“For fans of The Handmaid’s Tale…a debut novel with a dark setting and an unforgettable heroine…is a riveting depiction of hard-won female empowerment” (The Washington Post). The Sin Eater walks among us, unseen, unheard Sins of our flesh become sins of Hers Following Her to the grave, unseen, unheard The Sin Eater Walks Among Us. For the crime of stealing bread, fourteen-year-old May … Walks Among Us.
For the crime of stealing bread, fourteen-year-old May receives a life sentence: she must become a Sin Eater–a shunned woman, brutally marked, whose fate is to hear the final confessions of the dying, eat ritual foods symbolizing their sins as a funeral rite, and thereby shoulder their transgressions to grant their souls access to heaven.
Orphaned and friendless, apprenticed to an older Sin Eater who cannot speak to her, May must make her way in a dangerous and cruel world she barely understands. When a deer heart appears on the coffin of a royal governess who did not confess to the dreadful sin it represents, the older Sin Eater refuses to eat it. She is taken to prison, tortured, and killed. To avenge her death, May must find out who placed the deer heart on the coffin and why.
“Very much reminiscent of The Handmaid’s Tale…it transcends its historical roots to give us a modern heroine” (Kirkus Reviews). “A novel as strange as it is captivating” (BuzzFeed), The Sin Eater “is a treat for fans of feminist speculative fiction” (Publishers Weekly) and “exactly what historical fiction lovers have unknowingly craved” (New York Journal of Books).
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Sin Eater is a dark and thrilling page turner that turns a dystopian eye on the past in an unnervingly contemporary way. All hail Megan Campisi and her smashing novel.
I guess this was a YA? Couldn’t tell. It was fascinating. I read it in 2 nights. Sort of an alternate history-but-not tale set in Elizabethan England where the heroine was a young girl who was condemned by a terrible justice system to be a “sin eater”. Her struggles of BEING the sin eater and what that meant for her as a person were very evocative and believable.
A new author to me and she writes a great book. The job of the sin eater is a thankless job and it is such a grizzly thing to have to do. Megan brought it to us in this book in a very interesting and mysterious way! Great job Megan! Thank you!
*****5 AMAZING STARS
This was not what I expected at all when I picked up this book to read. To be honest, I wasn’t sure what to expect. This book was referred to me by a reliable source, so I figured, why not. I’m so glad I did. While it did have a fairly slow beginning, it really picked up about a quarter of the way through, and I found myself thankful for the detail provided in the beginning as it became incredibly helpful and useful as the book continued.
With that said, the Sin Eater is a well-crafted, horrifying, twisted novel. It’s unlike anything I’ve read before. It’s spooky and dark, and penned in such a way, you could almost believe it was a true story. I found myself surprised and shocked, nothing ever as it seemed. The author kept me guessing the whole time, which is an unusual experience for me. The plot is impeccable and the character development is breath-taking. I loved it! It sits high in my 5-Star reads!
Sin Eater by Megan Campisi is an imaginative and well written debut novel set in al alternative universe during 16th century England. A very creative story line about a woman whose job is sentenced to work as a ‘Sin Eater, people who cannot be touched or spoken to and whose job is to hear the final confessions of the dying while eating foods symbolizing their sins so their souls can be admitted to heaven. I thought that the writing was superb and enthralling and as a debut novel this was truly an amazing read I highly recommend. It will make you think about the women’s role at the time and the symbolism of the suffering of the sin eater, I highly recommend this book for its complex themes and characterization.
This is HANDS DOWN the best book I have ever read in my entire life. Thecharacters were so rich and the storyline just made you want to devour it in one setting which I did I highly recommend this book
Orphan May stole a loaf of bread and when arrested expected to die a horrible death. The Recorder stared hard at her and sentenced her to be branded as a Sin Eater. The teenager would be shunned for the rest of her life but would never again starve. She was to hear the sins of the dying and eat the proscribed foods to take their sins upon herself. The dead would fly to heaven; a locked collar kept May chained to hell.
Being a sin eater is a constricted life, alienated from society, yet May has unlimited access to the darkest secrets of the human heart for the the dying are eager to shrug off their worst sins before judgement.
The Queen’s ladies in waiting are dying. May hears their confession but is given foods for sins never confessed. Something is afoot in the palace, and illiterate, powerless May is the only person who can cipher out the truth.
Sin Eater by Megan Campisi is set in a familiar Elizabethan-inspired alternative world with the virgin Queen Bethany jealously guarding her favorite while lords present themselves as suitors.
The stench and inhumanity of the times are vividly described, as are the consequences of the quest for beauty and power.
May is a remarkable and sympathetic heroine whose story arc takes her from powerlessness to embracing her destiny. The story winds up to a tense climax.
I was given access to a free ebook by the publisher through NetGalley. My review is fair and unbiased.
Well if there is one thing I can say with complete certainty it’s that Sin Eater by Megan Campisi is one of the most unique books I have ever read. I didn’t even know such a thing as a sin eater existed, and man what an existence they had.
I would definitely call Sin Eater a slow burn and it was gross at times as well thanks to the foods to be eaten for sins. I couldn’t eat anything while reading it and could only drink about two different things without feeling slightly nauseated. I’m clearly either easily grossed out or it was just that disturbing. You may not be able to read this if you are squeamish at all. Even though it was on the slower side, I found Sin Eater so addictive. I was so fascinated by the story that I had a hard time putting it down.
I loved May and I found myself wanting to kill people for her! She was treated so abominably even before she was forced to be a sin eater and I felt bad and terrified for her the entire time I was reading. That being said, I loved how strong she was and if you don’t like wimpy lead characters you are in for a treat because May was amazing. I know that technically religion is a heavy theme in the book, but it didn’t overpower me the way it does with some novels. Even if you aren’t terribly fond of books that have this theme, I think you could still enjoy Sin Eater as much as I did.
The setting was so vivid and Campisi really brought this time period to life through her writing. I felt like I was right there and wished I wasn’t! I ended up being really impressed with the mystery aspect as well even if it did take some time to get to, and I was gasping at the end. There was even one point that I laughed out loud! If you are searching for something different then Sin Eater is the book for you. I will be over here looking forward to Campisi’s next book and I hope it comes soon!
Thank you to the publisher for providing me with an advance review copy of this book, all opinions and thoughts are my own.
“The Sin Eater walks among us, unseen, unheard
Sins of our flesh become sins of Hers
Following Her to the grave, unseen, unheard
The Sin Eater Walks Among Us.”
‘Sin Eater’ by by Megan Campisi is billed as ‘The Handmaid’s Tale’ meets ‘Alice in Wonderland,’ a description which frankly couldn’t be farther from the truth. The story is indeed interesting, awful in many ways.. but if that’s what you’re looking for, it’s not what you’re going to get.
The novel is about a young orphaned girl who gets into a bit of trouble just trying to survive on her own in 16th-century England and in a moment of rebelliousness or perhaps.. vanity, she draws the eye of someone in a position to change her life entirely. Not for the better, but for the worse.
“His shadow stayed in the house for weeks. It wasn’t dark like a shadow, just an empty place in the shape of my da. I would see it out of the side of my eye and turn knowing he should be there. But when I looked there wasn’t anything.”
Sentenced to a lifetime as a Sin Eater, a woman collared and marked, May must hear final confessions of those who are dying and then eat ritual foods based on the sins they confess. By doing so, it’s believed that she takes their sins unto her own soul, allowing them to pass freely into heaven.
A child truly alone in the world, she’s quick to form bonds to anyone who shows her kindness. When the older Sin Eater she learns from refuses to eat food representing a sin that isn’t confessed, she’s arrested and tortured to death.. but already feeling an affinity for the woman, the young girl becomes determined to find the truth of the deception and avenge her.
That’s really what the bulk of the book is about.. May’s adjustment to her horrible new situation and her journey to solve the mystery that resulted in her only companion’s death.
“There’s a white mist rising from my lips. Mayhap it’s my soul fleeing my body. My soul melting away into the air. Why doesn’t it take me with it? I try to go after my soul, but my legs don’t answer when I call on them to move.”
If you’re like me, maybe you’d be shocked to know that the last sin-eater actually only passed a little over a hundred years ago. I was horrified to find such a barbaric custom existed that late into modern history. According to Wikipedia, “a local legend in Shropshire, England, concerns the grave of Richard Munslow, who died in 1906, said to be the last sin-eater of the area.” A 1911 Encyclopædia Britannica article states that “a (sin eating) was witnessed as recently as 1893 at Market Drayton, Shropshire.
Apparently, it was common practice at one time to hire the poor to do the eating, which is about as financially exploitative a practice as there can be.
For the purpose of this novel, all the sin-eaters are women and that is likely where ‘The Handmaid’s Tale’ reference comes from, but as dystopian an idea that is.. that’s really where the similarities end. Mostly it’s a story about how easily one can find themselves knocked down.. metaphorically speaking.. and how quick others might be to participate in one’s suffering.
There’s certainly a recurring theme in human nature, not just in stories, to relish having someone to kick when they’re already down. Once someone is sort of.. ‘fallen from grace’.. they’re deemed safe to abuse, and while not everyone responds to that vulnerability.. some do. Sometimes even people you wouldn’t expect it from, friends, family, and more. And sometimes, unexpectedly, there’s also someone who just won’t bring themselves to treat others badly.. simply because they can.
“This is why we have cursing. I never understood what made folk do it. But now I know. All our dire feelings stain the heart, and the stains bloom into curses.”
I saw absolutely no ‘Alice in Wonderland’ roots anywhere and believe me, I love that fairy tale and often see them just in the dreamy quality of a story or an insinuation of a character’s nature. It’s just not there in this book. But make no mistake, the book is quite good.
Most of the mystery is easy enough to decipher, in fact.. the clues are written out so plainly, I think perhaps the author didn’t really intend for us to linger on that too much. Many of the reveals were more like assurances, just letting the reader know they paid attention and did well. They saw the trail and recognized the crumbs.
“You’re nothing if you’re dead. I told myself I needed to be alive to help the Sin Eater, but, really, it was my life, dressed up as hers, that I was saving.”
What this book really did, in addition to shocking me a bit and making me feel horrible for May, was make me think. It made me go back and research the subject matter, wondering with dread if there were people forced into the role by more than circumstance. The situation the girl finds herself in is certainly a very real possibility, even if I didn’t happen across a similar origin somewhere.
Probably the most impactful reveal, actually had nothing to do with the mystery itself.. and everything to do with how May found her life changed. That absolutely stunned me. But there were some sweet moments too, however fleeting. Moments of kindness, of a more gentle humanity shining through here and there. Like a fragile kind of hope.
If you don’t mind seriously dark stories, I do highly recommend reading ‘Sin Eater.’ I’m glad I did.
(I received this title as an ARC. All opinions are mine and freely given.)
This was a rather depressing but surprisingly engaging and extraordinarily well-written story. Yes, I know that’s a LOT of descriptors, but the book warrants them. Campisi has crafted an exceptionally detailed world that riffs off of Elizabethan England but with just enough off-kilter-ness to keep you unbalanced – a position that suits the tale to a tee.
The book is weighty and hardly a light-hearted romp – it’s a heavy story, as solid as the eponymous original Sin Eater herself. I occasionally had to set it down and come back to it, despite the marvelous writing – or perhaps because of it… The descriptions were so evocative and spot-on that I fell utterly and completely (more descriptors) into this one, and it’s not a cheerful tale. What it is, rather, is a gorgeous, lush mystery full of compelling characters and marvelous scene-setting.
It wasn’t an easy read but it was a delightful one, full of surprises and references that made it a rich and engaging read from start to finish. Megan Campisi is definitely on my watch list now!
Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for my obligation-free review copy.
With a disturbing cover that is eerily compelling, Sin Eater by Megan Campisi cements that sense of unease with a story that is a chimera of mystery, historical fantasy, and socio-political commentary. Set in a fictional Britain that winkingly resembles that of the 16th century, the book borrows recognizable elements from that time period and uses them as a springboard for Campisi’s own imaginative interpretation. In her opening notes, the author explains that Sin Eaters did exist, but their genesis and the myths surrounding them are mostly undocumented. Apparently, these outcasts symbolically removed a dying person’s sins by eating bread laid out at their sickbed or funeral. This novel is Campisi’s attempt at building a deeper first-person narrative based on the meager details available. Orphaned and rejected by relatives who steal her home from under her, May is jailed for stealing bread. Sentenced to serve as an apprentice to a Sin Eater, she has no idea why her relatively small transgression warrants such extreme punishment. May receives a brand of an “S” on her tongue and a heavy yoke-like collar that will perpetually advertise her lowly station for the rest of her life. No longer allowed to speak, she is condemned to be untouchable and fated to serve “Eve” (the book’s version of Satan) after her death if she neglects any part of her duties. These responsibilities include hearing last confessions, ordering specific foods to be prepared based on the sins committed, and consuming them upon the person’s death. She thereby absolves the deceased of wrongdoing and transfers the sins onto her own soul. Every town needs a Sin Eater, one who is tolerated as an unwelcome but necessary part of every citizen’s life. May learns the rituals from the town’s existing Sin Eater, a slovenly older woman whom she dubs Ruth since they cannot speak to each other. May heartbreakingly tries to wring any possible affection from her teacher and forms an attachment despite her rough treatment. The premise of this novel is fascinating, but the storyline become a bit muddled when the two Sin Eaters are called to the Queen’s court. While performing their ritual, they are exposed to activities that some powerful people want to conceal, thereby endangering their lives. The book then morphs into a murder mystery involving court intrigue, religious intolerance and disputes about succession to the throne. The events described reference the turmoil seen during the reigns of Bloody Mary and Elizabeth I. Those who are unfamiliar with this historical period may miss many of the nuanced comparisons, and May’s use of nicknames for the characters she encounters can be difficult to decipher. The best parts of Sin Eater are outside of the central mystery—the plotlines depicting May’s discovery of kindness and kinship with fellow pariahs and her gradual realization of her own power within the social hierarchy. Ironically, the nature of her position and the fear it inspires serves as a source of freedom and provides unfettered access into all echelons of society. Original and well-written, Megan Campisi has taken a disturbing footnote from history and embellished it into a commentary on corruption and the price of freedom. Sin Eater is rewarding for those who persevere, enduring the twisting and somewhat divergent paths that the book wanders down along the way.
Thanks to the author, Atria Books and NetGalley for an advance copy of this book in exchange for an unbiased review.
Sin Eater by Megan Campisi takes readers to 16th century England, where life is difficult and intrigue surrounds the royal court.
The story is told from the POV of May Owen, an orphaned 14 year old girl, who is sentenced to be a sin-eater for the crime of stealing a loaf of bread. Sin eaters are outcasts, identified by a large collar locked around their neck and a branding on their tongue. They are forbidden to speak and no one speaks to, touches, or acknowledges them until death is near. Then the sin eater is called to listen to the dying person’s recitation of their sins, and the sin eater takes that person’s sins on as their own. Following death, the sin eater eats a different type of food representative of each sin confessed.
May is a spunky character who is devastated when she learns of her harsh sentence. She initially stays with the town’s current sin eater and learns from her. When the older sin eater refuses to eat a deer heart from the coffin of a royal governess because it represents a sin not confessed to, she is tortured and put to death. May is now on her own in a world she doesn’t understand. Soon she is put in the same position as her mentor, another deer heart appears on the coffin of a royal court member who did not confess to the sin it represents.
She now knows of two murders within the Queen’s court. Those responsible for the murders and attempting to place the blame for them on others see May as a threat and want her dead. Can she identify the culprits and bring their sins to the attention of others before they succeed in their task?
I’ve heard of the gruesome custom of sin eaters before so that was not new to me. In my opinion, the book started out strong, faded a bit in the middle, and made a comeback towards the end. All in all a so-so read for me.
My thanks to NetGalley and Atria Books for allowing me to read an ARC of the book in exchange for an unbiased review. All opinions expressed here are my own.
Dark and deeply affecting.
Bereft from the loss of her father, fourteen-year-old May is arrested for stealing bread, but instead of being hanged or tortured like her counterparts, she is sentenced to the torment of being a sin eater. In the liminal space between the living and the dead, she is called upon to hear people list their sins from their deathbed and consume those sins from the lid of their coffin, so the person can enter heaven unburdened. She is shunned and invisible to her community. When her fellow sin eater refuses to eat a deer’s heart, the representation of murder, they become embroiled in a palace intrigue that costs her life and leaves May determined to avenge her friend’s death.
Sin Eater is a dark exploration of the weight women bear for the sins of the world and the powerful ability of even the smallest of mercies to sustain a soul. The novel is set in an alternate version of 16th century England but, like the novels of Margaret Atwood, it resonates across genres.
Thank you to Atria Books for an advanced copy of the novel in exchange for an honest review.
This is the first time I’ve read any of Megan Campisi’s work and I was thoroughly impressed. I’ve always been fascinated with the tales of history that include religious and secular rites surrounding death. Adding the fact that I’m a HUGE Elizabethan history nut, this book was just up my alley. The description seems fairly accurate to me if you keep in mind “The Handmaid’s Tale” is probably used as a reference point of time and “Alice in Wonderland” to use as a reference for all the curious journeys it took looking for answers, only to come up with more questions until the very end. Megan Campisi’s world-building was enough to put mind in the proper place and her characters were so personable and flawed they kept me engaged with the story and my mind continually involved in trying to find answers to the plot that was wove through endlessly. I would whole-heartedly recommend this book.
3.5 Stars
At 14 years old, May Owens is sentenced to become a Sin Eater after being caught for stealing bread. As she begins her apprenticeship, May finds herself alone and in need of answers after the elder Sin Eater is put to death. Not knowing where to begin, May slowly assumes her role and becomes more brazen in her search for knowledge despite her oath of silence and being illiterate.
With the plot landscape based in the 16th century England and in the midst of a religious conversion, the townsfolk are uneasy but there is also a set caste system. This atmosphere doesn’t help May as she is feared by the majority and carries the mark of a Sin Eater. Combined with fiction and various religious references, the predicament of the Sin Eater is a heavy burden and this contributes to a gloomy mood.
This story is a complex one with May’s tribulations, religious oppression, hatred, greed, murder and fear. Throughout, I empathized with May’s plight and couldn’t reconcile why her punishment completely outweighed her crime. As the plot layers unfold, many questions are answered, but I would have liked more development into the sin eaters. Additionally, there were times when the narrative veered a bit off-course for me causing a disconnect.
What I most enjoyed is May’s evolution and how she found her worth. Though forced into silence, May still had an imperative to be heard and her life would not be ignored thanks to her resolve, making her an admirable protagonist.
This was kind of a depressing story. A life were no one talks to you and you can’t talk either. At least in this role you wouldn’t starve to death. Even tho it was depressing I was still interested enough to see what happened. Thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for the early copy