In the first book of a suspenseful YA duology, award-winning author Mindy McGinnis draws inspiration from Edgar Allan Poe and masterfully delivers a dark, propulsive mystery in alternating points of view that unravels a friendship . . . forevermore. Perfect for fans of One of Us Is Lying and Truly Devious! Tress Montor’s family used to mean something—until she didn’t have a family anymore. When … something—until she didn’t have a family anymore. When her parents disappeared seven years ago while driving her best friend home, Tress lost everything. The entire town shuns her now that she lives with her drunken, one-eyed grandfather at what locals refer to as the “White Trash Zoo.”
Felicity Turnado has it all: looks, money, and a secret. One misstep could send her tumbling from the top of the social ladder, and she’s worked hard to make everyone forget that she was with the Montors the night they disappeared. Felicity has buried what she knows so deeply that she can’t even remember what it is . . . only that she can’t look at Tress without feeling shame and guilt.
But Tress has a plan. A Halloween costume party at an abandoned house provides the ideal situation for Tress to pry the truth from Felicity—brick by brick—as she slowly seals her former best friend into a coal chute. Tress will have her answers—or settle for revenge.
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The Initial Insult delves into the past of two friends in a dark and gritty way, going back to the moment that changed everything for both of them.
Excellent Storytelling
The Initial Insult is an incredible novel. A big part of what makes this novel so good is how the author interprets Edgar Allan Poe’s work and can weave it into her own story seamlessly.
Following the lives of Tress Montor and Felicity Turnado, the story goes back and forth between them, exploring the facets of their lives, how they see the world, and how the world looks at them. They live in a small town where appearance is everything, making this town full of entitled, petty, and unhappy people.
It is insightful to see how focusing on how you look and what people think of you instead of being true to yourself and tear you apart. Felicity is so wrapped up in her mothers’ vanity and nonsense that she loses her voice and sense of self. This ends up harming Tress’s life, which is already in shambles.
When her parents vanished, taking Felicity home one night, Tress stopped caring about how people viewed her. All they saw was an orphan sent to live with her grandfather at his zoo. Tress has not been fortunate, all of it going towards Felicity, so there is a build-up of tension between the two.
This build-up reveals itself early on, but the impact it has on the reader happens when Tress knocks her out and ties her up. She plans to wall her inside this condemned building unless Felicity tells her the truth about her parents’ disappearance. It is an incredible scene felt throughout the story as their memories push the story forward. Both girls are forced to face the past, see the lies, the secrets, and the truths behind them. Those memories build up the suspense and the characterization, highlighting how Felicity has become a “bad” person by staying silent while others tear down Tress.
Characterization
The story propels itself forward by the way they remember the past. This way of storytelling gives readers depth to the characters and their dynamics with one another. It allows the reader to become invested in the underlining mystery of the disappearance of the Montor’s.
Tress and Felicity are not black or white characters; they are multidimensional, full of faults, dreams, guilt, and heartache. Those feelings reverberate off the pages and cling to the reader. Writing such as that should never go unnoticed.
However, there is also a third personality that the readers get to follow along this journey: the Cat.
The Cat is such a chilling perspective because they are this third lens of storytelling, giving an artistic and thoughtful third eye to the story. Their story is also told in verse, making for a compelling and unique way to bring to life his character.
All three of these characters give the story dimension and highlight how real they are. Moreover, the Cat gives the story this edge of fantasy without being fantasy.
Final Thoughts
The Initial Insult is a compelling and addicting story. It keeps the reader glued to the page, and the element of Poe is perfect for Poe fans, littering the story, shining love of his work creatively and uniquely.
Did not like the ending, it felt cut short and disappointing.
I love Mindy McGinnis. Her writing style has always kept me intrigued and her plot has always kept me reading until the very last page. This book is no different, and the difficult relationship she has woven between two girls is beautiful in its tragedy.
This novel alternates between the past and the present, but I was never confused as to what was happening. I’m not one for revenge novels, but I love that McGinnis used one of Edgar Allan Poe’s short stories as inspiration. The pain and emotion that these two girls feel throughout the novel really grips at my heart. And her use of the cat for some of the alternating chapters? Brilliant. I loved them all.
Overall, I really enjoyed this twisted, crazy novel and I can’t wait for the second book! Mindy McGinnis never ceases to amaze me with her novels and I love every single one. My favorite character has to be the panther. Yep. I said it.
Favorite quote: “‘You know what it means when nobody’s talking in Amontillado?’ ‘It means somebody important wants it kept quiet.’”
What draws you to a new book? For me, it’s when I stumble across a book like this, with sharp, crisp prose, where I’m immediately lost in the story. I don’t like everything explained to me. I prefer a bit of mystery. I’d recommend this to fans of Edgar Allan Poe, since The Cask Of Amontillado served as the author’s inspiration.
Tress’ parents disappeared seven years prior and the only person who knows what happened to them is her ex-best friend, Felicity. Tress will either get her answers or her revenge. I found it interesting to see short chapters from a panther. This is the first book i have read/listened to from Mindy McGinnis. This isn’t really fantasy and if it is please don’t tell me. I liked this book and can’t wait til book 2. Fans of YA books will love this book.
I’m honestly not sure if I liked this or I didn’t. The characters were interesting and I liked how they were written but some of the premise and writing was a bit confusing. I did like the suspense and how this author managed to write the darker side of this friendship really well. However, parts of this I just didn’t enjoy or didn’t really know what was happening. (Some of that could be blamed on the synthetic voice audiobook arc I got.) Overall, the book was so-so and maybe I’ll reread it to try again. I would still recommend though for anyone who can actually take the time to read it.
Thank you NetGalley and the publisher for this review copy of The Initial Insult by Mindy McGinnis.
The Initial Insult is a YA missing person mystery about two estranged friends in a small town where everyone knows everyone and your last name is very important.
Tress is an impoverished teenage forced to move into her grandfather’s trailer (who is running a sketchy roadside zoo) after her parents disappeared a decade ago when driving her friend Felicity home from a sleepover. Felicity has never been able to recall the events of that night which has never stopped gnawing at Tress and she vows to get the truth out of Felicity by any means necessary at a party on Halloween night.
As more and more secrets are revealed and the past comes into focus the reader is pulled into the story and toward the stunning conclusion.
As a reader I appreciated how Mindy McGinnis manages to capture the darker inner life of teens but not for cheap thrills or to titillate her audience. With the exception of likable side characters (like Hugh) there are no heroes here as Tress risks her soul to get answers to what happened to her parents.
This is a tragic story where the adults and their decisions allow teenagers to head down dark paths that can only end in heartbreak.
4 stars
Thanks to NetGalley and Harper Collins Children for an audio ARC. MC Tress Montor and Felicity Turnado were once best friends until one terrible tragedy changed their lives. The night in question, Tress’ parents disappeared while driving Felicity home. Tress’s social status changed as she went to live with her drunken grandfather who happens to operate a wild animal attraction. I kept seeing Tiger King in my head! Felicity has tried to rekindle their friendship to no avail. At a Halloween party, Tress chains Felicity up in the basement of an abandoned house while there’s a panther loose on the streets. Tress wants to know happen to her parents and if she fails, Tress is ready to brick her in. My rating is based on – it being a slow buildup with two POVs, the synthetic voice narrator made following the POVs difficult, and we’re still wondering what happened that night.