The Initial Insult

 The Initial Insult 

Author: Mindy McGinnis

Publisher: Harper Collins Children’s

Year: 2021

In this homage to Edgar Allan Poe, Mindy McGinnis once again delivers a dark and gritty of story of revenge. 

In the town of Amontillado, having the right last name means everything. Tress Montor’s last name used to mean something. Now it means white trash. Tress’s parents disappeared when she was little and the only witness to what happened was her best friend Felicity Turnado. Felicity never remembered the circumstances of the Montors disappearance because she had an epileptic seizure when it happened. 

The disappearance of her parents turned Tress’s life upside down. In one night she went from having a family, security, and love to living in a run down trailer with her alcoholic grandfather at his sketchy wild animal zoo. After years of wondering, Tress decides she’s going to make her former BFF Felicity tell her what happened. And Tress does it in the most Poe like way imaginable. As a high school keg party rages at the decrepit Usher house, Tress tries to force Felicity to remember that fateful night using one brick at a time. The only thing Tress didn’t count on interrupting her plan is an escaped black panther from her grandfather’s zoo. 

McGinnis is one of my favs. She specializes in tough, strong but broken girls. You’re rooting for Tress to find the truth and have a better life, but you’re also horrified at what she does to Felicity. She’s also a master at twists you don’t see coming. When I read The Female of the Species I literally threw the book across the room at one point. Because I was just so shocked. (Seriously, that book was amazing & heartbreaking.)

This is an intense, creepy, and dark thriller that shouldn’t be missed. It’s the first in a planned duology. Thank you to NetGalley Mindy McGinnis and Harper Collins Children’s for the ARC. The Initial Insult publishes February 23. You’ll want to read this one! ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

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