Goodreads helps you keep track of books you want to read.

Start by marking “Sin Eater” as Want to Read:

Other editions

Enlarge cover

Rate this book

Clear rating

1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars

Open Preview

Sin Eater

Megan Campisi (Goodreads Author)

3.68 · Rating details · 3,816 ratings · 1,001 reviews

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, apprentic ...more

Get A Copy

Hardcover, 304 pages

Published April 7th 2020 by Atria Books (first published March 31st 2020)

More Details... Edit Details

Friend Reviews

To see what your friends thought of this book, please sign up.

Reader Q&A

To ask other readers questions about Sin Eater, please sign up.

Lists with This Book

My Dark Vanessa by Kate Elizabeth Russell

The Glass Hotel by Emily St. John Mandel

Anticipated 2020 Literary Fiction

572 books — 1,455 voters

All the Ways We Said Goodbye by Beatriz Williams

And They Called It Camelot by Stephanie Marie Thornton

Historical Fiction 2020

361 books — 510 voters

More lists with this book...

Community Reviews

Showing 1-30

Average rating 3.68 ·

Rating details

· 3,816 ratings · 1,001 reviews

More filters

Sort order

Start your review of Sin Eater

Mar 02, 2020 Meredith ( on Semi-Hiatus until February) rated it really liked it

WHAT A PREMISE!

Sin Eater is an original historical novel about women who are to bear society’s burdens by being relegated to “sin eaters.” Sin eaters are women who hear confessions of the dying and eat food that symbolically stands for their sins. By doing so, they lift the burden of the dying and are destined to serve as the companion to the ultimate sinner, Eve, in hell.

14-year-old May, an orphan, is punished for stealing a loaf of bread by being forced into a life of servitude by serving as a WHAT A PREMISE!

Sin Eater is an original historical novel about women who are to bear society’s burdens by being relegated to “sin eaters.” Sin eaters are women who hear confessions of the dying and eat food that symbolically stands for their sins. By doing so, they lift the burden of the dying and are destined to serve as the companion to the ultimate sinner, Eve, in hell.

14-year-old May, an orphan, is punished for stealing a loaf of bread by being forced into a life of servitude by serving as a sin eater. Forced to wear a collar and branded with the letter S on her tongue, May is now both feared and shunned by the society in which she lives. Called to people’s death beds, she hears their sins and eats their burden allowing for God to forgive the sinner. May now has to worry about taking on others' sins and potentially being cast to hell to serve as a handmaiden to Eve. When she and another sin eater are summoned to the Royal Court, they hear the confessions of a former governess to the Virgin Queen, Bethany, drawing May into a mystery of secrets and lies and murder in the Royal Court.

Through Sin Eater, Campisi explores societal, class, and gender differences in the 16th century. The tone is gloomy and tense. May's character is strong and compelling. She tells the reader of her experiences from prisoner to sin eater. Her life is filled with difficulties and tragedies. While she takes comfort with the society’s unmentionables, her loneliness and fear shine through the pages. With that being said, I wish I got to see more of the society in which May lived. We get a little glimpse of her world, but I would have loved more, especially of the Royal Court. I wanted to be transported, but I was only about half-way there.

I will say that this was a fascinating read, but I enjoyed the premise more than I liked reading it. It's more of a character study than mystery. However, I am appreciative of the original storyline, and I look forward to Megan Campisi's next book and seeing what other unique tales she has to share!

3.5 stars

Thank you to Isabel @Atria Books for sending me a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review!
...more

flag 192 likes · Like · see review

Feb 09, 2020 Nilufer Ozmekik rated it really liked it

Nope! It’s not fair to compare this book with the other novels and talking about the resemblances with Handmaid’s Tale, Wolf’s Creek or any other epic stories. Sin Eater is dark, unique, original, well-crafted, visionary, horrifying, twisty, surprising tale, a very well written, somehow quirky, absurd, complex fantasy!

For its uniqueness and eerie, creepy, dark, intense atmosphere and impeccable development, I’m giving my four solid stars!

This is story of a fourteen years old girl May sentence ...more

flag 178 likes · Like · see review

Apr 09, 2020 Paromjit rated it really liked it

Shelves: historical-fiction, netgalley, mystery, dystopian

Megan Campisi writes a fascinatingly original and imaginative piece of alternative historical fiction set in a barely disguised sixteenth century England under the reign and royal court of Queen Elizabeth I. In this darkly moody, intense, creepy, and atmospheric novel, the actual existence of real sin eaters of the period is taken to another level. Only women can be sin eaters, a religious allusion to the biblical figure of Eve, her eating of the forbidden apple, the original sin. Sin eaters eat Megan Campisi writes a fascinatingly original and imaginative piece of alternative historical fiction set in a barely disguised sixteenth century England under the reign and royal court of Queen Elizabeth I. In this darkly moody, intense, creepy, and atmospheric novel, the actual existence of real sin eaters of the period is taken to another level. Only women can be sin eaters, a religious allusion to the biblical figure of Eve, her eating of the forbidden apple, the original sin. Sin eaters eat and take on the sins of others confessed on their death beds, allowing them to enter the kingdom of heaven, whilst the sin eater carries their burden of sin silently to their graves. The young and hungry 14 year old orphan, May Owen, is imprisoned for stealing some bread, finding herself branded with a S on her tongue, and a heavy collar placed around her neck. She is condemned to the cursed ostracised life of a sin eater instead, serving as an apprentice to an older sin eater to become acquainted with her new role.

Various foods representing the specific sins confessed to, are placed on the coffin for the sin eater to eat, but when a deer heart appears on a coffin which bears no resemblance to what had been confessed, May's mentor refuses to eat it, which results in her being accused of treason and to her death. In a tautly plotted, multilayered, and complex story, a lonely May reflects on the nature of the life open to her and the limitations placed on it. Despite all the dangers, the determined May searches for the truth, she is going to need all all her wits to get to the bottom of the conspiracy, mystery and murder at the heart of the royal court. Campisi's bleak storytelling has a vibrancy that hooked my interest, and although the pacing was uneven and aspects of the story were over emphasised, I found this riveting reading with its historical details.

The highlights of this novel for me was the wonderful creation of the character of May, her life riddled with difficulties and obstacles, and her development, along with the fear, superstitions, and the social norms and attitudes of the period. This is a terrific read, of sin eaters and their lives, royal court intrigue, betrayal, gender, class and identity. Many thanks to Pan Macmillan for an ARC. ...more

flag 151 likes · Like · see review

Jul 16, 2020 jessica rated it really liked it

this story is fascinating - the unique concept, the vague airs of mystery, the intriguing characters, and the simple yet captivating writing all produce a very engaging reading experience.

for me, the highlight of this story is the subject. i was vaguely aware of the idea of sin eaters prior, but i love how this story shows them in such a complex light. i also enjoy how this story takes a turn towards mystery. the moral dilemma of a sin eater eating a food representative of a sin that was not con ...more

flag 133 likes · Like · see review

Apr 26, 2020 Beata rated it it was amazing

Shelves: favorites

Like many other readers, I was surprised to have learnt that Sin Eaters really existed that that they continued well into the beginning of the 20th century.
The story of a teenage orphaned girl who for a petty crime is forced to become a sin eater moved me deeply. Solitude and social isolation resulting from perfoming traditional ritual make her a protagonist I fully related to. The silence which is imposed upon her and the fact that she is accepted only by those rejected by the society make her ...more

flag 135 likes · Like · see review

Dec 18, 2019 Nenia ✨️ I yeet my books back and forth ✨️ Campbell rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: les-arcs-de-triomphes, magic-and-sparkles-and-shit

Instagram || Twitter || Facebook || Amazon || Pinterest

SIN EATER is another one of those books that suffers from poor comparisons. Alice in Wonderland meets the Handmaid's Tale?! The Name of the Rose meets Wolf Hall?! I am seriously side-eying all of the authors of those blurbs right now because comparisons like that 1) fail to adequately describe what the book is about, 2) do it an injustice by shaping the book as something it is not, and 3) are just such bad comparisons that I literally ca ...more

flag 120 likes · Like · see review

Mar 31, 2020 Will Byrnes rated it really liked it

Shelves: fiction, suspense, historical-fiction, mystery, fantasy, thriller

Salt for pride. Mustard seed for lies. Barley for curses. There are grapes too, laid red and bursting across the pinewood coffin—one grape split with a ruby seed poking through the skin like a sliver through flesh. There’s crow’s meat stirred with plums and a homemade loaf, small and shaped like a bobbin…There are other foods too, but not many. My mother had few sins.

In an alternate Elizabethan England, fourteen-year-old May Owens, newly orphaned with the passing of her father, (her mother’s ...more

flag 104 likes · Like · see review

Dec 07, 2019 Paige rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: mystery-thriller, historical-fiction

"Sins of our flesh become sins of hers through the Eating, praise be."
After committing a crime, 14-year-old May is condemned to be a sin eater. She begins to follow the elder sin eater to learn her new job. While learning, a deer heart is placed at someone's Eating although the dead didn't confess to the sin that matches that food. May decides to discover the truth of the murder mystery, but she finds secrets, witchcraft, and lies along the way and her world is quickly and quietly turned ups ...more

flag 96 likes · Like · see review

Feb 16, 2020 Ceecee rated it really liked it · review of another edition

3.5 rounded up to 4 stars.

The sin eater walks among us. I studied history and taught it, so how did I not know about sin eaters?? It’s the reign of Queen Elizabeth I (Bethany in the book) and May Owens is caught stealing bread. Her punishment is to be branded a sin eater and a collar placed around her neck. May is now marked and shunned by society. She will be summoned by a family who has a dying relative. She has to eat a ritual meal after hearing a death bed confession, allocating foods to si 3.5 rounded up to 4 stars.

The sin eater walks among us. I studied history and taught it, so how did I not know about sin eaters?? It’s the reign of Queen Elizabeth I (Bethany in the book) and May Owens is caught stealing bread. Her punishment is to be branded a sin eater and a collar placed around her neck. May is now marked and shunned by society. She will be summoned by a family who has a dying relative. She has to eat a ritual meal after hearing a death bed confession, allocating foods to sins. These are placed on the coffin and once eaten May takes on the sins of the dead, she absorbs them and therefore the deceased’s soul can enter heaven. This ritual is linked to Eve and she is cursed like Eve and she will bear the sins in silence until her own death. However, this story goes beyond sixteenth century rituals although they are central to the story. May goes to the Queen’s court where she hears a deathbed confession where her observations uncover a conspiracy symbolised by the appearance of a deers heart on a coffin. May knows that the dead person did not confess to that sin. So who has placed the deers heart there and why? The story is told by May herself in a style reminiscent of the century.

There is much to like and praise in this book. The historical detail is fantastic, the writing is colourful and lively with occasional touches of humour. I love the folklore and the superstition which captures the period of time effectively and the style feels authentic. It’s a dark and intriguing story and I like the twist at the end.

However, it is complicated and I think readers will need to have some understanding of the history to appreciate some of the plot and the characters in it. It does get repetitive towards the middle too which causes your interest to fall away somewhat.

However, overall because it’s so original and it looks at a little known historical area that is absolutely fascinating I would recommend it to fans of historical fiction or anyone who finds the concept intriguing.

Thank you to NetGalley and Pan McMillan ...more

flag 84 likes · Like · see review

Feb 10, 2020 Debra rated it really liked it

Shelves: netgalley

3.5 Stars

"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."

A strong round of applause for Megan Campisi for creating a unique and original book set in sixteenth century England.

Recently orphaned, fourteen-year-old May has been jailed and convicted for stealing bread. Her sentence - to be a Sin Eater. A "what?" you ask.... A sin eater, shunned, an S tattooed on her tongue, unseen until ...more

flag 82 likes · Like · see review

May 23, 2020 *TUDOR^QUEEN* rated it really liked it

3.5 rounded up to 4 Stars

This book came on my radar via a NetGalley email inviting me to read the book. Otherwise, I think I would have overlooked this. I just found the email. It spoke of a "topsy turvy version of Elizabethan England with characters reminiscent of Queen Elizabeth I, Robert Dudley, Mary Seymour and others." Now that I am re-reading this email, it helps answer some of my mild confusion while reading this book. I am a British monarchy buff, so initially I was wondering who Queen B 3.5 rounded up to 4 Stars

This book came on my radar via a NetGalley email inviting me to read the book. Otherwise, I think I would have overlooked this. I just found the email. It spoke of a "topsy turvy version of Elizabethan England with characters reminiscent of Queen Elizabeth I, Robert Dudley, Mary Seymour and others." Now that I am re-reading this email, it helps answer some of my mild confusion while reading this book. I am a British monarchy buff, so initially I was wondering who Queen Bethany and Queen Maris were. I kind of figured out that they meant Tudor queens (and half-sisters) Queen Elizabeth I and Queen Mary, but thought perhaps the main character Meg Owens spoke a different dialect of English.

For some reason I had been putting off reading this book, but looking for something different I finally picked it up and was surprised to find myself seriously drawn in. I connected with the sadness and extreme loneliness of Meg Owens. She's all alone in her house, parents both deceased at the age of 14. She gets thrown in jail for stealing a loaf of bread. Instead of receiving a death sentence, she's branded a Sin Eater. A heavy link chain with an "S" pendant gets locked around her neck by the court recorder, and her tongue gets tattooed with an "S". In shock and confusion she gets let out onto the street where passerby give her a wide berth, recognizing the trappings of a Sin Eater. If she gets too close people bless themselves for protection or might even be compelled to throw stones at her. She doesn't know where to go. When she attempts to go back to her abandoned home, the neighbors make it clear she's not wanted. The branding of a Sin Eater is all that it takes to get shunned. By following the smell of dung that signifies the wrong side of town, she stumbles upon the cottage of the elder Sin Eater.

What is a Sin Eater? When someone is going to die, the Sin Eater gets summoned by a messenger. Under normal conditions, the Sin Eater never speaks, but only at the ritual of hearing someone's sins. The person that is dying counts off each sin, which is matched by a kind of food. Those particular food items are brought to the Sin Eater to eat, which signifies the taking on of those sins so that the deceased is cleansed of sin. If the person dies before the Sin Eater can hear the confession, there is a standard array of food to be consumed by the Sin Eater. Meg follows her elder Sin Eater around on foot and learns the ropes. At first she is exhausted from malnutrition. However, one of the few benefits of this "job" is that she will never go hungry, and soon she is getting extra skin on those bones.

I was enraptured with this story, ironically enough, until a Sin Eating job came up at the castle. It was here that Meg encountered The Queen and a rather unsavory cast of characters with strange nicknames such as The Painted Pig, Willow Tree, Mush Face, Fair Hair, and Black Fingers. In the parallel universe of The Tudor court, you can match up easily at least one of these to the true historical figure, but I found these names quite confusing to follow. They are names Meg came up with to easily identify these court members. Unfortunately, these names persisted to the end of the book and only caused a disconnect for me. There was also a pivotal event where a deer's heart was left on top of a coffin in the castle, which led to a mystery to unravel. This mystery was way too dragged out for me, and involved all these court members I just mentioned.

In summation, I truly enjoyed the simplicity and inner strength of Meg's character, but felt like the story went a bit too far off the rails during the court intrigue part of the tale. At the beginning of the story I felt like I was on my way to a 5 Star read, but felt a bit detatched towards the end.

Thank you to the publisher Atria Books who provided an advance reader copy via NetGalley. ...more

flag 80 likes · Like · see review

Mar 19, 2020 Liz rated it really liked it

Shelves: paper-arc

This is a truly unique historical fiction. May is caught stealing a loaf of bread and is sentenced to become a Sin Eater. “It’s always women who eat sins, since it was Eve who first ate a sin: the Forbidden Fruit.” Now a pariah, no one dares look at her or speak to her. She’s not allowed to speak outside of the Recitation. Hers is a life of loneliness. It’s a very sad, dark story.
Campisi takes the Elizabethan period and renders it anew. The language takes some getting used to. The names have be ...more

flag 68 likes · Like · see review

Jan 27, 2020 Amy Imogene Reads rated it really liked it

Shelves: historical-fiction, arcs-reviewed, read-in-2020

Happy Publication Day!!

This alternative historical fiction novel centered on a "sin eater" in a version of Elizabethan England was dark, lyrical, and unforgettable.

Concept: ★★★★★
Pacing: ★★★
Sense of place: ★★★★

May Owens is caught stealing a piece of bread in the streets of an alternative version of London. It's the time of the Virgin Queen. Taken to be sentenced, May is shocked to receive a one-of-a-kind punishment: she's been declared a sin eater.

A sin eater is always a woman. She's branded b ...more

flag 66 likes · Like · see review

Aug 28, 2020 ELLIAS (elliasreads) rated it it was ok

Shelves: 2020-books, i-own

In a nutshell: This book is about a girl who eats food representing the sins committed in a person’s life before they die so they meet their maker with good grades and clear skin.

In the grand scheme of all things:OK SO WHAT FOOD REPRESENTS THE SIN OF THIS BOOK BEING: slightly (very) boring. No great payoff. Figured out twist very early on in the book. It was lie; I’ve been deceived. Oh calamity—I WOULD LIKE TO KNOW TYVM!!!

2.5 STARS

flag 64 likes · Like · see review

Apr 10, 2020 Jasmine from How Useful It Is rated it it was amazing

Shelves: publisher-blog-tour, thrillers, from-publisher, fantasy, historical-fiction

This book is a fantastic read! What an interesting idea for a story. Sin Eater is awesome! I love following May's thoughts. She has a cool matter-of-fact attitude. When she got caught stealing she thought to eat the bread she stole because why not go to jail full than hungry. I like her thoughts about her mom and the way the author worded the sentence about the worms. It flows well but clever in a way. I like the modified kids rhymes to fit the story. Would have been great if readers were told o This book is a fantastic read! What an interesting idea for a story. Sin Eater is awesome! I love following May's thoughts. She has a cool matter-of-fact attitude. When she got caught stealing she thought to eat the bread she stole because why not go to jail full than hungry. I like her thoughts about her mom and the way the author worded the sentence about the worms. It flows well but clever in a way. I like the modified kids rhymes to fit the story. Would have been great if readers were told of May's age, but I'm guessing she's a teen.

 This book is told in the first person point of view following May Owens as she talks about sin eater. Now, May is running fast away with the warm bread held tight until the baker's son caught her. There are 20 girls in jail with May for various crimes. When the girls got sentenced a punishment, they left and May remained in jail along with a new batch of girls caught with various crimes. The story slowly revealed how May is an orphan without a family. At last her punishment came and it's unexpected. Her duties in her punishment came to a puzzle when she knew something was a lie but she couldn't voice out. The lie she knew leads to murder and mystery at the Queen's castle. Each chapter heading with a type of food. There is a list of sins as it stands for a type of food at the beginning of the book.

 Sin Eater is very well written and a fast paced read! At first I'm not used to the shock of words such as whores and bastard children. I have never read anything like this, which is a good thing because this story is an original idea. I loved it and couldn't read fast enough. I loved the historical aspects of the book due to the fancy way the characters speak. Definitely fascinating how a person confess all of his/her sins before he/she dies. I like that the main character is clever despite having no education. I don't normally look up vocabularies but this book has a great many words I haven't heard of, like cunny, jakes, vagabond, scullion, etc. I like learning these new words. May's living situation is interesting. I like the mystery, suspense, and problem solving. This story is highly addicting and I highly recommend everyone to read it!

xoxo,
Jasmine at www.howusefulitis.wordpress.com for more details

Thank you Atria Books for inviting me to host a blog tour! I appreciate the opportunity to read and review. Please be assured that my opinions are honest. ...more

flag 64 likes · Like · see review

May 27, 2020 Navessa rated it it was amazing

Shelves: historical-fiction, arc, netgalley, 2020

Every now and then I come across a book that is totally different from anything else I’ve ever read. This phenomenon is becoming rare, and that’s largely due to the fact that I’ve read a lot of books in my 35 years.

Megan Campisi’s Sin Eater is the first book to make that list in several years, and because of that, I know that this story will stay with me for a long time.

A lot of the media buzz surrounding this book’s release drew comparisons to The Handmaid’s Tale, and I have to disagree. Yes, t ...more

flag 61 likes · Like · see review

Feb 10, 2020 Fran rated it really liked it · review of another edition

A reinvented/alternate Sixteenth Century English Court had sentenced fourteen year old May Owens to life as an outcast. For the crime of stealing bread, May was given a life sentence: A Sin Eater...a social pariah...brutally marked with an "S" etched on her tongue...a shunned woman forced to wear a heavy brass collar with a hanging "S" pendant...cannot be touched or spoken to...cannot speak except during recitations or eatings.

What is a Sin Eater? "[Her]...fate is to hear the final confessions o A reinvented/alternate Sixteenth Century English Court had sentenced fourteen year old May Owens to life as an outcast. For the crime of stealing bread, May was given a life sentence: A Sin Eater...a social pariah...brutally marked with an "S" etched on her tongue...a shunned woman forced to wear a heavy brass collar with a hanging "S" pendant...cannot be touched or spoken to...cannot speak except during recitations or eatings.

What is a Sin Eater? "[Her]...fate is to hear the final confessions of the dying, eat ritual foods symbolizing their sins as a funeral rite...". "The sin eater bears the sins of all folk in silence to her grave. She alone may never confess and be absolved...". May finds herself apprenticed to an older Sin Eater."I am not to talk. Even to her." They dwell in Dungsbrook, "no place is as unfortunate". Daily messengers from all walks of life request the services of the Sin Eater for a "Recitation" of sins of the dying or an "Eating" of the ritual foods. "When the foods is et, your sins will be mine...", says the Sin Eater.

An Eating is conducted for Corliss, governess to Queen Bethany, daughter of King Harold II. Folk attend "the Eating" to bear witness. The elder Sin Eater stops eating, refusing to eat the deer heart placed atop Corliss's coffin.. The deer heart is a lie. No confession has been recited to warrant this ritual food. Disobeying a direct order, the Sin Eater is sentenced to death for treason.

May Owens is determined to discover who placed the deer heart on the coffin. She must avenge the death of her mentor,"Ruth". May is now the sole Sin Eater attending recitations and eatings. She lives on the fringes of society. "I wish [I] could show folk [my] insides...then they'd know I'm not wicked at all...folk would know I am goodly...".

"Sin Eater" by Megan Campisi is an imaginative, creative work of historical/ dystopian fiction. One cannot help rooting for May. An excellent read I highly recommend.

Thank you Atria Books and Net Galley for the opportunity to read and review "Sin Eater". ...more

flag 54 likes · Like · see review

Jul 18, 2020 Jenna rated it liked it

Shelves: historical-fic

This started out engagingly enough but for some reason I lost interest about 50 pages in. I continued reading, hoping I'd get re-invested, but it never happened.

3 stars for the quality of writing though my enjoyment was only 2. I wonder if perhaps I've grown away from novels set in medieval times or if I just wasn't in the right mood to enjoy this novel. ...more

flag 50 likes · Like · see review

Mar 23, 2020 Krystal rated it liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: from-the-publisher, literary-fiction, misleading-blurbs, disappointments, freebies-and-gifts, historical-fiction

Not gonna lie, this was a disappointment for me.

I think my problem was my preconceived notions. 'Sin-eating' to me sounded a heck of a lot like fantasy, so that's what I expected. Turns out this was once an actual thing that once happened?! So that's entirely on me but it really coloured my experience of this novel.

For those who have not yet encountered the concept of sin eating, it's basically a medieval spiritual practice, where someone eats symbolic food to absolve a person of their sins befo ...more

flag 47 likes · Like · see review

Mar 12, 2020 Carolyn rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: 2020, netgalley, historical, mystery, netgalley-2020

The Unseen is now seen. The Unheard is now heard. The sins of your flesh become the sins of mine to be borne to my grave in silence. Speak.

So speaks the Sin Eater when she attends the bedside of a dying person to hear them confess their sins. By eating specific foods attributed to different sins (eg. raisins for adultery, dried plum for incest, mustard seeds for lying) the Sin Eater absorbs the sins herself and absolves the dying.

When fourteen year old May Owens is caught stealing bread she is The Unseen is now seen. The Unheard is now heard. The sins of your flesh become the sins of mine to be borne to my grave in silence. Speak.

So speaks the Sin Eater when she attends the bedside of a dying person to hear them confess their sins. By eating specific foods attributed to different sins (eg. raisins for adultery, dried plum for incest, mustard seeds for lying) the Sin Eater absorbs the sins herself and absolves the dying.

When fourteen year old May Owens is caught stealing bread she is sentenced to become a sin eater and sent to live with an older sin eater to learn her role. She is still learning which foods must be be prepared for the different sins when the Sin Eaters are summoned to the castle to attend one of the Queen's courtiers. After the woman dies and they return to eat the food for each of the woman's sins they are surprised to see an extra food item on the table next to the coffin - a dear's heart. May doesn't know what sin this represents but her teacher does and refuses to eat it. When the older woman is later thrown into the dungeons and tortured to death, May is left alone to be the Sin Eater for the village and uncover a strange plot at the castle.

This was an interesting novel with such an unusual character as the main figure. Sin Eaters did exist in 18th and 19th century Europe but generally the role was a simpler one with the eating of bread or a special funeral cake symbolising the removal of the deceased's sins. In this novel, set in the 16th century in alternative version of the court of Queen Elizabeth I (virgin queen Bethany and her sister Maris), the idea has been extended into a more exotic range of foods representing specific sins. May is branded as a Sin Eater with a heavy brass collar round her neck and the letter S branded on her tongue. She is reviled by all and not allowed to speak except when asking the dying to list their sins and pronouncing the food required.

The author has created a darkly atmospheric historical period peopled by actors, lepers, Jewish musicians and the members of the Royal court, making an excellent backdrop to the mystery at the heart of the novel. May's deprivation and treatment was heartbreaking, especially that she could no longer touch or speak to anyone making her so alone. For me the book fell a little flat in the middle but picked up pace towards the end as the mystery unfolded. I enjoyed May's way of naming people by what she saw (since she couldn't ask their names) and her inventive way of solving problems. However, I did find the repetitive recitation of her traumatic capture and incarceration that led to her becoming a Sin Eater throughout the book very annoying.

With thanks to Pan Macmillan Australia and Netgalley for a digital copy to read ...more

flag 47 likes · Like · see review

Sep 29, 2020 Olivia-Savannah rated it really liked it · review of another edition

I really didn’t know anything about the concept of sin eaters before, so this was a learning process for me as I was reading. I definitely felt for both of the sin eaters we met in this book. I wished I could have been in the book to show them some of the love and kindness that they needed and deserved.

The writing style for this book was perfect and suited the atmosphere of the book so much. I thought it was so good for getting the feel of the setting across. I’m not entirely sure how to explain ...more

flag 36 likes · Like · see review

Nov 14, 2019 Elle rated it really liked it

Shelves: 2020, giveaways

This is one of those books where the more I read about it the more confused I got. The Handmaid's Tale meets Alice in Wonderland? Eating ritual foods? What about a deer’s heart? So if she’s unseen and unheard, who prepares the ~~sins~~ food? And if she stole a loaf of bread, would Jean Valjean be a Sin Eater too? I decided to just dive in.

With the exception of the Jean Valjean one, all of my previous questions were answered. It’s absolutely insane that this is historical fiction. Megan Campisi conv This is one of those books where the more I read about it the more confused I got. The Handmaid's Tale meets Alice in Wonderland? Eating ritual foods? What about a deer’s heart? So if she’s unseen and unheard, who prepares the ~~sins~~ food? And if she stole a loaf of bread, would Jean Valjean be a Sin Eater too? I decided to just dive in.

With the exception of the Jean Valjean one, all of my previous questions were answered. It’s absolutely insane that this is historical fiction. Megan Campisi conveniently provides a list of foods and their corresponding sins at the beginning of the book. The job of Sin Eater is not highly coveted and in May’s case is clearly a punishment, but some of that list man... The foods are a mix of delicious sounding (honey cakes) and basically inedible (eel pie), but they seem pretty haphazardly assigned. Except for ones like rape and murder, where they make you eat a raw (animal) body part, I don’t see any food that makes much sense paired with their sin.

But that’s probably part of what drew Campisi to this particular sect of historical Christianity. Similar to the nonsensical superstitions in The Mercies, people don’t need to have a sound reasoning to victimize one another. They just need a heaping amount of fear and some institutional power to point them towards a suitable scapegoat. I was once again both astonished and not at all surprised how quickly a community can turn on its own members with the slightest provocation.

“I can’t be cursed. I am a curse.”

Sin Eater is a highly localized story that’s greatest strength is in the main character, May. Yes the time period and heightened paranoia it produces is interesting and well-done, but it’s May that will hold the reader’s attention. Without her I’m afraid I wouldn’t have been too keen to finish this novel, as I found a lot of the ‘eating’ scenes pretty gnarly. Nonetheless, I was often unable to tear myself away from May’s journey from a lonely & hungry teenager to a self-actualized, shameless member of the damned.

*Thanks to Atria Books & Goodreads for an advance copy! ...more

flag 34 likes · Like · see review

Nov 05, 2020 Kalyn Nicholson rated it really liked it

Shelves: feminism, dystopian

When I began this story, I had no idea what I was about to encounter, so the entire book was a mystery as it unfolded. I loved that the heroine was an average, everyday underdog and how the storyline brushed up against themes like poverty, public shame, religious righteousness, self-acceptance, and making peace with what feels like a curse to turn it into a superpower. The storyline includes multiple complex female characters entrenched in a historical time when women were meant to be powerless, ...more

flag 34 likes · Like · see review

Mar 12, 2020 Ari rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: 2020-reads, netgalley-arc

Blog | Instagram | Twitter | Amazon | Waterstones

Thank you NetGalley and Atria Books for this ARC. All thoughts and opinions are mine.

Fascinated by sin eaters since I came across them in literature years back, this book was not a disappointment. Do not expect a “fantasy” book that boasts of stark and obvious magic, wild creatures and epic worlds. Rather, go into it expecting to get lost in the life of a young girl, forced to become a woman, living a solitary and dark path that shuns her from eve Blog | Instagram | Twitter | Amazon | Waterstones

Thank you NetGalley and Atria Books for this ARC. All thoughts and opinions are mine.

Fascinated by sin eaters since I came across them in literature years back, this book was not a disappointment. Do not expect a “fantasy” book that boasts of stark and obvious magic, wild creatures and epic worlds. Rather, go into it expecting to get lost in the life of a young girl, forced to become a woman, living a solitary and dark path that shuns her from everyone around her for the crime of—ultimately, we find out—being born.

Set in an alternate version akin to the England of Elizabeth I, the “virgin queen,” we follow our lead, May, after she is sentenced into a sin eater with the responsibilities that follow: hearing the confessions of the dying, eating the sins of the dead, ridding them of these sins so that they may enter the afterlife cleansed, until she herself dies while anyone that she encounters shies away from her in fear and revulsion. And as she learns her new trade and goes from deathbed to deathbed, she happens to arrive at one in the reigning home of the queen. Here, she learns of a mystery that deals in murder and lies ans has been eliminating some near the queen herself.

The story has a slow pace that little by little reveals this mystery as well as how every character is connected. It's compulsive to follow, and May has such a unique and endearing voice despite how dreadful her life is. Regardless of how many times she falls—sometimes, quite literally—she has the spirit to rise above again and seek out the truth behind every lie that is placed before her, even at the risk of her own possible death.

Megan Campisi's writing is lovely. She does such a good job of taking the reader into the old-world setting of this novel and make you feel as if you are there alongside the cast. You feel every hopeless, dark, depressing instant that our characters are living through in a world that is, for the most part, quite dreary, where none are safe regardless of caste. Not only is the atmosphere right on point, but the language is so well used and so original to the type of story that we are reading.

To read Sin Eater is to take a step into the life of one and live out the experience. ...more

flag 28 likes · Like · see review

Feb 11, 2020 Susan's Reviews rated it liked it

My thanks to the author, publisher and NetGalley for a free ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.

As I read this dark tale, it brought to mind a "Twilight Zone-type" TV episode I had watched in my youth about sin eaters: i.e, people who "ate" the sins of the deceased so that the dearly departed could pass on to heaven.
The idea that you can buy yourself out of Hell or the Final Reckoning after death is certainly not a new one. These practices continue to exist today. Just about every My thanks to the author, publisher and NetGalley for a free ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.

As I read this dark tale, it brought to mind a "Twilight Zone-type" TV episode I had watched in my youth about sin eaters: i.e, people who "ate" the sins of the deceased so that the dearly departed could pass on to heaven.
The idea that you can buy yourself out of Hell or the Final Reckoning after death is certainly not a new one. These practices continue to exist today. Just about every religion has some ritual that will speed a soul to its final resting place. We can still, to this day, pay for masses for the souls of our dearly departed so that they may be released from purgatory and cleansed of their sins. All these fear-based conventions or traditions fed (and still feast) off the general inexperience ("ignorance" is too harsh and loaded) and superstition of the general population. As I have already said, despite the widespread advancement of education, similar "sin eater" practices persist to this day in many cultures or religions.

In this story, young May Owens is sentenced for her paltry crimes to become a sin eater. Her poverty and desperation have inadvertently condemned her to becoming a social pariah: she is now contaminated by other peoples' sins.

This author writes very well - although there are times where I felt I was "plodding along". In her preface, the author describes her story as being a fairy tale or fantasy, but the events described are often too gruesome to fall into that tame category. This novel reminded me of why I stopped reading historical fiction: the plight of women in the days of old was abysmal. We still have a long way to go, and change has not been universal, but this story underlines many of the key factors that continue to take away our power and our voice. These types of stories always make me so thankful to be living in this day and age!

I'm going to rate this a 3.5 out of 5. This novel had great potential. I am actually looking forward to reading future works by this author - she certainly has what it takes to write a decent novel. ...more

flag 27 likes · Like · see review

Jul 05, 2020 Mel (Epic Reading) rated it liked it

Shelves: arc-netgalley

3.5 stars. Some great lines and moments; but the mystery plot was convoluted and I felt like I had no chance to guess the answer. Additionally I cannot figure out how this relates, at all, to Alice in Wonderland (as per the blurb)? There is no 'other world', no 'falling', or any bizarre creatures. There is a queen, and a clear hierarchical society; but nothing that would have ever made me think of Alice in Wonderland. All that said it wasn't a bad book; but Sin Eater didn't feel quite complete t ...more

flag 27 likes · Like · see review

Mar 06, 2020 Annette rated it liked it

“Sin eaters existed in parts of Britain until roughly a century ago. (…) They ate a piece of bread beside people’s coffins to absolve their sins in a folk ritual with Christian resonances.”

16th century England. Fourteen year old May Owens is arrested for stealing bread. Her penalty is to be a sin eater. With all eyes averting her, she walks to a house of an older Sin Eater. After her first Recitation, it sinks in that she is to hear just folk’s sins, not their joys or blessings.

The first 15% whi “Sin eaters existed in parts of Britain until roughly a century ago. (…) They ate a piece of bread beside people’s coffins to absolve their sins in a folk ritual with Christian resonances.”

16th century England. Fourteen year old May Owens is arrested for stealing bread. Her penalty is to be a sin eater. With all eyes averting her, she walks to a house of an older Sin Eater. After her first Recitation, it sinks in that she is to hear just folk’s sins, not their joys or blessings.

The first 15% which concentrates on May is phenomenal. Once she is with the older Sin Eater and learns the Recitation, it seems as the story keeps going in circles. It doesn’t progress.

When they go to the castle for Recitation, it feels as the story is about to pick up again when May’s thoughts colored with her humor come out, but then the story becomes descriptive, with slow moving dialogue.

A deer’s heart is placed on a coffin. The older Sin Eater refuses to eat it. She is taken to prison, tortured and killed. Now, May is on a mission to find out who did it and why.

Once May is on her own, there are parts when I thought I was getting back into the story. But I struggled with reconnecting with her.

Overall, this story wasn’t grasping for me and I’m disappointed, because this book started with such a strong, colorful character. That despite this dark story, she made it very interesting. But only at the beginning, at least for me.

Loved her mind and her analogies. She is such a loveable person with an honest heart. At moments, it’s very touching how lonely she feels and how she’d love to talk to someone and has no one. At times, it’s hard not to laugh at the names she tags people with: Painted Pig, Mush Face, Black Fingers, Willow Tree. In a whole sentence, sometimes it becomes a comedy.

The writing is certainly of a talented writer. So I hope the story will be more grasping for others than it was for me.

Source: ARC was provided by the publisher via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review. ...more

flag 25 likes · Like · see review

Apr 11, 2020 Juli rated it really liked it

Shelves: read-review-copies-2020

This story is part alternate history and part dark fairy tale. Sin Eaters. Women forced to listen to the confessions of dying people, then take on their sins by eating foods that symbolize the sins confessed. May is an orphan....alone and hungry. When she steals a loaf of bread, she is branded and shackled in a heavy collar. Forced to be a sin eater, she is a social pariah, living under the threat of hell if she fails in her duty. When her mentor is charged with treason and killed after refusing ...more

flag 24 likes · Like · see review

Apr 07, 2020 ABookwormWithWine rated it really liked it

Shelves: adult-fiction, blog-tours, buddy-reads, cover-love, female-authors, from-the-publisher, physical-arc, disturbing, murder-mystery-thriller, slow-burn

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 ei ...more

flag 21 likes · Like · see review

Mar 12, 2020 Tami rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: historical-fiction, net-galley, mystery, 2020, netgalley-2020

Before reading this book, I had heard of sin eaters, but really knew very little about them. This was an eye-opener to say the least! A macabre story set during 16th century England, the tale gives readers a fairly detailed account of the the sin eating duties that were prevalent during that time.

May Owens, a lonely and hungry orphan, gets caught stealing bread and is given a harsh and unexpected sentence. She is to spend the rest of her life as a sin eater. Only fourteen, May knows little about ...more

flag 20 likes · Like · see review

« previous 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 … next »

new topic
Discuss This Book

topics	posts	views	last activity
Fiction, Fantasie...: August 2020 \| Sin Eater	1	4	Jan 11, 2021 01:32PM
Challenge Corner: Sin Eater by Megan Campisi --> Starting October 23rd, 2020	4	14	Oct 31, 2020 02:07PM
YA Buddy Readers'...: The Sin Eater by Megan Campisi - Starting 14th May 2020	12	19	May 26, 2020 10:44AM
Play Book Tag: Sin Eater - Megan Campisi - 5 stars	8	12	Apr 22, 2020 04:06PM
NetGalley Readers: Sin Eater by Megan Campisi	39	78	Mar 15, 2020 08:29AM

Readers also enjoyed

See similar books…

Videos About This Book

Add a comment

Genres

Historical > Historical Fiction

395 users

Fantasy

158 users

Fiction

146 users

Historical

102 users

Mystery

100 users

Adult

38 users

Thriller > Mystery Thriller

20 users

Thriller

17 users

Adult Fiction

17 users

European Literature > British Literature

16 users

See top shelves…

About Megan Campisi

Megan Campisi

195 followers

Megan Campisi is a playwright, novelist and teacher. Her plays have performed in China, France and the United States. She has been a forest ranger, sous chef in Paris and a physical theater specialist around the world. Originally from California, she attended Yale University and the L'École International de Théâtre Jacques Lecoq. She lives in Brooklyn, NY with her family. ...more

Articles featuring this book

Support First-Time Authors with 51 Debut Novels to Read Now

Let's face it, this year's class of first-time authors is seeing its debut novels launch into a world much different from what anyone in the...

Trivia About Sin Eater

No trivia or quizzes yet. Add some now »

Quotes from Sin Eater

“Don’t I know by now that folk see their sins in the way they choose? There’s always a reason as to why selfishness is not really selfish and crimes are honest and waiting safely by while somefolk else is killed is really the more courageous choice.” — 9 likes

“With how you came into the world and what you've seen lately you should know, the more you live, the more the sinner and the saint can't be pulled apart. All of us just getting by.” — 3 likes

More quotes…

See a Problem?

Preview — Sin Eater by Megan Campisi

Sin Eater

Get A Copy

Friend Reviews

Reader Q&A

Lists with This Book

Community Reviews

new topic
Discuss This Book

Readers also enjoyed

Videos About This Book

Genres

About Megan Campisi

Articles featuring this book

Trivia About Sin Eater

Quotes from Sin Eater

See a Problem?

Preview — Sin Eater by Megan Campisi

Sin Eater

Get A Copy

Friend Reviews

Reader Q&A

Lists with This Book

Community Reviews

new topicDiscuss This Book

Readers also enjoyed

Videos About This Book

Genres

About Megan Campisi

Articles featuring this book

Trivia About Sin Eater

Quotes from Sin Eater

new topic
Discuss This Book