10 hours ago December 24, 2025sarahylockwood

This Inevitable Ruin by Matt Dinniman

Rate: 5/5

Medium: ebook

Overview (No Spoilers):

New Achievement! 

This series keeps getting better and better. Confession time. I honestly thought book seven was the last book in the series, right up until the last few chapters of This Inevitable Ruin. I’d even recommended the series to a friend, claiming the series was complete. She’d thought I’d pulled a prank on her when she finished book seven before me and found out the story wasn’t complete. It was welcome news to me.

I read this book while recovering from a double mastectomy. I told a friend that this period in my life would forever be associated with a guy named Carl, much to her endless amusement. Due to everything going on in my life I held off initially writing this review until I’d reread the book because it was all a delightful blur initially 

References to the Faction Wars have been plenty and filled with dread ever since the first floor. Usually Crawlers are at the mercy and whims of the other factions on this floor. In typical Carl fashion, all of the previous expectations were quickly thrown out the door as new rules dominated this season’s contest. I’m going to try very hard to avoid spoilers here but if you’re interested in my lingering questions please see the section below. 

Dinniman packs so many twists and turns in this book seven. Despite the overwhelming odds, he somehow manages to keep a thread of humor stitched throughout. While the dangers to Carl and Donut have loomed large throughout the series, here in the Faction Wars everything loses the feel of a game as the entire battlefield is out for survival.  Dinniman maintains a breakneck pace throughout, only slowing at the end to allow his cleverly developed traps to get their due time in the spotlight. 

While not many new characters were introduced in This Inevitable Ruin, the existing characters were tested and pushed. Throughout Carl struggles to delegate and stick to the plan, especially as everything goes awry. Also we see the lure of the ring Carl wears and how it pulls at him. There’s so much depth throughout This Inevitable Ruin for Carl where we follow the ebbs and flows of the dangerous situations he’s forced to navigate. Donut is also exposed to her own breaking points, though she seems more grounded than Carl. 

The ending has so much potential to broaden the story to the stars. That said, our Crawlers still have a dangerous new level to contend with. I’m so curious where Dinniman will take the story next. 
Overall, This Inevitable Ruin is brilliant with elegant traps and twists seeded throughout to keep the reader poised at the edge of their seat.  I couldn’t put this book down and am in a Carl book hangover now. Please send condolences to the next book I bring myself to pick up.

Additional Insight (Spoilers Abound):

  • Will Carl’s primal class end up coming into play with the ancient AI systems? 
  • What will happen when Carl fills the punch card for celestial items?
  • Justice Light and his trap that opened the nothing in level 12 and 18. What chaos is in the future for everyone. 
  • Eris the goddess of chaos showing up at a weigh station! So with the Gods leaking out what will happen to the systems as a whole. There’s so much potential for Dinniman to build off of.
  • Nooo. Juicebox divorced Louis!
  • Can Tipid be fixed?
  • I’m all for the Syndicate’s dirty laundry getting aired out publicly. There was so much here from the Skull Empire putting failsafes in everything to the Naga taking over ship yards. Not to mention Epitome Tagg being part Reaver.
  • The AI mentioned his family. Are these the other system AIs? Is it waking all of them up? Could this be linked to the newest Hive settlement going super nova? Or the system with the last crawl going dark? What did the AI mean when he talked about taking revenge out on someone?
  • Louis and Tagg were merged! What are the long term implications for our sweet Crawler?
  • How will Carl use the War Mage in his inventory now that we know it will blow up?
  • How will he use Shi Maria again?
  • We now know that the beanie baby in Carl’s inventory will last the whole floor. What is the story with Samanatha and it? What does Samantha know about Embrerus’ son?
  • Is Samantha the Scavenger? Juicebox made reference to her being something bigger. Does this mean her daughter is still alive? What did the war mages want with her?
  • What will Elle have to do with stopping Scolopendra? How will the war mages come back into the picture?
  • Will Li Na be able to make it to the 12th floor to get all of her marks?
  • I’m endlessly amused by references to Carl’s flowing locks.
  • Who is talking to Carl in his head?
  • Is the Vinegar Bitch possessing Britney?  
  • Who summoned the gods at the Club Vanquisher?
  • Why is Carl married to Princess Chandra?
  • What will happen to Agatha?
  • I’m so glad the Ring of Divine Suffering is gone.

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