The Initial Insult

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 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.* A Junior Library Guild Selection * Texas Tayshas Reading List of the Year * A YALSA Best Fiction for Young Adults & Amazing Audiobooks for Young Adults Book of the Year *
- Edgar Allan Poe Inspired: A modern, gritty reimagining of "The Cask of Amontillado," where vengeance is served one brick at a time in the basement of an abandoned house.- Former Best Friends: Tress is a social outcast determined to get answers. Felicity is the popular girl who was there that night but can’t—or won’t—remember the truth.- Unreliable Narrator: One point of view comes from a girl who has buried a traumatic secret so deeply that even she can no longer access it, making her memories as dangerous as her silence.- Alternating Points of View: This dark mystery unfolds through the eyes of both the hunter and the hunted, blurring the lines between victim and villain until the final, shocking page.