VINCENT VENTURA AND THE MYSTERY OF THE WITCH OWL / VINCENT VENTURA Y EL MISTERIO DE LA BRUJA LECHUZA

Young monster hunter Vincent Ventura faces his next greatest foe…the dreaded witch owl!

A strange new girl moves into the house across the street: 666 Duende. Her arrival intrigues Vincent, who immediately notices her father’s eccentric behavior and the three enormous owls that keep a watch on the house. Then the owls transform into three women dressed in black, and it seems that a new monster mystery is afoot. With a little help from his cousins, Vincent gets to know his new neighbors, Zulema Ortiz, who’s obsessed with drawing owls, and Mr. Ortiz, a curandero from Mexico. When Vincent discovers that the Ortiz family’s hometown, Catemaco, is known as the “witchcraft capital of the world,” he begins to suspect that Zulema might be a wicked witch owl. As the brave monster fighter learns more about his mysterious crush and her family’s tragic past, the true villain of this adventure swoops in to stir a little monstrous chaos. Taking place shortly after the events of Vincent Ventura and the Mystery of the Chupacabras (2018), Garza’s cool series sequel offers a little mystery, a little action, and a lot of fun. A breezy read, Vincent’s latest adventure packs folkloric elements in a fast-paced tale that’s sure to entice reluctant readers. Similar to its predecessor, this bilingual novel contains both English and Baeza Ventura’s Spanish versions, with the latter being superior in readability.

A real hoot.