This was an okay anthology. There were very few standouts for me. Honestly, I probably would've skipped this if it weren't for the anthology's title and bright cover.

I'd recommend:

Best Served Cold by HE Edgmon
Break Through Our Skin by Naseem Jamnia
wasps by Mark Oshiro

brb, off to check out these three authors' longform work. ✌🏼

Thank you to Tor Teen and NetGalley for this arc.

Below are reviews of each short story:


Ghoulfriends Online Blog by Terry J. Benton-Walker
4/5 stars

William, a blogger, writes a post about Jakobi Warren, a film graduate and founder of Level 13 Studios. Warren disappeared without a trace, leaving a box with thirteen film reels titled, "THE WHITE GUY DIES FIRST." A commenter mentions that there's a collection of thirteen short stories written after the studio was closed.

Okay, now I know why the editor has two stories in this collection. This "intro" (written in the style of a blog post, with dumb comments included!) really sets up the mood for the anthology. Some missing indie movie director, Jakobi Warren, has a collection of horror shorts never seen by any living person? Fuck yeah, sign me tf up!


All Eyes on Me by Faridah Àbíké-Íyímídé
3.5/5 stars

Helen, who's desperate to break up with her boyfriend, meets a carnival worker (and potential love interest) named Beatrice, who has the perfect plan for Helen's predicament.

I'm not really sure how I feel about this story. I liked the sapphic elements. The story was well-written, and I ended up really caring for the FMC, Helen, because her relationship with her mayo boyfriend is beyond relatable for me.

But other than that, the ending was a total cop out. Maybe that was the point? I'm not sure. My suspension of disbelief shattered when the consequences of Helen and Beatrice's actions flew out the window just so they could have that ending.


Hedge by Kalynn Bayron
4/5 stars

Brothers Brandon and Wesley, along with Wesley's friends, decide to pay a visit to McCannon's Topiary Garden, the site where their father mysteriously died.

Mai was pretty meh on this, but I liked it! We get enough time to know the two brothers (Brandon is fourteen, while Wesley is seventeen) and their family dynamics. Wesley's friends had some personalities, but they mostly read as indistinguishable.

What I really liked was that we're introduced to the subject (the father's death) and the horror setting (the topiary garden) in the beginning, so nothing new-ish pops up in the end as a deus ex machina.


The Golden Dragon by Kendare Blake
3.5/5 stars

Sophie, a working-class Korean teen, gets invited by her rich and privileged friends to a night out at the Japanese Gardens, where something sinister lurks in the dark.

This would've been a solid 4 stars, but the ending was kinda weird. It's nice how everything tied in together in the end, but it felt like it was trying too hard to wrap up loose ends. Idk.

I liked how this feels like a typical teenage story with a MC who wants to belong with the cool kids. The class and race dynamics are obviously in-your-face unequal, so I was interested to see if the author had a different take on this.

But it turned out to be pretty cliche. I think Mai liked it better than me. At least it was a quick read.

Some quotes I liked:

"Summer said he was only after her to bang an Asian, to mark one off on his international-bang bingo card."

"That was the nice thing about Asian girls. They were quiet. The worst thing about them was they sometimes kicked him in the balls and made him lose his phone."



Best Served Cold by HE Edgmon
5/5 stars

EJ, a Native American teen, meets their brother's white friend, Isaac, at a pow wow.

ALL the stars for this short story! Hannibal Lecter vibes all around. I LOVED it. Mai loved it. It was messed up in the best way possible. And the commentary on whiteness? *chef's kiss*

Some quotes I liked:

"I hungered for green eyes, even going as far as buying cheap, probably toxic colored contacts from a stand at the mall, only to have a sobbing fit on the bathroom floor when I realized my natural eye color was too dark to be hidden under the film."

"And then, years later, Kai brings a boy with the most beautiful green eyes to the Pow Wow. His name is Isaac."

"Our mom calls herself white because white people think she is, because she passes in their spaces—even though her grandfather spent his childhood at a boarding school in Oklahoma and his adulthood beating the religion they gave him into her own mother."

"Hunting, like fishing and farming, tends to attract people on polar ends of the spectrum. One look at Isaac, with his eyes like new money, his blond ex-military haircut, and the Patagonia jacket fitted over his broad shoulders, and I worried he was at the wrong end."


The Protégé by Lamar Giles
2/5 stars

Troy's mentor, a magician next door named Jack Meridian, asks him to sign for a valuable package while he's gone.

This was such a mess. Both Mai and I disliked it. It felt very all over the place. It didn't know what it wanted to be. There were elements of magic from Dr. Strange mixed with horror that would've been cool if the story was cohesive.


Docile Girls by Chloe Gong
2/5 stars

Adelaide and the rest of the dance committee, which consists of her ex and his circle of well-to-do friends, get locked in the school's gym.

This was such a mess! The sad part is, it could've been a decent trashy horror read. The author was way too on the nose with the whole getting revenge against white people thing. I think if those lines were struck out, this would've been a more powerful story.

YA readers aren't dumb. We can figure out what the author's trying to say without being so obvious.


Gray Grove by Alexis Henderson
3/5 stars

Rumi and her friend, Kaitlin, film a supernatural-themed podcast at an old plantation house where a high schooler was reportedly killed by unknown forces.

I really liked the cosmic horror ending in this one. The story itself is very cliche, but I liked how Rumi's interactions with her white friend were racially-charged. If you're a BIPOC, I'm sure you've had similar conversations with insensitive white friends who dismiss your racially-based concerns.


Everything's Coming Up Roses by Tiffany D. Jackson
3.5/5 stars

Leesa, who has an obsession with gardening, lands a new job at Home Depot while her personal life slowly unravels.

Mai definitely liked this more than I did, but it's Tiffany D. Jackson and I can't say no to her unsettling vibes. She's such a master when it comes to unreliable narrators. I bow down to the queen. We all bow down.

It was too short for me. I wanted more details of the horror elements (like the sicko I am).


Heaven by Adiba Jaigirdar
2/5 stars

Living in a post-apocalyptic world overrun by creatures called the Sunken, Eshaal finds out that the community they live in isn't what it seems to be.

Um, I don't really know what this was. This would've been a great post-apocalyptic novel or novella, but as a short story, there were too many details and concepts crammed into such a limited word count that it was hard to feel sympathy for the characters or even understand what was exactly happening.


Break Through Our Skin by Naseem Jamnia
4/5 stars

Farz, a trans teen who's Iranian, finds kinship with a powerful spirit that lives in an ancient artifact from Iran.

Okay, hands down, I really liked this because it's a monster transformation revenge story. The monster was gross. The old white guy ancient Iran expert was gross in a patriarchal, homophobic/transphobic way. The ending was *chef's kiss*.

My fave quote:

"How do I explain to my parents that I entered a pact with a millennia-old spirit to transform into a monster and eat my racist colonizing professor-boss?"


wasps by Mark Oshiro
5/5 stars

Nina defends her generational home against a man who wants to buy the property and gentrify the neighborhood.

I loved this one! I'm such a huge fan of cosmic horror and the ending did NOT disappoint! I'm all down for creepy powerful ancient entities and human sacrifices.


Hell Is Other Demons by Karen Strong
3/5 stars

Evelyn accompanies Brett and Ivy as Brett performs a demonic ritual to summon Gazidun.

As far as demonic ritual stories go, this one was all right. Maybe I've read one too many horror/dark fantasy stories about summoning demons, but this didn't really wow me as much as I thought it would.

Although, I did like how the MC's future job in the afterlife is treated like any other office job. It's giving Alix E. Harrow's Mr. Death short story.


The Road to Hell by Terry J. Benton-Walker
3/5 stars

An old sentient house becomes fascinated by a new family that moves in.

This one was also all right. I didn't really understand the point of the story. Did the house like the family? Did the house hate the family? You can't fault the family for wanting to renovate an old house after sinking money into it.


Epilogue
3/5 stars

Written as an email to the Ghoulfriends Online blogger, the anonymous sender suggests that Jakobi struck a deal with a witch so that his thirteen stories would impact at least one person who reads them.

This was a cute ending that didn't really have a lot of impact on me because it didn't really feel necessary. I honestly wasn't going to rate it, but since Mai did it, I figured I might as well.

Loves this! Many stories of (generally) revenge, some of tragedy, some of magic, and at least one of good old fashioned murder.

tw: kidnapping, gore, SA, racism, cannibalism

a Black man named Jakobi and 13 white male actors are missing. but he's left behind a box of 13 film reels...
one of Jakobi's interns has collected 13 various short stories after his studio was shut down and this begins our journey.

each story is interwoven around the theme of MCs who struggle with things that BIPOC persons struggle with often in today's society which made the characters relateable and easy to connect with in some way. the stories are diverse, inclusive, and overall enjoyable reads.

as with any anthology, some stories stood out to me more than others and so my enjoyment fluctuated throughout. some stories needed to be longer, and some lacked enough details to really get invested in. but there's a good mix of creepy and eerie reads that will have you regret reading in the dark.

this is a love letter to people of color who have ever felt like an outsider, experienced microaggressions, or victims of racism in any way. it's a celebration of our resilience and tenacity to rise above time and time again. these stories are bold and beautiful yet dark, scary, and chilling.

favs: The Golden Dragon, Docile Girls, Best Served Cold, The Protoge' and Heaven

Thank you for the arc!

The good first: fabulously titled. Great cover. A good variety of horror subgenres. "Everything's Coming Up Roses."

The bad: the quality of the stories. I am admittedly DNF'ng about halfway through, after story #6 - Docile Girls - because I haven't liked any of them. I've enjoyed other works by Chloe Gong, but this wasn't her strength. So I skipped ahead to Tiffany Jackson, who's horror I admire, and actually really enjoyed that one. It's well paced and tense.

The other six all read like authors who don't typically write horror. They don't have the oomph to carry the short story format.

I appreciate horror as a genre. And love horror that SAYS something, so I thought this would be the perfect collection. It is not. It feels like someone saw Out There Screaming and tried to copy it as quickly as possible.

Maybe folks who don't typically read horror will like this. There's a chance!

TOR: thank you for signing non white authors to write horror. Please keep doing that. If this doesn't sell well, the lesson is not that diverse horror doesn't sell. It's that most of these stories are mid.

Thank you to Tor Teen, and NetGalley for an E-ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.

I have been dipping my toes into more of the horror genre lately, so when I saw this book had 13 different short-stories I was highly intrigued. This anthology is filled with bone-chilling tales that tackle important topics.

I am SO HAPPY I was able to read this and get a taste for a few different authors!

*I will note that you will want to check your trigger warnings before diving into this book. There are a few scenes some may find harmful or grotesque due to the nature of the book overall. *

Each story was unique to itself and I was getting HEAVY “American Horror Story vibes.” You may not want to read this one alone, at night, with the lights off.

I am so ecstatic for this to be released this Summer and hear all of the thoughts from fellow readers. <3

I’m not usually into the horror genre but because I adore all other works by Terry J Benton Walker I wanted to check it out. Definitely some mind bending stories and I couldn’t read them before bed. Some got a little too gory for me, but I enjoyed the more psychological thrillers. I think the authors did an excellent job twisting your traditional horror stories and themes into diverse themes with social justice undertones.

I always love discovering genuinely scary stories, and I love even more being able to read and support authors of color, so I really can’t say enough great things about this. It’s perfect for when you’re looking for a scary bedtime story, and it’s hard to put down. Bound to induce some scarily authentic nightmares.

An inclusive horror anthology showcasing 13 stories by 13 authors of color. I love reading about different characters and learning about their cultures. I think it’s important to read books by BIPOC authors because it shows future horror lovers/readers that they can imagine themselves as characters in stories too.

These stories were fun, eerie and entertaining. I only disliked 2 stories out of the 13 and definitely think everyone should read this book. It showcases a lot of talented authors that go unnoticed most of the time. If you’re looking to expand your mind and be open to other cultures and races, this book will deliver, especially in scares.

☆ 3.5 [overall]

↻ theme. one thing i found that interconnected and weaved into each short story was the protagonists struggling with being considered an outsider. they dealt with micro-aggressions, desperation to fit into a more “glamorous (white) lifestyle”, and the compounding effects of generational trauma. i loved that each story was threaded with very real issues and struggles of BIPOC. It is what shaped and gave more life to the characters.

↻ one sentence reviews (not summaries) of the 13 short stories: + mini ratings

┊All Eyes on Me: all the potential for a scare factor (clowns, murder, string-of-disappearances), but the ending sort of fizzled out. [☆ 3]

┊Hedge : the best thing to probably do is not go into the maze where theres been a series of dead bodies found. [☆ 3]

┊The Golden Dragon: girls helping girls get revenge, ideal sister bonding activities! (tw: attempted assault but its not covered in much detail) [☆ 3.5]

┊Best Served Cold: phew, at least the psychotic cannibal isn’t homophobic! (tw: kidnapping) [☆ 4.5]

┊The Protégé: magicians, cults, and vengeance, it really can’t get better than this. [☆ 4]

┊Docile Girls: another revenge plot but with lots of gore and an almost let down ending. [☆ 3]

┊Gray Grove : girls with a podcast go ghost hunting in an old haunted plantation. [☆ 3]

┊Everything’s Coming Up Roses: just a girl and her silly gardening obsession! (i really enjoyed the journal entry format) [☆ 3]

┊Heaven: the last city on earth and the secrets of the inhabitants beyond the gates. the world building potential here ? adore it. [☆ 3.5]

┊Break Through Our Skin: the things we go through to get a letter of rec. (ft. middle eastern rep! trans/non-binary rep! (please be aware that the character does go through internal dialogue of not being out/accepted (but its a happy ending !)), immigrant rep! & lots of detailed bodily modification descriptions) [☆ 4]

┊Wasps: one thing i hate is wasps, one thing i love is magical houses. [☆ 3]

┊Hell is Other Demons : featuring literal demons, possessing your girlfriend’s dad, and fun job promotions! [☆ 3]

┊The Road to Hell : (what did i just read??) a haunted house story but from the the POV of the haunted house. [☆ 3.5]

↻ overall. I love horror and I love short stories, so this was something I knew I would enjoy. My feelings on the collection fluctuated a tiny bit. Some of them were instantly exciting to read through, some felt as though they had a whole bunch of extra details, and some left me disappointed at the lack of action, as though the word count was reached and a bunch of things didn’t make the cut.

Were all the stories necessary thrilling? No, but they were all fun to read and had diverse characters with unique identities, backgrounds, and stories.

↻ 𖥻 standouts. The Protégé and Heaven (respectfully, i am asking for these to be made into novels post haste), Golden Dragon ( you know i love a revenge plot! ), and Best Served Cold (narration style perfectly portrayed the lack of lucidity of the main character and gave it a really chilling vibe).

Thank you for the arc ! :)

link to review on good reads: https://www.goodreads.com/review/list/152273889-ren

i’m biased because i love chloe gong but her’s was my favourite short story 🤭

anyway this was definitely a chilling read and it was super refreshing to finally see the poc characters NOT get killed off first. (i recommend you don’t read this at night because i kid you not i was SHUDDERING.) i can’t say too much about the book since each story is very different from each other, but the ones that truly stood out to me were “all eyes on me”, “the golden dragon”, and “docile girls”. i definitely enjoyed this a lot more than i thought i would and rate it 3.5/5 stars!

4 stars!

Thank you to Tor Teen, and NetGalley for an E-ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.

I have been dipping my toes into more of the horror genre lately, so when I saw this book had 13 different short-stories I was highly intrigued. This anthology is filled with bone-chilling tales that tackle important topics.

I am SO HAPPY I was able to read this and get a taste for a few different authors!

*I will note that you will want to check your trigger warnings before diving into this book. There are a few scenes some may find harmful or grotesque due to the nature of the book overall. *

Each story was unique to itself and I was getting HEAVY “American Horror Story vibes.” You may not want to read this one alone, at night, with the lights off.

I am so ecstatic for this to be released this Summer and hear all of the thoughts from fellow readers. <3

thanks to NetGalley for the eARC

⭐️=3.58 | 😘=4.25 | 🤬=5 | ⚔️=5 | 15/16+

summary: 13 YA horror stories where the white guy dies first.

thoughts: my star rating here is like the average of my individual ratings for each story. this was very very hit or miss. some were incredible; my favorites are “The Golden Dragon ” (girls, specifically Korean American girls, getting revenge), “Best Served Cold” (cannibalism!!), and “Everything’s Coming Up Roses” (we looooove spooky diary entries). however, the framing device intro felt very unnecessary and weird. idk. some unnamed authors whose work I adore otherwise are just, like... not made for short fiction. stick to the novels bestie!!

content note(s): gore, racism, attempted rape

I love anthologies but what I love even more is horror. I struggle to find good horror books or pieces, but I was so excited when I saw horror written by so many authors I know and I love and I was not let down!! I was kept up til the early morning reading and I could not put it down. Terry J Benton-Walker never disappoints and I can always count on him to have me reading til way too late.

✰ 4 stars! ✰
Loved this anthology! I've been craving horror lately and this definitely satisfied it. I enjoyed reading how the stories tackled themes of racism and other prejudice. After my first read, I think my favourite stories were "The Golden Dragon," "Best Served Cold," "Docile Girls," and "Hell is Other Demons". Overall, I had a great time reading and discovering more authors!

Thanks so much to Tor Publishing Group for an ARC of The White Guy Dies First for an honest review.

Rating: 5/5

I've recently developed an interest in horror, which is odd considering that I was born in October. This happened after I watched the movie Get Out by Jordan Peele. I realized that horror books, for me at least, need to have some real-life lessons or almost an adult twist on Aesop's Fables. Having read some works by a selection of these authors in the past, I had high expectations for this one. It got a 5-star review across the board. I loved how each story had a slightly different element and included people from various backgrounds. I'm definitely going to order this book and recommend it to all my fellow readers.

Thank you Netgalley and Tor Teen for the ARC in exchange for an honest review!

"The White Guy Dies First," edited by Terry J. Benton-Walker, is a captivating YA horror anthology that navigates through a spectrum of chilling tales, blending ancient terrors with modern villains while also offering a social commentary in the YA horror genre. The anthology delves into a diverse range of horror narratives.

Before going into this, I do want to provide a content warning for SA and also lots and lots of gore (as expected in a horror anthology). Some of the authors did not hold anything back in their descriptions, like in “Docile Girls.”

The stories feature intriguing characters, including a sweet girl with a diary of happy thoughts and everyday teen characters dealing with bigotry and ignorance in their lives when the horror aspects comes into play to enact revenge against those racist characters. The title of “The White Guy Dies First” is definitely true throughout these stories.

Like in all anthologies, there were some stories that worked better in the collection than others. I really enjoyed the Japanese revenge ghost in “The Golden Dragon” as well as the revenge depicted in “Docile Girls” and the reason for that revenge. Other stories, I think, would work better as longer pieces of work, such as “Heaven,” which I think would benefit from fleshing out the worldbuilding. Or in “The Protégé,” which seemed like a good set-up for a longer story. Overall, my favorite stories were “The Golden Dragon,” “Docile Girls,” and “Everything’s Coming Up Roses.”

All in all, I really enjoyed this anthology, not only because of the horror aspect because of the depiction of certain themes like racism and gender demonstrated throughout all the stories. I will definitely be re-reading this book during the Halloween season. While the gore might be a bit much in the high school English classroom, using some of these short stories to start conversations about those specific themes may help engage the students.

Thank you Tor Teen and Netgalley for the eARC, these opinions are my own. Big fan of Terry’s and have been super excited to read this anthology of horror stories! Like Terry I was raised with horror but it was nice to read queer horror stories, something I didn’t have much of growing up! Also nice to read stories where people of color weren’t killed off so quickly! And if you’re like me you’ll be rooting for the white guys to die! Each story touches on different areas of horror so there is something for everyone one! From monsters to dystopian , from magic to slashers! I also love how the stories fit into a larger plot the bookends them! If you’re looking for a little fear in your life check this stories out! Especially if you’ve always wanted horror stories that featured queer and people of color thriving! Highly recommend!

This was a solid collection of work, I feel like the stories could have been a little longer just for lasting impact

Book: THE WHITE GUY DIES FIRST (thank you netgalley and Tor publishing group for the arc- July 16th)
Review:
4.5⭐
I didn't know how to go about this review: as a whole, or each story. Ultimately, I'm going to review this as a whole. THE WHITE GUY DIES FIRST is a collection of short stories---but they don't fall short. They pack a punch. Each story is fast-paced and thrilling in their own way. These stories are a mixture of all things creepy: murdering clowns, urban legends, etc. THE WHITE GUY DIES FIRST was an quick and easy read(even though the all work together, I do think that you can skip around and stuff like that.) When I was reading, there were some bouts of confusion, but it didn't take away from the full stories. I think these are a must read if you want stories that flip the script.