Straddles the line been mystery and thriller
“The Babysitter” has been described as a reboot of slasher movies from the 1980’s. The cover is a creepy picture of a young set of eyes peering out window shades. Naturally, you go into this book expecting jolts and shocks and scares.
This book is the victim of misrepresentative marketing. This book is not a thriller. It is not scary.
“The Babysitter” is, however, a solid read if you like slow build mysteries. I loved the story: two sisters, one of whom is savagely attacked during a babysitting gig (Emma), never mentally the same again, and the other sister (Jamie) lives with survivor’s guilt. Jamie and her daughter return home to take care of Emma when Emma and Jamie’s mother passes away. Home is a small town with big gossip and even bigger secrets. It’s a perfect setting for a book like this.
What didn’t really work for me was the writing. Is this a young adult book or not? There were times when the author simply referred to “mom” as if Jamie’s daughter was the narrator In the first person. There were other times where the author referred to Jamie as “Jamie” or “Harley’s mom”. It was weird.
I also couldn’t stand the stupid choices Jamie made throughout the book, especially with a past like hers.
There were too many characters to keep straight, so this book works better in a format for people like me who like to constantly search keywords to remember who a character is. I read a paperback version and could not always keep up.
Last complaint: this was such a tight group of friends in their formative years, yet they all just distance themselves from Emma after her attack? Nobody keeps up with her? Nobody tries to maintain a friendship in any way? That threw me off. Mostly! I found almost everyone in this town pretty vile.
I loved Cooper. He is a nice, strong, comforting character.
The big reveal was predictable if you were paying attention, but the author showed restraint and didn’t beat you over the head with it.
Overall, I recommend this book to people who like slow build whodunnits, but I would classify it as a horror, thriller or “slasher” book.
This book is the victim of misrepresentative marketing. This book is not a thriller. It is not scary.
“The Babysitter” is, however, a solid read if you like slow build mysteries. I loved the story: two sisters, one of whom is savagely attacked during a babysitting gig (Emma), never mentally the same again, and the other sister (Jamie) lives with survivor’s guilt. Jamie and her daughter return home to take care of Emma when Emma and Jamie’s mother passes away. Home is a small town with big gossip and even bigger secrets. It’s a perfect setting for a book like this.
What didn’t really work for me was the writing. Is this a young adult book or not? There were times when the author simply referred to “mom” as if Jamie’s daughter was the narrator In the first person. There were other times where the author referred to Jamie as “Jamie” or “Harley’s mom”. It was weird.
I also couldn’t stand the stupid choices Jamie made throughout the book, especially with a past like hers.
There were too many characters to keep straight, so this book works better in a format for people like me who like to constantly search keywords to remember who a character is. I read a paperback version and could not always keep up.
Last complaint: this was such a tight group of friends in their formative years, yet they all just distance themselves from Emma after her attack? Nobody keeps up with her? Nobody tries to maintain a friendship in any way? That threw me off. Mostly! I found almost everyone in this town pretty vile.
I loved Cooper. He is a nice, strong, comforting character.
The big reveal was predictable if you were paying attention, but the author showed restraint and didn’t beat you over the head with it.
Overall, I recommend this book to people who like slow build whodunnits, but I would classify it as a horror, thriller or “slasher” book.