Week 8 Review: The Initial Insult

From Goodreads:

Welcome to Amontillado, Ohio, where your last name is worth more than money, and secrets can be kept… for a price.

Tress Montor knows that her 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. She might still be a Montor, but 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," – a wild animal attraction featuring a zebra, a chimpanzee, and a panther, among other things.

Felicity Turnado has it all – looks, money, and a secret that she's kept hidden. She knows that 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' look at Tress without having a panic attack.

But she'll have to.

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. With a drunken party above them, and a loose panther on the prowl, Tress will have her answers – or settle for revenge.

In the first book of this 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. 

My Review:
This book had me on the edge of my seat! I had to devour this book, because the whole concept was so outlandish, that I had to see how it was going to play out! And wow, was it an excellent read, with an ending that has me dying for the sequel!

We had Tress and Felicity's perspectives mainly, in this book, as well as some of the panther that's on the loose, and the ape at the zoo. Of seeing the danger and the tension increase, as we learn about their friendship, and as the bricks get higher and higher. It was intense and I loved it!

Tress wants answers, but she definitely goes about things in the wrong way. But given the politics of the town, that she's descended from like 3 of the 5 founding families, there's a lot of issues there. Plus her grandfather is pretty awful. So while she wasn't the best person, those flaws were so great to read about!

The way things ended, wow, that was just pure evil! I need to know if that one reveal is going to happen in time or not! That's my most pressing concern, but I do want to know what happened to Tress's parents that night, and how everything comes together! 

Yeah, absolutely loved reading this book and I can't wait to read the sequel!

Author: Mindy McGinnis 
Series: The Initial Insult #1 
Read: February 25th, 2021
Source: Edelweiss
Reason Why: Love her writing and it sounded great, and it's a Prequel & Sequel Challenge 2021 Book and a WoW Book!
Publisher: Katherine Tegan Books 
Published: February 23rd 2021

5/5 Hearts

5/5 Books

5/5 Stars