Review: The Babysitter IV (The Babysitter #4) by R.L. Stine

Title: The Babysitter IV

Series: The Babysitter #4

Previous books in this series: The Babysitter | The Babysitter II | The Babysitter III

Author: R.L. Stine

Genre: YA, horror, mystery thriller

Publication date: June 1995

Published by: Scholastic

Source: Purchased paperback

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Synopsis: Don't live in the past, they say. And Jenny's trying to forget all of the horrible babysitting experiences that landed her in the hospital last year. Now Jenny lives in a new neighborhood, and the neighbor has asked her to babysit. If only she could say no. Because someone is watching Jenny—someone who hates babysitters.

My rating: ★★★★☆

Jenny is back... And she’s babysitting again 😬 She wasn’t going to, but she was almost forced into it by her new neighbor. The poor girl.

Review: The Babysitter III (The Babysitter #3) by R.L. Stine

Title: The Babysitter III

Series: The Babysitter #3

Previous books in this series: The Babysitter | The Babysitter II

Author: R.L. Stine

Genre: YA, horror, mystery thriller

Publication date: June 1993

Published by: Scholastic

Source: Purchased paperback

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Synopsis: Jenny just wants to forget the man who murdered all the baby-sitters. The man who almost murdered her.

He's dead now.

And Jenny's gone to visit her cousin Debra.

But Debra has a baby-sitting job. And now she's getting those phone calls, too. Just like the ones Jenny used to get:

Hi, Babes. I'm back.

Company's coming...

My rating: ★★★★☆

This book was insane and I kinda loved it. Lol. This time around, though, Jenny is NOT babysitting. Understandable after what happened in the last two books. Instead, this summer, Jenny is visiting her cousin Debra and staying with her for a while. But Debra DOES have a babysitting job, and now SHE'S the one getting the creepy phone calls. Dun, dun, DUN.

Review: The Babysitter II (The Babysitter #2) by R.L. Stine

Title: The Babysitter II

Series: The Babysitter #2

Previous book in this series: The Babysitter

Author: R.L. Stine

Genre: YA, horror, mystery thriller

Publication date: July 1991

Published by: Scholastic

Source: Purchased paperback

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Synopsis: Jenny's last baby-sitting job nearly killed her. But she's a survivor and she's over it. She's even got a new baby-sitting job. Then the phone rings. When she answers, she hears a familiar voice--a voice from the grave.

My rating: ★★★☆☆

Our poor babysitter Jenny is still traumatized after what happened on her last babysitting job. Basically, the kid’s dad, Mr. Hagen, tried to kill her, so that’s fun. Jenny thinks that if she faces her fear, it will help her get over it. And honestly, good for her! Unfortunately, things don’t go well. Unlike her last charge, the kid in this book is the worst! He is a spoiled brat, and his parents don’t discipline him at all, which really sucks for Jenny. And on top of that, she starts getting those creepy calls again. Is Mr. Hagen back? No, probably not.

Review: The Babysitter by R.L. Stine

Title: The Babysitter

Series: The Babysitter #1 | Point Horror #5

Author: R.L. Stine

Genre: YA, mystery thriller, horror

Publication date: December 1989

Published by: Scholastic

Source: Own paperback

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Synopsis:

From the minute that Jenny accepts the Hagen babysitting job, she knows she has made a terrible mistake.

First there is the dark and gloomy Hagen house, filling her with dread and horror. Then the crank phone calls start, and Jenny discovers a creepy "neighbor" prowling in the backyard. When she finds a threatening note in her bag, she realizes that this isn't a harmless game.

But who wants to hurt her? What kind of maniac is willing to scare her... to death?

My rating: ★★★★☆
The Babysitter was a pretty good book, overall. I was a big fan of the classic premise—recent attack on babysitters... OMG is Jenny next?!—and mystery of it all. I was also imagining Jenny babysitting on Fear Street, because that would just be the perfect setting for this! But alas, this is not a Fear Street book.