Tress Montor’s family used to mean 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.”

I enjoyed this twisty YA novel.
It was so full of greatness I couldn't put it away.
The writing was so good. Mindy knows how to catch your attention and keep it.
I never felt a dull moment reading this one.

Thanks NetGalley, Publisher and Author for this copy..

I am so glad there is a second book to this story! I was absolutely hooked, and when I hit the ending....I wasn't ready to be done!

Tress Montor and Felicity Turnado used to be friends. Two girls with similar lives, and then Tress losses her parents, and the world shifts. Her parents disappear, and Felicity was there when it happened, but she doesn't remember. The story jumps back and forth between Tress and Felicity's POVs, and sometimes the "cat" that has gotten loose from the zoo run by Tress's grandfather. I liked seeing both sides of the story, and honestly, my heart broke for these two girls. Watching their friendship unravel, then try to be repaired, then unravel again was sad.

The story is told in flashbacks and memories, and jumps between the girls' memories and the real-time situation, which is pretty awful! Tress has locked Felicity in a basement wall and is bricking her in to make her tell Tress what happened to her parents. I really liked how their mental state is reflected in the writing. When they are drunk, or sick, or some other peril, their thoughts are different. They don't flow in the same stream of consciousness as when they are sober, fully awake, and healthy. It was an excellent addition to the story that really made me understand what was happening with the character.

I listened to the early-made audio of this book, which does not reflect what the final version will be, however, that version was perfect for this story, so I expect that the final audio will be wonderful!

I highly recommend this for anyone that enjoys YA fiction with a focus on friendships, relationships, and some revenge.

i was provided an advanced reader's copy of this book for free. I am leaving my review voluntarily.

This was a 2.5 for me, but rounded up for a great premise and awesome nods to Poe.

It is a bit hard to review this book because, as mentioned above, I really enjoyed the premise of this book, and I thought that the nods to Poe were fantastic. I think my favorite was the couple Annabelle and Lee 🙂 Unfortunately, because it was very Poe themed, some of the story fell apart because of it. There is a cat narrator/perspective at times throughout, and I absolutely did not like it. It took me out of the story completely, and it seemed that the only purpose was for a reference to The Black Cat. Without giving away too much, I also thought a number of things happened that seemed to come up out of nowhere or didn’t connect to anything other than a reference to Poe’s works. Those things were all things that could have happened in the story, but they just seemed to kind of happen without the reader being able to go from point A to point B in the thought process with the character. I found myself returning to the previous chapter multiple times because I thought I had missed something.

I really enjoyed The Female of the Species by McGinnis because of some really strong character development, and the feeling that I had a great understanding of the motivations of all of the characters. In this book, I felt like I learned a lot about Felicity, but not a lot about Tress other than the fact that she was unhappy about how her life had turned out (understandably so) and not much more.

Will I read the sequel? I want to know what happened to Tress’ parents, so, probably.

I would like to thank NetGalley, Harper Audio, and Mindy McGinnis for a free copy in exchange for an honest review.

I'm such a fan of this author.  I've lost count of how many times I've had to pull my chin off the floor after finishing one of her books.  She's a master at shocking surprises.

At the heart of it, this story is about friendship - the sparkly highs, ugly lows, misunderstandings, backstabbing moments and all.  Your initial beliefs about what transpired between Tress and Felicity to get them to this point will be destroyed and reformed by the end.  Their alternating POVs and the varying timelines are perfect and crucial to the story.  It's mentioned the author drew inspiration for this novel from Poe, and it's creatively interwoven with a certain darkness.

McGinnish does an incredible job at portraying realistic teens.  The topics of drugs, sex, drinking, and downsides of social media are prevalent throughout the story and dealt with authentically.  Characterization is exceptional.    

The girls' fading friendship is gradually revealed layer by layer, but there's also the big question - what happened to Tress's parents?  I listened to NetGalley's audiobook version of the novel, but feel like I might have missed some clues.  If I'd had a book ARC, I definitely would have been going back and double-checking things.  While in a state of shock over the ending, I forgot this was a duology, then was so relieved I'd be able to see what becomes of these characters.  

This book is tragic, dark, compelling, and such a well done thriller.  Some chapters are very short and may have just a sentence - but that one sentence is powerful and conveys so much.  Just another reason why McGinnis is an auto-buy author for me.  

I received a complimentary copy of this book from the publisher through NetGalley.  Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.

What a ride!!!

Tress’s parents disappeared 7 years ago when they drove to take her best friend, Felicity, home in the middle of the night. Tress not only lost her parents that night, but her best friend as well. During their senior year, Tress coerces Felicity into the basement of an abandoned house and over the course of the evening slowly bricks her behind a wall, enclosing her into an old coal chute. Told in split perspectives, the tale of what went wrong that night as well as what went wrong with their lives unfolds.

McGinnis has a way of reeling a reader in and getting them fully invested in her dark and twisty tales. You want to keep reading to see what happens next. She perfectly captures the intimate flaws of her characters and blurs the line between right and wrong. Left on a cliff hanger, this roller coaster of a read leaves the reader hanging at the climax of the arch just before barreling down the hill.

I was awarded an audio arc of this book by NetGalley. It was read by AI and was NOT great. Not sure the thought process of sending this out into the public as bad as it is. If I were to give a separate rating for the audio book, it would be a 1.5. Hopefully and actual human with inflection and differing tone will read the final audio book. If not, DON’T listen to it. Read the book instead.

🦧The Initial Insult 🦧
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Background: Tress and Felicity used to be best friends. But in a town where your money and last name mean more than anything when circumstances change so do friendships. 10 years ago Tress’ parents go missing and Felicity is the only one who potentially knows what happened. Now, it Halloween and Tress has a plan to finally uncover the truth.
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Why I disliked this novel: This was such a let down for me. From the description it gave me PLL and Riversdale vibes which I was excited for. What I got was gore, cliche writing, and a difficult novel to follow. The novel jumps between 3 characters, Felicity, Tress and a Cat. Plus, it also jumps time. It was way to confusing trying to jump between the now and the past. I’m also still not sure what the role of the cats POV was 🤷🏼‍♀️. This was going to be a DNF for me but I wanted to know the secret. It was so anticlimactic I should have stopped while I was ahead.
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For my audiobook lovers: I listened to this via Netgalley. Since the book hasn’t been released it’s read by syndication which wasn’t bad!
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Available February 23, 2021!
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Thank you to @harperaudio and @netgalley for a copy of this ARC in an exchange for an honest review.
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Rating: 1/5⭐️

This is the first I have heard of this author but I’m so glad I have. I just loved this. I was hooked from beginning until the end.

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.

Thank you for the opportunity to listen and review this audiobook.
With it being not actually narrated by someone at times it made.it hard to keep up with who was who.
Other than that, this book was pretty amazing. I'm not one for huge murder mystery stories but I think this one knocked it out of the park for me.
Felicity and Tress are two girls who had been friends forever but one night Tress ends up with no mom or dad and the last person to see them was Felicity after they took her home. It takes 10 years for them to ever talk again.
Tress is living with her uncle I think it is and they have wild animals they take care of.
Tress and Hugh are two characters that I enjoyed hearing about and wish there was more to them.
If you want to read a book that has a whole lot of plot twists and seeing a friendship break and unfold all over again then I implore you to check this book out.
It would be a very could October read for people who love horror mystery books.

This is an exceptionally well-written YA book that I wholeheartedly recommend. I was a big reader of YA thrillers as a kid (Christopher Pike was my favorite!) and one of the things that was most important to me was that the adult writer not "talk down" to me for being a kid. I wanted my YA books to sound like they were actually narrated by other young adults. McGinnis is *fantastic* at this. She does not underestimate her young readers' intelligence or capability of understanding mature issues. I would have totally devoured this as a kid when I was fully immersed in some of the issues the kids are going through here, and I also really enjoyed it as an adult. Also, it's really great to listen to a book where kids act and talk like kids actually do - sometimes swearing, sometimes talking about sex, sometimes doing other stuff kids do that adults would prefer they not do, and sometimes completely dark, as adults can be. The use of social media was also very authentic and did not have the feeling of "stodgy adult trying to explain how kids use The Face Book."

I don't want to say too much about the plot because I think it's best to let it unfold, but I will say.....

*Stefan voice* YA's hottest new book "The Initial Insult" has everything: a "white trash zoo," secret drug deals, a compelling lead, a potentially shady best friend, missing parents, prose that is almost poetry, a mysterious, moneyed town where everyone has secrets, and a spooky poetic cat narrator. (Wait, what? Yes, seriously Not the whole book, don't worry.) As you may gather from the spooky cat, the book is influenced by Edgar Allen Poe, so if you are a Poe fan, you will have some guesses at different directions it could go, but will still be surprised. This is a totally unique and interesting book.

I was not sure how my experience with a synthetic voice audiobook would be, and it was completely fine. I think I was imagining that it would be a TV-robot type voice, but instead the voice sounds more natural. Of course, it does not carry the acting and vocal performance an audiobook reader will give to it, which primarily impacted the end of the book in my opinion - but it was an interesting new way to listen to the book. You have to sort of picture different emotions in your head with the words so it takes a bit more work and may not be for everyone. I predict the actual audiobook will be way more sinister.

I am definitely going to read the second book. The ending was so great and creepy that I can't imagine what might happen next, and will love to see where the series will go from here.

4.5 stars. Thanks to Harper Collins, Mindy McGinnis and NetGalley for this totally original and fun YA read.

I really wanted to love this one because I'm a huge fan of Mindy McGinnis. I also was looking forward to a Poe-inspired YA novel that had me on the edge of my seat with chills and frills.

The pros:
-I loved the premise. I found it so interesting that this poor girl's parent's disappeared and the only person that knows what might have happened to them is her former best friend.
-I also loved gruesome storytelling that Mindy was able to portray with these characters.
-Finally, I love the "white-trash zoo" that was featured and the fact that there was a panther let lose and hunting the humans.
-I appreciated the inspiration that came from Poe. The darkness, the tragedy, and the mystery.
-I also enjoyed the three character perspective---Tress and Felicity, as well as the CAT! So cool!

The cons:
-I felt no connection with any of the characters, which was personally hard for me to relate and/or root for any of them--even the tragic main character, Tress. However, I did feel bad for both her and Felicity because both suffered a trauma that night Tress's parents disappeared.
-I listened to the audiobook through Netgalley and the voice they used for the "ALC" was a synthetic voice, so I felt like I couldn't get the full experience of the audiobook. I think I would have liked it better if a robot wasn't reading the book to me. This book had a lot of emotions, which were not evident from the horrendous synthetic narrator reading the ALC. I WANTED THE REAL NARRATOR--how do you review an audiobook without hearing the audiobook narrator?? ugh!
-I wasn't a fan of the pacing. I felt like the story was jumping around and I honestly couldn't wrap my head around time, person, or even place in which the story was being told. I think reading this book in a visual format would be best.
-There were several moments I was just like "What? Come on! Not necessary!" --especially with the dog dying and all the nonchalant comments about kids using hard drugs/addiction.
-Finally, it ended on a somewhat cliffhanger and I still don't know what happened to Tress' parents, which I don't like. We find out secrets they had, but not really how they disappeared. I also might have missed it, which is why I plan to go back and read again. You really have to pay attention to every detail of this book.

Overall, I wanted to love this book so much more than I did and honestly I might re-read it when it officially comes out--maybe check out the real audiobook so that I can change my review to showcase more positives and a review of the narrator who may make the story better! However, at this time, I don't think I'd continue on with the duology.

I'm still a fan of Mindy McGinnis and can't wait to see what else she comes up with. Not every book from an author you love isn't going to "hit the spot" every time.

Thanks to Harper Audio and Netgalley for giving me this ALC in exchange for an honest review.

Rating: 2.5/5 Stars
Initial Insult follows two girls-Tress and Felicity throughout life. They were friends, then they were not.
Initial Insult is marketed as a thriller on Goodreads, however it is NOT a thriller at all. Yes, Tress’ parents disappear, but we don’t really go in why they disappeared and what really happened. There is one time Tress calls the tip hotline and that is it. That’s the only way it goes into it. I didn’t like how Felicity and her mother looked down on seizures and how horrible they are. Yes, they are deliberating, but the mentality they share is a bit disgusting in my opinion. They think it will make them lesser people and that she will never get married or have anything if she shows others that she has seizures. I really didn’t like that and how they just talked about it. The beginning is really juvenile. I found it hard to follow at times because the book jumps time periods and point of views, so jumping in mid chapter was confusing. This is a character driven novel as well. I did like the friendship progression and see the hardships they went through separately.

Thanks to NetGalley, the publisher, and the author for an advanced audio copy. 

This was my first audio book with a synthetic voice instead of narrated by a person. It took a little while to get used to but after that it was fine. I didn't like the fact that I couldn't rewind, fast forward, or exit the book without it starting the whole chapter over. I added bookmarks to try to stop it and it still started the whole chapter over.  

This book was pretty good, I finished it in about 24 hours because I really wanted to find out what happened. I liked that it was told two/three perspectives but I didn't enjoy the panther one as much. (Except in the room) That being said I did not enjoy the ending at all. It went so quickly I literally had to listen to the last 5 chapters again to see if I missed something. I am still in shock by how much we don't know by the end. The whole poemy talk for the last few chapters really threw me off as well and I didn't really like it. Hopefully this is the first in a series and we get to find out what happened with everything/everyone because it left off with NOTHING being answered and I NEED to know what happened. I have so many questions and I am not happy with the ending at all. There were also a lot of things that were not adding up. For example why would both of her parents take the her friend home in the middle of the night, while leaving their small child at home alone? Why was Tress living in such nasty conditions when she clearly had other family or friends she could live with? Why was she so mad at a girl that couldn't remember what happened when she was just a child? Mad enough to torture and kill her?!
It has been 2 days since I finished this book and I am still left wondering what the heck I listened to and wanting to know more.
I am giving this a 3 out if 5, if the ending wasn't so rushed it would have been at least a 4.

At first you might think you’ve heard this one before: A friendship unravels. One ex-BFF becomes the pillar of popularity while the other is viewed as town trash. Drama ensues.

It’s not quite what you think it is.

But maybe you HAVE heard this one before. Or a story like it. A story you may have read a long time ago:

Told through alternating perspectives, The Initial Insult is a sad and disturbing book. Tress’s parents disappear while driving her best friend, Felicity, home and Felicity claims she has no recollection of what happened to them. Tress now lives with her one-eyed alcoholic grandpa and his animal oddities while the beautiful Felicity leads a charmed life. But Tress is determined to get the truth out of Felicity. In an effort to scare her former friend into a confession, Tress begins, brick by brick, to seal Felicity into the wall of a basement underneath the raging noise of a loud Halloween party. Oh, and as luck would have it, there is a panther on the prowl in the neighborhood.

Aside from the most obvious nods to The Cask of Amontillado and The Black Cat, this book has a number of Poe story and poem references creatively woven into the narrative. You don’t need to be a fan of the deceased author to appreciate this modern tale, but if you do love his work, your dark heart might brighten a bit, as mine did!

The reader gets to see both girl’s perspectives vividly. I found myself sympathizing with these characters, but I did feel a greater pull toward one girl over the other, once I understood her point of view. It was interesting to see how differently both characters processed the same situation.

The Initial Insult is the first book in a duology. The story carefully foreshadows a dark possibility but the cliffhanger conclusion was far creepier than I could have ever predicted. McGinnis has masterfully left me hungry for more.

I want to note that I listened to the review audio copy, narrated through a synthetic voice. This was not the finished product. With that being said, I think I may have enjoyed this even more if I had not indulged in that format. The story jumps around to a lot of different time periods, which disrupted the flow, and I was sometimes confused. I suspect that I would have connected it all better if I’d been processing the story visually. It’s impossible to say for sure.

The Initial Insult is a story of friendship, misunderstanding, prejudice, and loss. There is a mystery at its center but there is also a cleverly crafted horror underneath all of the other layers. So far, this is the best Poe inspired tale that I’ve read and while I can’t even imagine what new terror awaits me in part two, I’m looking forward to finding out!

Thank you to the publisher for my review copy through NetGalley. All opinions are my own.

The Initial Insult is due to be published in February 2021.

I am so sorry but I didn't realize this was an audio book. I requested and was approved for the digital print copy which I will be reviewing.

I wasn't sure where this story was going to go and I was surprised and pleased with the resolution. Tress and Felicity have both been through some terrible things and are two sides of the same coin. Tress has a right to feel hurt and betrayed by Felicity, she was the last person to see Tress' parents alive and abandoned Tress when she needed her most. She also ignored her and was involved in bullying Tress.
On the other hand, not everything is as it appears for Felicity. She doesn't have the greatest home life and is hiding a severe medical condition. She didn't really mean to be cruel to Tress, she was caught in a difficult position and let her mom and friends pressure her into acting a certain way.

I wanted to know more about this flu that spread to everyone at the party. Is it more serious than we've seen or not? There were some gross scenes and beware if you have a problem with excessive vomiting, yuck.

The ending was crazy and I wonder what will happen in the second book? I'm sad I have to wait so long to find out!

I received this ARC audiobook from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review

I am SO excited for this book, however the synthesized narrator for the audiobook ARC did not work for me at all. I also requested the book ARC and I'm really hoping I get approved for that because Mindy McGinnis is a favorite of mine lately.

Thank you Netgalley for this audiobook of The Initial Insult by Mindy McGinnis.

Note about the narration: What the heck Netgalley? Give me an audiobook read by a synthesized voice? I gotta sit through that for how many hours? Nah dude, I'll wait until the human person can read it, thanks so much.

What in the Tale Tell Heart did I just read?! This book is ca-razy pants.

When Tress loses her parents, she also loses her status, her comforts, and her loving environment. Now she lives with her one eyed uncle at what has been deemed the "white trash zoo," equipped with Panther and all.

Felicity does have it all, including a huge amount of guilt every time she looks at Tress, who was once her friend. But now she knows too much about Tress's parents, things that no one else knows, and there's no way she can tell Tress. Unless she's forced to...

I saw that this is a part one of a series? I truly hope that is the case because otherwise this is just one big panic attack with a pretty cover. The amazing thing is that even though the premise is total batcrap nuts, it works! And it totally had Edgar Poe vibes and I can't wait to read the next one.

This was fast-paced and gripping and heart-wrenching. The Cask of Amontillado is one of my favorite Poe stories and Mindy McGinnis knocks it out of the park with this retelling.

*I received an audiobook copy via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review*

Mindy McGinnis is an auto buy author for me. She never fails to give me something different and a little out there and that's why she is one of my favorite authors.

The Initial Insult is one of those books that left me wanting more and in this case, that's a good thing. I wanted to hear more about Tress and Felicity's relationship because it was sad, intense and very real. I think a lot of people will relate to the friendship and also the falling out between the two. I wanted to hear more about Hugh, Ribbit and Brynn. Hugh especially, he was genuinely nice and cared for both Tress and Felicity and it wasn't in a sexual way.

There is a lot of emphasis on having the right last name. I think McGinnis does an wonderful job capturing the small town politics and showing just how important it is and if you grew up in a small town you know, last names mean everything.

Mindy McGinnis does an excellent job with her characters, it always leaves me wanting to be apart of the world she has created even if situations are not ideal.

The audiobook had a computerized voice so I can't really give feedback on a narrator. The computerized voice was a little difficult to get used to but ultimately to content of the book was great.

I would recommend this book to everyone!