also a finished series and one I loved, but I already have a series by the same author on the TTT so this one only gets a notable mention.
  5. The Murderbot Dairies by Martha Wells – Still ongoing, and there’s also a TV series out! I am loving it so much so far!
  6. Heartstopper by Alice Oseman – This series has my heart. I love it. I was so sad to hear the TV series has been cancelled, but I’m glad there’s still a book to look forward to.
  7. A Song of Ice and Fire by George R.R. Martin – I know, I know! But I was already listing unfinished book series, so I might as well, right?! Thing is, whether this series ever gets finished or not, the ones that are already out are amazing, and I honestly think they are still worth reading even if we never get an ending. These books helped me through a tough time and I can’t imagine never having them in my life.

Have you read any of these series? What did you think of them? Would you read any of them?

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