The White Gus Dies First is simultaneously my dream and my nightmare. I’m the biggest scaredy cat, so this scary story anthology made me a little afraid. BUT the author list is absolutely fabulous and some of my ultimate faves. And after reading I can 100% recommend. Keep reading this book review of The White Guy Dies First for my full thoughts.
Summary
Killer clowns, a hungry hedge maze, and rich kids who got bored. Friendly cannibals, impossible slashers, and the dead who don’t stay dead….
A museum curator who despises “diasporic inaccuracies.” A sweet girl and her diary of happy thoughts. An old house that just wants friends forever….
These stories are filled with ancient terrors and modern villains, but go ahead, go into the basement, step onto the old plantation, and open the magician’s mystery box because this time, the white guy dies first.
Edited by Terry J. Benton-Walker, including stories from bestselling, award-winning, and up-and-coming contributors: Adiba Jaigirdar, Alexis Henderson, Chloe Gong, Faridah Àbíké-Íyímídé, H. E. Edgmon, Kalynn Bayron, Karen Strong, Kendare Blake, Lamar Giles, Mark Oshiro, Naseem Jamnia, Tiffany D. Jackson, and Terry J. Benton-Walker.
Review
(Disclaimer: I received this book from the author. This has not impacted my review which is unbiased and honest.)
The White Guy Dies First is a wonderfully cohesive story about these un-aired films. It makes the whole thing feel super meta as we read the descriptions of what happened. The author list here is full of absolute winners. It’s always hard to review an anthology. But some common themes I enjoyed were the idea of transformation. In a horror or speculative fiction this transformation can be literal, but I love how the stories also explore the metaphorical, and character, development of transformation.
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The subtitle of the anthology about power and fear is also aptly named. The White Guy Dies First explores what happens when the power dynamics we might be used to seeing, could be flipped. When fears are reflected back. Even though I’m the biggest scaredy cat, I loved reading this anthology and what better praise can I give than that? Find The White Guy Dies First on Goodreads, Storygraph, Amazon, Bookshop.org, Blackwells, & Libro. fm.