The scariest Goosebumps books – ranked by how scary they are
The one with the cat still haunts our dreams.
In amongst depressing Jacqueline Wilson and uplifting Roald Dahl, our childhood reading mainly consisted of scaring ourselves silly with RL Stine's Goosebumps novels. Before they became a fantastic TV series set of films, they were our go-to stop for schoolyard shocks.
And while we genuinely think we've owned all 61 (SIXTY ONE!) of the books at one time or another, here's a definitive ranking of the 20 most memorable, based on how terrifying they were at the time...
20. Be Careful What You Wish For, 1993
Poor old Samantha Byrd is the clumsiest girl around, and Judith Bellwood is making her life on the basketball court a living nightmare because of it. So when Sam meets someone who says they can make her wishes come true, it should be the dream, right? Until it turns into a living nightmare.
Scare rating: 2/10
19. Go Eat Worms, 1994
Todd is completely and utterly obsessed by worms, and enjoys nothing more than torturing his sister and her best friend with them. Which is all well and good, until he cuts a worm in half, and the rest of the worms start to turn up in places he really doesn't want them. Gross.
Scare rating: 2/10
18. Return of the Mummy, 2001
Both Return of the Mummy and The Curse of the Mummy's Tomb followed Gabe's visits to Egypt, where he learns of a secret chant that is supposed to bring the mummies to life. A little scary, but not as much as the stories that are closer to home.
Scare rating: 3/10
17. The Horror of Camp Jellyjam, 1995
Wendy and her brother Elliot are at King Jellyjam's Sports Camp – but this is no ordinary sports camp. As well as the swimming, basketball, archery and the like, the camp leaders seem a little *too* obsessed with winning, and Wendy's determined to find out why.
Scare rating: 3/10
16. Welcome to Dead House, 1992
An age-old tale of two children moving into a house that they think is haunted, in a town that they feel a little uncomfortable about. Josh and Amanda's parents don't believe them, and force them to make friends – which doesn't exactly turn out how everyone plans.
Scare rating: 4/10
15. The Werewolf of Fever Swamp,1993
Uh oh, there's a werewolf in town and nobody knows what to do about it. After the people of Fever Swamp hear a strange howling at night and a rabbit is brutally murdered, everyone accuses Grady's new dog of having a wild side. But it couldn't be, could it? OOOH mysterious.
Scare rating: 4/10
14. Revenge of the Lawn Gnomes, 1995
There's just something about inanimate objects coming alive at night to creep into your garden, whisper nasty things in your ear and wreak havoc with your normal every day life that is just quite creepy, isn't there?
Scare rating: 4/10
13. Stay Out of the Basement, 1992
It starts out as a harmless gardening project for Margaret and Casey's dad Dr Brewer, but they soon notice their father becoming distinctly plant-like, and developing weedy and seedy tendencies. What is going on?
Scare rating: 4/10
12. Piano Lessons Can Be Murder, 1993
Jerry's parents offer to pay for his lessons after he finds a piano in the attic of their new house. He quickly notices something creepy about his piano teacher, Dr Shreek, and soon hears horror stories about students who went in for music lessons at his school, and never came out. OoOoOOh.
Scare rating: 5/10
11. Say Cheese and Die!, 1992
After taking a picture of his dad's new car with an old camera he found, Greg notices something odd about the print out – the car is smashed up and his father's in a state. He later takes a picture of his friend Shari – only when it develops, she's missing. A disaster-predicting camera, or the very thing that's making the trouble?
Scare rating: 5/10
10. The Barking Ghost, 1995
Cooper Holmes is shy, jumpy, and some would say, scared of his own shadow. This reputation doesn't help when scary things really do start to happen, and he's haunted by a chilling bark late at night, and two dogs who seemingly disappear into thin air.
Scare rating: 6/10
9. Bad Hare Day, 1996
Tim loves magic tricks, and goes to see his idol Amaz-O perform in real life. But when his hero disappoints him with a bad attitude, Tim steals his secret bag of tricks – which is a decision he ultimately lives to regret.
Scare rating: 6/10
8. The Haunted Mask, 1993
TERRIFYING. Carly Beth has the best Halloween costume around, in the shape of a mask crafted by a nameless man from a mysterious shop, which changes her voice and scares everyone off. The only problem is, once October is over and Halloween is done, Carly Beth can't get the mask off – it has fused to her face!
Scare rating: a strong 7/10
7. It Came from Beneath the Sink, 1995
When Kat and Daniel move into their new house, the brother and sister love it – they have a huge garden and tonnes of room inside. Only, it's not all as it seems, and there's something evil and sinister watching them, waiting for them, beneath the sink.
Scare rating: 7/10
6. The Curse of Camp Cold Lake, 1997
Sarah hates camp, and camp hates her. Her roomies are horrible to her and she doesn't get on with the activities, so she forges a (very stupid) plan to pretend to drown, so that everyone will feel sorry for her. Things don't go to plan, though, because someone, something, is watching her from the murky depths of the lake, and throws a spanner into the works.
Scare rating: 7/10
5. The Haunted School, 1997
After Tommy Frazer's dad gets remarried, he moved to a new school and has to try and make new friends and negotiate the confusing new surroundings he's in. He fails, and gets lost in a maze of empty classrooms, which is when he starts to hear the voices of children crying for help.
Scare rating: 7/10
4. Cry of the Cat, 2000
This book left a lasting impression on our childhood. After accidentally decapitating a cat and the head magically reforming with the body (yes, really), Alison attempts to return the body to its owners – only to realise her problems with the black cat Rip are only just beginning.
Scare rating: 8/10
3. One Day at Horrorland, 1994
When The Morris family got lost en route to Zoo Garden Theme Parks, they found Horrorland: a similar day out with no queues, no crowds, and free entry. The dream? Not quite, as they're about to find out on the deadly Doom Slide and House of Mirrors.
Scare rating: 8/10
2. Don't Go to Sleep, 1997
The title alone is still enough to scare you really, isn't it? Despite hating his tiny room, Matt's mum won't let him sleep in the guest room just "in case" they ever have people to stay. One night, while everyone else is asleep, he creeps into the spare room and falls asleep – but when he wakes up, his whole life has changed for the worse.
Scare rating: 8/10
1. Night of the Living Dummy, 1993
There's something just so terrifying about a ventriloquist's dummy, isn't there? While Lindy is teaching her doll Slappy to move and talk, her sister Kris gets jealous and gets a dummy of her own, who is capable of nasty, evil things.
Scare rating: 9/10
Dusty Baxter-Wright is an award-winning journalist and the Entertainment and Lifestyle Director at Cosmopolitan, having previously worked at Sugarscape. She was named one of PPA’s 30 Under 30 for her work covering pop culture, careers, interiors and travel, and oversees the site’s Entertainment and Lifestyle strategy across print, digital and video. As a journalist for the best part of a decade, she has interviewed everyone from Louis Theroux and Channing Tatum to Margot Robbie and Ncuti Gatwa, while she has also spoken on Times Radio and BBC Radio. You can find her on Twitter and Instagram here.
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