7 days ago December 4, 2025sarahylockwood

The Butcher’s Masquerade by Matt Dinniman

Rate: 5/5

Medium: eBook

Overview (No Spoilers): 

The Gate of the Feral Gods saw Carl getting his feet under him and lay the seeds for going on the offensive. The Butcher’s Masquerade sees those seeds grow as Carl starts to sow chaos on a larger, more destructive scale in the Hunting Ground where Crawlers have traditionally been helpless.

In this installment, Dinniman incorporates some strategic jumps in the story and temporarily skips details of key events to add some unexpected twists in the end that have profound implications for Carl and the rest of the Crawlers. Typically these kind of jumps drive me absolutely crazy, but in this format it worked really well. Carl’s plotting stretched further than I ever could have anticipated. I seriously can’t wait to find out how this will all play out.

The sixth floor is jam packed with one emergency after another. Carl and Donut have to deal with Odious Creepers, Dinosaurs, Vampires, Elves, and Hunters. The pacing is relentless and the odds seem insurmountable. I found this book to probably be the most stressful thus far, though the twists and turns are even more brilliant. In the midst of all of this chaos, Dinniman somehow fits in nipple rings. Seriously, each book of this series gets better and better. 

As I was reading through my notes, I was left so impressed with how much happens. If you look through my additional insight section, it is packed with spoilers that highlight how much is sandwiched between these covers. Dinniman has built such vibrant characters with unique personalities. He also manages to add ample humor into dangerous, dire situations. Throughout The Butcher’s Masquerade we thankfully get more depth to periphery characters such as Pony and Miriam. That said, there’s still so much more material for Dinniman to draw upon, such as fleshing out Florin and Britney. 

Overall, The Butcher’s Masquerade continues Carl’s penchant for refusing to play by the rules and sowing chaos in his wake. This is Dinniman’s best work yet as he packs in so many close calls that the reader forgets about the earlier, purposely omitted details that come back unexpectedly to change the whole trajectory of the next few levels. I can’t wait to find out what Dinniman has in store for the Princess Posse next. 

Additional Insight (Spoilers Abound): 

  • Is there anything special about the white ring that Samanda brings Carl? It seems like she is pretty deliberate about what she does though she seems flippant. Just like when she jumped through the doorway ahead of Donut to trip Lucia’s trap and save our precious kitty. That whole sequence seems to highlight the head’s role more than anything up until that point.
  • What is Samantha’s full powers? She’s grown more powerful as the floor progressed. 
  • Why was the Plenty liaison helping Maggie cheat? How could that be allowed? Especially muting Chris?
  • Carl get’s a lawyer! Based on the strategic jumps in the story, we spend most of this story wondering if Quasar is a good guy or not.
  • Typically you have to wait until the 10th floor to become a citizen of the Syndicate. I’m still a little confused but Carl had muddied that with his stocks right?
  • Mongo has a girlfriend! What will happen now that she isn’t dinosaur anymore?
  • Why is Britney so moody towards Carl?
  • Is The Divine Ring of Suffering causing the roaring river in Carl’s mind and making him more angry. There was a mention of some effects in the description of the ring. What will happen to Pony since he ate the ring?
  • Bea is alive! We knew that at the end of the last book but seeing Carl and Donut have to confront her was both satisfying and anticlimactic. What will happen to her now?
  • Katia really left the party! No! That said it is fun seeing her come into her own and she is with Bautista!
  • Who was the sponsor who wasn’t able to pay? Why are The Apothecary and The Plenty working together?
  • What is going with Lucia? What did she mean that the wrong dog was killed? Who is Alexandro, Lucia’s youth assistant
  • Who was the woman in the crowd who was his sponsor?
  • How will Dr. Ratchet’s Guide to Building Automatrons for Fun and Profit come back into the story. 
  • Those spicy box descriptions make me laugh every time!
  • Ugh. Poor Zev. Was her whole family really slathered?
  • Princess Posse a huge organization!
  • What will come of Carl getting charged for stabbing Nihit?
  • Katia has the Blood Sultanate crown. How will she and Donut both survive? She even gave away her hat to Carl that would have protected her! 
  • The whole Ferdinand story was delightful. How will he show back up?
  • What will happen to the Mantis now that their leaders have fallen? If I remember correctly Circe’s hive was a minor part of the larger whole.
  • Zerzura to transport everyone down to the ninth floor? What will happen to everyone transported to the ninth floor? Will they survive?
  • Drink is absolutely coming back into the story right?
  • Empress D’Nadia really showed her true colors at the end of this one. What will happen on the 9th floor?
  • I loved having more of Sledgie on this floor. Especially their love of movies and video games. I had to laugh when the quiet rock monster says to Louis at the end, “Surviving in winning, Louis. Everything else is bullshit.”
  • No! Firas died. How will Louis overcome his friend being gone?
  • Pony breaking Level 7 was such a shock. I was wondering who Cascadia was. What would floor seven have really been like? What did other Crawlers think about that floor crumbling?
  • Poor Miriam and Pony. It was so heartbreaking!
  • That Prize Counter at the Butcher’s Masquerade was so interesting. How could you even pick?
  • What will happen with this AI breaking? 

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