Kiosk Kingdom

Discount Dan’s Backroom Bargains, Book 3

By: James Hunter

Narrated by: Steve Campbell

Dan just wanted to run a shop. Now he’s knee-deep in holiday hellscapes, corporate hydras, and powers that definitely violate the Geneva Conventions.

The Flayed Monarch is on the move, spreading his corrupt influence through the lower levels of the Backrooms. To stop him, Dan and his crew must take out one of the Monarch’s key allies—the Franchisor, a multi-headed marketing monstrosity who rules the 99th Floor.

But Dan, Croc, and the rest of his ragtag band of misfits might be in for more than they bargained for.

To secure the Kiosk Network and strike a crippling blow against the Monarch, they’ll have to grind through a cursed snow globe ruled by the Yule Lord himself, survive the twisted horrors of the 10,000 Acre Wood, and take on a twisted empire built on questionably legal intellectual property. Along the way, Dan will uncover long-buried secrets about his past, the System, and a war he never asked for.

The shop must grow.

The crew must fight.

And Dan? He’s done playing defense. He’s armed to the teeth, and he’s got a coupon for war crimes.

©2025 James Hunter (P)2026 Audible, Inc.

The Dan Abides

Chaos? Check. Humor? check. Emotional moments that will make your eyes leak? Check and check.

For the savvy reader or listener who has made it this far into the Discount Dan series, this is where the rubber meets the road and all of the investments from the prior two books really start paying out heavy.

For all of the people who said this series lacked the depth or complexity of character of DCC, I invite you to read Kiosk Kingdom and have your mind changed. It takes time to build those things, to become attached to characters as if they are your family, to develop a deep caring and compassion for the world and all contained therein. The halfway point of this book made that wildly apparent to me, and I am confident this book will hold my number one slot for 2026.

Steve Campbell once again proves that he is exactly the voice the Backrooms needs, delivering a beautiful and incredibly flexible performance rife with emotion and wit. And who knew the guy had such a beautiful singing voice? 😉

James Hunter and Steve Campbell are a world class team, and Kiosk Kingdom is a delightful showcase of their combined might and otherworldly talents. If you disagree, I’ll eat my knockoff Versace bathrobe.

No mimics were harmed in the making of this review.

I will always love crock

I love DD. That’s all I need to say.
I got this one the day it came out and finished it two days later. Now I’m sad I have to wait for the next one.

Steve brings James' writing to life.

Once you get halfway, you'll understand. I haven't had a book make me cry like that in a while.

How?!

This book was a rollercoaster of emotions for me. How the author managed to take a story built on the back of a liminal, reality-warping, nihilistic nightmare world and close it with an emotionally heavyweight, but still tender ending is sorcery. I cried. That's not a joke. Maybe that's just me, but I don't know if I've ever finished a book and felt so satisfied at the ending. Well done.

Wonderful addition to the series!

This series, this book, is everything a litRPG should be - it's got great story and great characters but it also has an RPG system that the characters are well aware of and use to their advantage. Nowhere is that more apparent than here, with new abilities, new relics, new artifacts. Dan is min-maxing the hell out of things as usual, and I am here for it. I love hearing about his plans and upgrades and his new taxidermied horrors.

The world building also continues to be excellent, adding new twists to existing elements and introducing new ones in a way that feels natural.

This one has more feels to it, so buckle up and make sure you're in the right headspace - there're a few very poignant moments.

The narrator continues to impress me - they bring the same energy we know & love to our main characters, especially Croc and Dan.

I cannot recommend this enough to fans of the series.