This was a cute read., think Adventures in Babysitting meets Buffy meets The Craft. Esme and Cassandra are total opposites who happen to have magical abilities in common and are tasked with making sure their town's version of the Hellmouth stays closed. Of course there are curveballs thrown their way, namely not having any training before their powers are tested. This worked well as a standalone but since it's the first in a series I'm interested in seeing where the author is taking this now.

This book definitely fell into the category of "enjoyed it but didn’t really get anything out of it," for me. I hate having to say that, but there was something about this book that just didn’t make me feel as excited as I wanted to be for it. It was a fun read, and I would probably pick up the rest of the series, but I’m writing this a few months after I read it and I legitimately can’t remember any of the character’s names. This was that kind of book for me. I can remember a little bit of what happened, the key plot points, but the characters themselves just didn’t make enough of an impression on me to be memorable.

There were definitely a lot of nods to pop culture in this book, the “sitters” are almost essentially “slayers” for starters, and the big bad ending scene was a little reminiscent of Stranger Things for me. This all worked okay, and felt more like an appreciative nod to the material, than a straight up copy of it for me. But once again, there was something about it that just didn’t make it into “loved it” territory for me. The elements of the world building that were unique to the story didn’t really feel all that fleshed out to me and, let's be honest, this story’s version of Giles sucked. (Sorry, no one can compare to Rupert!)

This book also felt oddly young for the age group it seemed to be geared towards. While the characters are older teens (17 and older), some of the behavior and just the way they speak seemed a bit more middle grade to low teenage age to me. I think in a lot of ways because of my love for Buffy the Vampire Slayer and the blurbs that this got in comparison to the show, I was already geared to hype this story up too much in my head before reading it. Add that to the lack of attachment I felt to any of the characters, and this book just wasn’t for me. It was an okay read while it lasted, and I might continue to read the series, but it just didn’t wow me the way I wanted it to.

I love this Buffy and BSC mash up so hard! It's exactly the Gen Z update we need to some of these beloved tropes, and I love how Williams sets us up for a sequel. I cannot wait!

The Babysitters Coven is a story for all the witch and paranormal fans. I am a big fan of witches so I picked up The Babysitters Coven because I loved the idea of mixing Babysitters Club and witches! The Babysitters Coven was a fun and entertaining book about witchcraft, friendship, and power. It's very story driven, focusing on the intrigue that Williams starts from the beginning. There are also themes of power and ambition, what will we do in order to chase the power we think we deserve? What do we do with the power we have? Do we use it to get what we want? It's a fast paced read that has the possibility to turn into a series. I loved the quirkiness of some of the characters and that made it easy to read, but I wish I loved them more. I liked them, don't get me wrong, but I never fell in love with them.

A nice idea, but poorly executed. Specifically, the way the story is written the character speaks and has a vocabulary that of a third grader. The use of acronyms like FML, LOL, or ROFL to 'make' the character seem like they were a teenager failed miserably. It was hard to watch this author try desperately to encase what a teenager is in this piece of work. There's little character development and world-building and it just didn't work out.

I waited all 2019 for this book mostly because of the cover, but I love teen witches! I'm pretty disappointed and how it turned out.

I felt like in another world I would have really enjoyed this...but it was super cheesy and I know I signed up for it the minute I read the synopsis but it was too much. It just all felt a little juvenile for me and all though I enjoyed the witchy elements of it, the actual characters couldnt make up for it.

—☽.｡* Quick recap!
☆ Short synopsis: A young babysitter discovers that she has magical power and found herself in an unavoidable responsibility to protect the innocents.
☆ Read this book if you're: Fan of a light witch-centered story with teenage voices.
☆ You might want to consider it because: The overusing of abbreviations might be distracting.

I had to DNFed this title because I couldn't stand the overusing of abbreviations in it. Although, I think I'd like to try to read it again sometimes in the future.

Thank you Delacorte Press and The FFBC for providing me with a review copy in exchange for an honest review.

really enjoyed this book. It was so much better than I thought it would be. Honestly, I don't really have words to express how much I enjoyed reading this book. It's got all kind of witchy vibes.

A really fun read for fans of witches, the Babysitters Club, and especially someone who is both! I got a bit of a Sabrina vibe from it and really enjoyed the ride from beginning to end.

Disclaimer: I was given an ARC of this ebook via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Based on the description from the publisher, I really thought that I would really enjoy this book. However, I had a really hard time making it through this book. I think that it was more the style of writing that I had a hard time with and not the actual story.

If the description sounds like something you might like, I would suggest reading a sample of the book first before purchasing.

Growing up I loved reading Ann M. Martin's The Babysitter's Club series, and as a teen I loved the movie The Craft. So, upon seeing this book I thought that it would be a combination of both those things. Sadly, it wasn't. This book just wasn't for me, and it seems to be the beginning of a series, and I'm not really a fan of reading series as an adult because there are too many books for me to read and committing to a series is too much work.

I loved the spin between the babysitters club and a witch's coven. I also liked all the kenisis'....telekinesis, etc. as well as the interior designer turned football coach/witch trainer. I'm absolutely looking forward to the next book in the series.

I was really thrilled about getting approved for this book but unfortunately I don't think I was the attend age group for this book. I thought I would really love it because it had a Buffy the Vampire Slayer feel to it. But unfortunately I just couldn't get into the book. It just felt more like a book for young teens. And I just couldn't get into the characters or world in general.
Still I am very grateful for the chance to read the book. I did dnf the book but I still gave it 2 stars. Because of the reasons I gave above on why I couldn't get into the book.

It tried very hard but ultimately read like a book for middle schoolers wearing the guise of a book for high schoolers and young adults. I just couldn't connect with the characters - they felt sloppy and just plain mean.

After seeing it pitched on Twitter as 'the spooky big sister of the babysitter's club' I was excited to sink my teeth into it, but unfortunately THE BABYSITTER'S COVEN didn't quite click for me. The pacing is uneven and some of the characters fell a bit flat. I was intrigued by the concept, but the pieces of this particular puzzle didn't quite fit together.

I would like to thank Penguin Random House and Netgalley for offering me the opportunity to read this book. Unfortunately, despite the idea of a modern-day Buffy being a story I've been craving to read, since I grew up with that show, I have to DNF this book.

We all know babysitting comes with a lot of responsibility. You are literally responsible for maintaining the health and wellness of little humans. But did you also know that some babysitters are responsible for protecting the entire Earth from evil forces?
It's true and when Esme Pearl formed her Babysitter's Club, she didn't know that either. Unfortunately for Esme, she's about to find out the hard way.
I feel weird sort of giving that away but it's nothing you won't read in the synopsis of the book. Part Buffy the Vampire Slayer, part the good ole' Babysitter's Club series, this book brings horror comedy to a whole new level.
I was giggling to myself for over half of this novel. Apparently, the author and I share a brain and have exactly the same sense of humor.
Esme was such a fun character to read about and although parts of this were predictable, I had a great time reading it. The culminating scene does occur on Halloween as well, so perfect for the Fall Spooky season.
I loved all the pop culture references, the definite homage to Buffy and that fun teen horror atmosphere. I would definitely recommend this to anyone looking for a fast and funny teen scream.
Thank you so much to the publisher, Delacorte Press, for providing me with a copy to read and review. I look forward to seeing what this author comes up with next!!!

Reviewed by Mary @ Struck by Stories (co-blogger)

What would you do if you found an old note in an old house from your long-dead mother? Cassandra Heaven follows its advice, which was to “Find the babysitters.” The babysitters that the note refers to is supposedly a club formed by four girls from Spring River High- but now only two, Esme and Janis, are part of the club. When Cassandra asks to join, the girls accept her, but it soon turns out that the “babysitters” in the note are not Esme and Janis.

Weird things are happening- including David Bowie from the movie Labyrinth opening a window in a little girl’s room, and Voldemort (from Harry Potter, obviously) trying to kidnap a little boy.When Esme finds out that she has a sort of magical power, Cassandra tries to help her- and Cassandra’s super-hot brother Dion does not help with keeping Esme focused at all.

Things get weirder when the school’s football coach turns out to be someone that can help them control their powers. What will happen now?

This book was very good and interesting, and it is written from Esme’s point of view, not Cassandra’s. My favorite part was when a Portal (with a capital P) opens, and the babysitters have to stop monsters from escaping through it into the real world.

There are so many twists and turns and exciting parts. Just be warned: Don’t read this book in the dark!

OVERALL RATING: 4.5 stars!

The Babysitters Coven was my first pick to read during spookathon. I received this book during September, but wanted to save it for that readathon.
In the end, I suffered from major reading slump and this novel ended up being the only book I finished that week.
However, when I look objectively, this book was pretty fun and enjoyable, I just wish I read it when I was in a better place.

This paranormal young adult was pitched as Buffy meets The Babysitters Club. Therefore, I assumed there would be vampires in the book.
Oh, how wrong was I!
Vampires were not part of this story, but the similarity with Buffy is undeniable, and if you decide to give it a try, you will know exactly why.
It had the similar polity with chosen girls to protect the world and their teacher to guide them.
It really reminded me of the season where Buffy was not the only Vampire slayer in the show.

The writing style is really good, with lots of humour. It is really easy to read and I believe that, if I wasn’t in a reading slump, I would finish it in a day or two.
The story is written in first person, from Esme’s POV.

I liked Esme, she was great narrator to follow, and since I enjoyed all the characters, I hope to get even more attached to them in the second installment.

Since I can’t consider this book a master piece, I think good character development and thrive would take this series on another level.

Still, I very much enjoyed The Babysitters Coven and will gladly continue with the series.

High school Michaela would have 5 stared this. Full stop. However 33 year old Michaela had some issues. This reads a little immature ( I recognize that I am not the target audience) and I worry that it will date itself with all of the text speak and sometimes it took me out of the story because I had to pause and think about what it was saying. I still enjoyed this story well enough and it was a nice Halloween read.