thank you for the audio book. Maybe its the way it was presented, but I couldn't get into this at all. I plan to read it once its released in Feb.

So I read The Cask of Amontillado when I was younger and decided Poe was a genius! So when I saw a full length book based on the concept I was thrilled. And I mostly enjoyed it too!! But... Poe really had it right the first time. It was made to be a short story.

This was super interesting even amidst the stupid teens doing extremely stupid things. I even liked the unlikeable characters, but the the ending came and smashed me in the face and, honestly, I didn’t appreciate it. There are going to be lots of people who enjoy this, but I was hoping there would be a couple major changes from the short story to the book. When I realized the changes made weren’t the ones I thought would make the story translate into a full length book, I was disappointed.

While I can’t recommend this book, like I said, there will be plenty of people who will really enjoy it!!

Thanks to NetGalley and Katherine Tegen Books for the opportunity to read this for my honest and unbiased opinion.

Will be posted on Amazon when published and on my blog shortly.

This review is coming from a person that has loved all of Mindy McGinnis's previous titles!

I picked this up without looking at the synopsis. While listening to it, it was not scary. The narrator played her part good most times other times it was bland.

The story felt very basic or very middle grade, I felt like the book was going somewhere at points and got interesting than by the next chapter I was back bored.

The buildup of the book is very slow and the cliffhanger is predictable. Going in, I didn't know this was a duology. Despite my rating, I still will pick up the second book,

Thank you, NetGalley & the publisher for my advanced audio copy,

This author is so hit and miss for me. Unfortunately this one was a miss. While the story was interesting the ending really wasn’t satisfying or very impactful like I was expecting. Could’ve been a 4 or 5 star but it turned out to be just okay.

I have always heard really good things about this author’s writing so of course I was very excited to pick up their newest title. The synopsis sounded pretty dark & thrilling which is something that I usually enjoy. Unfortunately though, this book just wasn’t the right one for me. I didn’t connect with it like I thought I would. In fact, I actually had a hard time sticking with the story. It lost my attention quite a bit.

I wasn’t a huge fan of the characters. Both were unlikeable, which was meant to happen, but I had more issues with Tress than I did with Felicity. Tress has gone through a lot in her life, but that doesn’t excuse her actions. She is violent and petty. Most of her chapters were spent blaming Felicity for everything that has gone wrong in her life. It was too much.

The past & present timelines were hard for me to follow. I would get confused on where exactly we were at during certain points. I do think that had I physically read this book, that wouldn’t have been an issue.

I feel like there were lots of random elements of the story. The roaming panther and the mysterious flu just seemed out of place. I’m sure they connect more to the story somehow, but I’m not sure.

I did really enjoy the mystery aspect! I was super intrigued and wanted to know what exactly happened to Tress’s parents. The author did a good job keeping me guessing!

I do think that other readers will enjoy this book. It wasn’t bad by any means. It just wasn’t the right fit for me!

A little racy at times for a young adult book and parts of it were sad that someone at that age had to experience it. Was an interesting retelling and generally felt it was good. I felt the characters were pretty fleshed out and the story flowed and came together.

This is a cool YA thriller with lots of suspense and twists. I look forward to reading the next book in the duology.
Many thanks to Katherine Tegen Books and NetGalley for the advance copy.

I’m not exactly sure what just happened... this book was creepy, freaky, mystery laden, quirky ... and had a SUPER confusing ending!! I read some other reviews which say this is the first half of a “duology” - which sort-of explains the ending, but I wish I had known that going in. I’m not a fan of cliffhanger endings, nor of vague and uncertain endings. This genre is not usually my cup of tea, but I must say... this page-turner kept me turning pages (well... kept me listening, as it was an audiobook).
I would consider using parts of the book in class because I love showing my students modern interpretations of classic lit. Every class I’ve ever taught has loved Pie and I think they’d be thrilled with this book. I would love to assign it as part of lit circles when I do that unit, but the (unnecessary) talk about drug use and some of the sexual innuendos and conversations will make that impossible. I wish it were truly YA appropriate...
That said, I liked the creative twist of an additional narration by “cat”... even if I didn’t really understand all of it. I’m actually looking forward to the second half so that I can hopefully get some sort of clarity and conclusion.
I know this review is all over the place, but so is the book!

When Tress was in the grade school, her parents drove her and her best friend home and after that both parents were never seen again. She had to go live with her alcoholic weird uncle and the zoo. While In hs, she's trying to find out what really happened to her parents. I don't want to give too much away. It was a pretty interesting read. I feel like you could get away with just reading the 1st book but there will be a 2nd one. Definitely going to read that as well.

Thanks to Netgalley for letting listen to this audiobook.

Mindy McGinnis' books are so dark and twisted and I'm here for every minute of it. This is no exception. I loved the back and forth chapters between Felicity and Tress mixed with current events and the past, we even get the panthers point of view! I can't wait to read and find out what happens in book 2 - can I have it now please?!?

Thanks to Katherine Tegen Books, Mindy McGinnis and NetGalley for an advance audiobook copy in exchange for an honest review. While you don't get the raw emotion that the computerized voice gives it still pulls you in. Can't wait to hear it with the real narrator.

The premise of this is fascinating. I loved Mindy McGinnis’ last book ‘Be not far from me’ and this one seemed very similar. And it was still very dark and creepy. However, with a unfinished audiobook the narrator was hard to listen to and ultimately, I felt I didn’t understand the book. I think I will try again when it comes out and probably pick up the physical book.
Tress was a very disturbed main character. He hatred for Felicity was very extensive. I could see a teenager acting this way since she blamed felicity for her parent’s deaths. Felicity feels bad for everything that has happened between herself and Tress.

Thank you Netgalley for the arc. I just reviewed The Initial Insult by Mindy McGinnis. #TheInitialInsult #NetGalley

Thank you to NetGalley for sending me an ARC of The Initial Insult in exchange for an honest review!

Mindy McGinnis' works are very hit or miss for me. I loved The Female of the Species, I couldn't get through A Madness So Discreet. Therefore I anticipated that I would either love or hate this book.

I didn't love it.

The two main characters, Tress Montor and Felicity Turnado, used to be best friends. After an accident resulted in the disappearance of Tress' parents, an accident Felicity saw but cannot remember, they became frenemies on opposite ends of the socioeconomic scale. In their small town, money is all that matters, so Felicity has friends and a nice home but Tress lives at her grandfather's illegal zoo. The chapters are written from the perspectives of Tress, Felicity, and a panther. The multiple viewpoints were interesting but couldn't redeem the messy writing, confusing plot, and abundant illegal activity among minors. I do not recommend this book at all.

How important is a name? To Tress Montor and Felicity Turnado--it's everything. The former best friends had similar lives until the night that Tress's parents disappeared while driving Felicity home. Tress's life changed drastically and she never stopped wondering what happened.

Told in multiple POV, this story is definitely a thriller. There were so many characters that I wanted to know more about. Hugh seemed to play a bigger role in things and I hope to learn more about him. I had to listen to the last few minutes over again to make sure it really was the end. I can't wait to see what the next book brings.
This is my first book from Mindy McGinnis, but certainly won't be my last.

I had not read anything by McGinnis in the past but have heard so many good things that I looked forward to reading/listening to this title. In the end, I just wasn’t impressed.

The narration, a synthetic voice, was not very enjoyable, but I don’t think that it was the main factor in why I didn’t enjoy the book. It was harder to differentiate between characters and left out inflections that may have helped understand the characters better. Other than that, the voice was understandable and well done.

I couldn’t get excited about any of these characters. This novel is very dark, which I usually like, and the characters just didn’t seem to fit into the mold. Although we were dissecting their histories, I never felt like I really got know Tress or Felicity. All other characters were the perfect example of cookie cutter stereotypes that were one dimensional and, usually, repetitive.

The storyline was the only thing that kept me going. Despite everything else, I really wanted to know what happened. The setting was perfect and the idea of Tress’ revenge were a great hook and made me keep hoping that I would get to something good. And after slogging through all that, the utter disappointment.

I am sure that this will be very appealing to a lot of other readers and that McGinnis’ name alone will draw in readers, but it was just not for me. I will try again some day and hope that a different story will work out better for me.

Thank you to NetGalley and Harpers Children's for allowing me to review this book for my honest opinion.

While this was a really great story, It was hard to get through the audio version of this. I was really drawn into the story of this one, and if I was able to speed up the speaker without it sounding weird I would have. But I finished it in one night! I typically don't read this type of genre but I was really intrigued and pleasantly surprised by this book!

I received this audiobook from Netgalley in exchange for my honest opinion and review. I first want to talk about the narrator. In my opinion she was extremely monotone and it made the book hard to follow. I will never listen to another book with this narrator. As far as the book itself, it was also hard to follow. The constant switching between past and present was confusing. It may be easier to follow reading an actual book, but the audiobook didn’t mention any past/present switching. I don’t even understand what happened in the end.

This is my first Mindy McGinnis book, and I have a cursory knowledge of Poe's stories, so I came to this book pretty fresh (see: low expectations, just ready to enjoy the ride).

Considering I devoured this book in one night, I'd say I liked it. I actually paused at one point, wondering how deep I was into this book, and realized I was over 70 percent of the way through! It was fast-paced but still managed to spend an appropriate amount of time on character development (motivation and justifications).

The shifting narrators were equally thrilling to follow, and helped to keep the plot constantly pushing forward.

I'll admit, a lot of the Poe-ness probably went over my head, but I appreciated the few touchstones that I did recognize.

Really enjoyed this one. I'll likely peruse this author's back catalogue.

This book hooked me from the very start! The writing is a different style from what I'm used to, but it was so intriguing to me! I flew through this listen because I just needed to find out what happened.

**4.5-stars rounded up**

Tress Montor and Felicity Turnado were best friends when they were younger. Not anymore. Now in high school, Tress has an ax to grind with Felicity. She wants some answers to a long-standing mystery and she believes Felicity has them.

When the girls where in the fourth grade, Tress's parents disappeared late one night while driving Felicity home from their house. Felicity was found bruised and bleeding at the side of the road, but the Montors were never seen again.

After that, Tress loses her life as she knew it. With no parents, and no one else to claim her, she is forced to live with her drunken grandfather at what the locals call the 'white trash zoo'. There are animals that Tress helps to feed and care for. A zebra, an ostrich, an alligator, a panther, among other things. Life is hard. Tress is not cared for as a child should be and becomes a social pariah at school. Literally abandoned by the entire town, she has no one to advocate for her.

Felicity feels guilty for all that has happened to Tress. Part of her wants to comfort and care for her ex-best friend, but she doesn't dare. What would people think? Felicity keeps her true thoughts tucked deep inside her, like she's been taught, all whilst exuding that Queen Bee attitude that everyone expects. She's rich, beautiful, popular and has a secret way to suppress her negative thoughts.

Tress has had enough of it all, so she develops a plan to get the answers she seeks. It involves a crowded costume party at a deserted house, a coal chute, a lot of bricks and mortar. Felicity is going to talk, one way or another. Tress has nothing to lose.

Alternating between Tress and Felicity's perspectives, this novel follows the girl's friendship from the start, to the present, and through various stages in between. Both girls keep a lot of things to themselves. There is anger, guilt and plenty of low self esteem to go around.

This story is extremely heavy. There is a ton of baggage between these two girls. Even when they aren't the ones doing things to one another, they are there to bear witness. They've been intertwined in one another's lives for a long time. As a reader, you can feel the weight of that history. It's almost tangible. I found this entire storyline unique and completely engaging. Once I started reading, I could not put this down.

It's just so well written. I know that this story will not be for everyone, but I think the people who are going to enjoy it, are REALLY going to enjoy it. McGinnis was not afraid to go dark and stay there. There is not one moment of lightness in this novel and I was here for it. I cannot believe how this one ended up. The final few scenes, my word.

Thank you so much to the publisher, Katherine Tegen Books, for providing me with a copy of this to read and review. I really, really enjoyed this and cannot wait to see how this duology turns out!!!

I have tried an synthetic voice audiobook on NetGalley a week ago, and I cannot do audiobooks without it being read by an actual person. I believe it ruins the experience of the book and the beauty that is an audiobook. Audiobooks bring the characters to life for me, and a synthetic voice unfortunately does not do that.

I would be happy to review a digital eARC of this book or when the narrator is picked and recorded.