I received this book for free from Reviewer Purchase in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.

Tru has been hiding all her life. Her parents taught her to conceal her bastion Talent: indestructible skin, muscles, and bones. In a world where Talents are common and varied, no one trusts a bastion—they’re too powerful. Hiding failed to keep Tru’s parents alive, but moments before their murder, Tru’s mom pointed her to Logan Dire, a famed recluse assassin who adopted and trained orphaned Tru. At seventeen, she’s still hiding. Not even her closest friends know her true name or Talent, or that she’s balancing high school with knife and stealth training (while crushing on her BFF’s older sister). When assassins interrupt a mundane babysitting job booked through BountyApp—where lethal hunters find work and babysitters for their kids—Tru flees with a one-year-old strapped to her chest and spiraling questions: Who killed her parents? Whom can she trust? What does it mean to be a bastion? And is it ever OK to kiss a girl who’s trying to hunt you down? From an award-winning author comes a masterfully plotted thriller that holds character and relationship on a par with action and nail-biting suspense.

Short and Sweet Review

Tru has spent her entire life hiding. In a world where people are born with different Talents, hers is the one everyone fears most, she’s a bastion, meaning her body is basically indestructible. Her parents were murdered because of it, and before her mom died, she sent Tru to live with Logan Dire, a reclusive assassin who raised and trained her to survive. Now seventeen, Tru is juggling normal high school life, intense combat training, a massive crush on her best friend’s older sister… and keeping her true identity secret from everyone. But when a routine babysitting job through an assassin-run app goes horribly wrong, Tru ends up on the run with a baby strapped to her chest, hunted by dangerous enemies and forced to confront the truth about her past and what it really means to be a bastion.

The Assassin’s Guide to Babysitting is fast, chaotic, and honestly a really fun ride. The action starts immediately and barely lets up. Between assassin politics, secret identities, and Tru constantly trying not to die, the pacing is super quick and easy to get swept up in. I loved the concept a hidden world of super-powered assassins using an app for jobs including babysitting, is just wild in the best way. It has strong superhero vibes but still feels grounded in friendships, loyalty, and survival. One of my favorite parts was the found family. Tru’s relationships especially with her friends and Logan really give the story heart underneath all the action. She’s been trained to be tough and careful, but she’s still a teenager figuring things out, and that balance worked well for me. I also loved the queer representation and the tension of having feelings for someone who might literally be hunting you. Stressful… but entertaining. The world building is interesting but pretty simple, which makes it easy to follow even with everything happening so fast. Some parts could have been explored more deeply, but I didn’t mind because the story keeps moving and never drags.

Overall, this was a high-energy YA thriller with superpowers, assassins, secret identities, and emotional stakes mixed in. If you like action-heavy stories with found family, a bit of chaos, and a strong teen heroine trying to survive impossible odds, this is a really entertaining read.