Vincent Ventura and the Diabolical Duendes / Vincent Ventura y los duendes diabólicos

Another family has moved into the house at 666 Duende Street across from Vincent Ventura’s, and once again there’s something mysterious going on. There’s a boy who constantly argues with himself. “You can’t tell me what to do,” Vincent hears him say, but there’s no one around. Who could he be talking to? When Vincent sees a green creature with glowing red eyes and needle-sharp teeth terrorize the boy into vandalizing a neighbor’s car, he knows there is another monster mystery to solve! His cousin, Michelle, is one of the smartest kids around, and she quickly finds information in a library book on Latin American monsters. She’s sure the creature Vincent saw is a duende, which is similar to an evil troll or gnome. Is Sayer Cantú really a target of these wicked beasts?! Everyone at school knows he’s a troublemaker to avoid. Could duendes be forcing him to misbehave? Once again Vincent Ventura recruits his cousins and gathers his monster-fighting tools—crosses, holy water, packs of salt, silver metal beads and slingshots—for the upcoming showdown. This bilingual book for intermediate readers, the third installment in Xavier Garza’s exciting Monster Fighter Mystery series, also contains the author’s black and white sketches of the creepy creatures. This spine-tingling short novel introducing Latino creepy creatures to kids ages 8-12 is sure to thrill a new generation of readers! Click here to watch Xavier Garza in the APP Authors Speak series talking about his creative process.