The characters of "The Unicorn Rescue Society" and the southwest US setting make this a fun addition to the series. However, while I sympathize with the issues regarding the wall between the US and Mexico, I think its inclusion took away from the kid-appeal of the book. Recommended where other books in the series are popular.

The Chupacabras of the Rio Grande is the fourth book in The Unicorn Rescue Society. Readers follow Uchenna, Elliot and Professor Fauna as they go around the United States investigating sightings of mythical creatures and protecting the animals in their habitats. Along for the ride is a jersey devil who goes by the name of Jersey, a faithful companion to the children and the professor.
This adventure takes them to Laredo, Texas the center of the border wall battle where a chupacabra has been seen in areas around town. While searching for the chupacabra, Uchenna and Elliot meet Lupita and Mateo Cervantes, whose mother, Dr. Cervantes was once part of the Unicorn Rescue Society, but does not believe in the society’s methods of preservation. The Cervantes family teams up with our heroes to help rescue a juvenile chupacabra, who they name Choopi, when he is separated from his family by a border wall.
Each book from this series gets better and better and this was probably my favorite. The authors do a wonderful job of mixing the fantastical with current events without being preachy. This is an excellent book to read-along as there is great potential to discuss what is currently going on at our country’s southern border. I would recommend this book and look forward to the future books in the series.

When reported sightings of Chupacabras, aka mythical goat suckers, reach the ears of the Unicorn Rescue Society, Eliott, Uchenna, Professor Fauna head down to the U.S.-Mexican Border to see if what they heard is true. Once there, they team up with loca kids, Mateo, Lupita, and their mother, Dr. Alejandra Cervantes to save the chupacabras. Things aren’t so simple, however, when they discover the Smoke Brothers are the ones hired to build the wall that is separating a baby Chupacabra from its family. Can they save the baby chupacabras? Will they find a way to stop the Smoke Brothers. The plot is well-developed, engaging, and easy to read. Characters are easy to like, believable, and draw the reader into the story. Spanish elements and history mixed into the plot are accurate and mix well into the story. The political message in the book, although thought-provoking, tends to overshadow the rescue mission part of the plot and may be turn off some readers. People who like fantasy, mythical creatures, friendship stories, and adventure will enjoy reading this book. Although recommended, it isn’t necessary to read the other books in this series before reading this one.

I received this ARC from the publisher through SLJ's Middle Grade Magic virtual conference in exchange for an honest review.

As an adult, I am clearly not the target audience for this book. I thought it was just ok. The author tried to bring a lot into this novel history, folklore, current events, etc. and unfortunately it made it feel a little forced and artificial. That being said, I do think a lot of kids will like it and can think of several students who will enjoy this as part of the series.