By Jim Mcleod 
Teenage Girls Can Be Demons is a powerful collection unified by its theme but dazzling in its variety of execution. Hailey Piper proves herself to be a versatile and fearless voice in modern horror. She understands that the best horror holds a mirror to our real-world fears, and there are few things more terrifying and potent than the experience of being a teenage girl in a world that often seeks to diminish them.
Hailey Piper’s Teenage Girls Can Be Demons is more than just a clever title; it is a declaration of intent. This collection of 13 horror stories, published by Titan Books, serves as a powerful and often brutal exploration of adolescence, where the metaphorical demons of growing up—social pressure, trauma, identity, and rage—are made terrifyingly literal. Piper, a Bram Stoker Award-winning author, masterfully uses the genre’s tools to dissect the experience of young womanhood, resulting in a collection that is as thought-provoking as it is chilling. This review will expand upon the standout stories that form the fiery heart of this acclaimed book.
Teenage Girls Can Be Demons Review: A Chilling Coming-of-Rage Horror Collection
While the collection is consistently strong, several tales resonate with particular power due to their inventive concepts, emotional depth, and sheer, unadulterated nerve.
“Benny Rose, the Cannibal King”
This novella, which serves as the collection’s climactic finale, is arguably its crown jewel. It’s a perfect example of Piper’s ability to modernise and subvert classic horror tropes. The story follows a group of teenage girls in the town of Blackwood, who decide to spice up their Halloween by pulling a prank based on the local urban legend of Benny Rose, a supposed cannibalistic killer. What begins as a dare quickly spirals into a night of genuine terror when the legend proves to be horrifyingly real.
Piper expertly builds atmosphere, layering tension with every turn of the corner and flickering light. The story functions as a superb slasher, but its true strength lies in its focus on the dynamics between the girls. Their friendships, fears, and courage are tested under extreme duress, transforming the narrative from a simple ghost story into a compelling tale of survival and solidarity. It’s a nostalgic nod to the Goosebumps and Fear Street stories of yore, but with a sharper, more contemporary and visceral edge that will leave readers breathless.
“Why We Keep Exploding”
A metaphorical powerhouse, this story tackles the theme of institutionalised predation and the explosive rage it breeds. The protagonists are college freshmen who are systematically targeted by a group of predatory upperclassmen. Piper manifests the victims’ trauma and fury in a spectacularly literal way: when pushed too far, the young women physically explode.
Each explosion is a cathartic, devastating act of reclamation and rebellion. The story is a fierce commentary on the systems that protect abusers and silence victims. It asks a terrifying question: what happens when the silenced can no longer contain their pain? The answer is a chain reaction of violence that is as horrifying as it is emotionally satisfying. It’s a story that lingers, forcing the reader to confront the very real horrors that inspire its supernatural premise.
“Magical Girl Child Crusader Squad”
Fans of dark anime like Puella Magi Madoka Magica or Speculative Fiction will find this story particularly enthralling. Piper introduces us to a squad of young, magical girls who are tasked with fighting otherworldly threats. On the surface, it’s a classic trope. However, Piper immediately delves into the darker implications of this power.
The story brilliantly explores the weight of responsibility placed on young shoulders and the subtle, creeping menace that often underlies narratives of chosen ones. It’s also a standout for its nuanced and seamless representation of queer and trans identity, which is woven into the fabric of the characters’ experiences without being their sole defining trait. The magic system is creative, the action is sharp, and the underlying commentary on the exploitation of youth gives it a profound emotional weight.
“Hopscotch for Keeps”
This story proves that Piper can generate bone-deep dread with stunning simplicity. It centers on a childhood game of hopscotch with deadly, supernatural stakes. The rules are simple; the consequences for losing are dire. Piper captures the eerie, ritualistic feel of children’s games and the urban legends that spring up around them, reminiscent of the chilling atmospheres in films like The Black Phone.
The horror here is psychological and atmospheric, built on a foundation of escalating tension. It’s a masterclass in minimalist horror, demonstrating that a simple chalk-drawn grid on pavement can be as terrifying as any haunted house when the right author is holding the chalk.
“The Many Sins of Clara Greenstone”
For readers who prefer their horror poetic and laden with gothic atmosphere, this story is a highlight. It presents a twisted changeling tale centered on two sisters and the cruel, otherworldly creature that comes between them. The prose here is particularly beautiful, even as it describes horrific acts of betrayal and transformation.
The story delves deep into themes of family duty, resentment, and the complex, often painful bonds of sisterhood. It asks what we owe to our family and what we owe to ourselves, and what monstrous acts we might be driven to in the name of love or redemption. It’s a slower burn than some of the other tales, but its emotional impact is profound and lasting.
Teenage Girls Can Be Demons is a cohesive and powerful collection unified by its theme but dazzling in its variety of execution. Hailey Piper proves herself to be a versatile and fearless voice in modern horror. She understands that the best horror holds a mirror to our real-world fears, and there are few things more terrifying and potent than the experience of being a teenage girl in a world that often seeks to diminish them. This book doesn’t just acknowledge that rage; it gives it a sharp set of teeth and lets it loose. It is a must-read for anyone who believes that horror is a perfect vehicle for social commentary and catharsis.
Teenage Girls Can Be Demons by Hailey Piper
A wildly inventive and downright terrifying collection of 13 stories covering everything from grisly body horror and ancient eldritch beings to horrifying urban legends, all brought to life by the Bram Stoker award-winning author of Queen of Teeth.
Perfect for fans of Clive Barker, Mariana Enriquez and Eric LaRocca
13 coming-of-rage stories the way only Bram Stoker Award-winning author Hailey Piper can tell them—wildly inventive, brilliantly imaginative, and completely and utterly enthralling.
A vicious group of college upperclassmen prey on the freshman girls in “Why We Keep Exploding”; across the world, something is mutating adolescents into bizarre creatures in “The Turning”; a girl on a night out realizes a bizarre cop is hunting her in “The Long Flesh of the Law”; and in the acclaimed novella “Benny Rose, the Cannibal King”, a Halloween prank goes horribly wrong when a murderous ghost steps out of an urban legend and into the real world.
These stories take our most difficult years of transformation and twist them into new and terrifying shapes, where the monsters are real and you’ll do whatever it takes to get away, or get even.
Horror Book Reviews on Ginger Nuts of Horror
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