"The Sin Eater walks among us,⠀ Unseen, Unheard⠀
Sins of our flesh become sins of Hers Following Her to the grave"⠀
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Let me start by saying that I didn't even know Sin Eaters existed in real life, I think I had heard of the term before but in a fictional way,  the author was very nice to include that the book itself is fiction but led me to investigate more on the past, and that's the first point this book won. I love learning and discovering new things.. As an introvert, being knowledgeable is resourceful in case I need to start a random conversation. ⠀
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The book was a page turner from the beginning, probably because of its originality I couldn't wait to see where the story was going.I also liked the ending very much considering all the options that weren't many for our character. ⠀
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I did have some hard time remembering the names of the characters "Fair hair" "Willow Tree" among others, but I think once I was more into the story that was overcomed from my side. ⠀
I love both US and UK cover but my favorite definitely is the UK one. ⠀
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I really enjoyed this novel.
The book is set in an alternative version of Elizabethan England with twists on names but very much based in actual events such as the reformation.
There is an alternative style of Christianity/catholicism which forms the basis of the story.
The lead character is chosen to be a 'sineater', a person who hears people sins before they die and eats certain foods related to the sins to absolve the dying. It's a really interesting idea and really explores what it means to take on the sins of others no matter how terrible.
There is a great mystery tied into this and it's very well plotted and keeps you engaged until the end.

It took me a while to really get into this one, chiefly because I was slightly irritated at the sheer thinness of the disguise regarding the world. The names of the kings and queens were very nearly taken from the Tudor dynasty and the religious turmoil was depicted, but with different names. The Old King even had six wives… I found it distracting and a tad annoying that this fantasy version followed the actual world so very closely – but the town where May lives didn’t feel large or sufficiently varied to be the London of Elizabeth I. The court didn’t feel right, either.

However, as I continued reading and became more emotionally invested in May and engrossed in the story, I ceased minding so much. I have, however, knocked a point off because it initially did affect my pleasure and the speed with which I became invested in the story. That said, once I got over my issues with the scene setting, I really cared about May and really enjoyed her progression through the story. She starts out as a half-starved waif, still reeling from the death of her father, and then finds herself in a terrible situation – that of a Sin Eater. I was aware of the custom, but Campisi makes it far more widespread than it actually was, by also having specific foodstuffs representing particular sins, which is something May has to learn. I also enjoyed how Campisi tweaked several old nursery rhymes to allude to rite of sin-eating.

The distressing aspect of becoming a Sin Eater is how ostracised May becomes. No one will look at her, speak to hear or touch her. She is treated as a leper. Campisi deals well with May’s shock and sense of loss very well, and as we see her start to become acclimatised to her new status, I also appreciated her innate gutsy outlook and instinct for survival. However, despite being a social outcast, the Sin Eater also has access to the best houses in the land, once someone is dying or has died. And May discovers this is a very mixed blessing when that access means she becomes inadvertently caught up in a high-level plot.

Throughout the book, she is constantly trying to work out whether she is a pious, upstanding young woman her father would be proud of – or essentially wicked like her mother’s family. How should she cope with the temptations that come her way? I really appreciated that Campisi gave May the opportunity to tussle over these questions – because it is exactly what would have occupied a girl in the 16th century, who would have been very concerned about the state of her soul and whether she would suffer the agonies of everlasting fire, or at last find her way to heaven.

In amongst the steady growth of May’s confidence in her way of life, there is also that plot concerning the Queen’s attendants. I did know of the stories that this alludes to, though I think it was well handled and provided a climactic and suitably dramatic ending to what proved to be a thoroughly enjoyable and gripping read. While I obtained an arc of The Sin Eater from the publisher via Netgalley, the opinions I have expressed are unbiased and my own.
8/10

‘Can You Uncover the Truth When You’re Forbidden From Speaking It?’ - ‘The Sin Eater’ cover tag line

My thanks to Pan Macmillan-Mantle for an eARC via NetGalley of ‘The Sin Eater’ by Megan Campisi in exchange for an honest review.

This is a quirky work of historical fiction set in a slightly alternative sixteenth century England. Megan Campisi draws on the mainly Welsh tradition of the Sin Eater, who in a folk ritual with Christian resonances would eat a piece of bread beside the coffin of the deceased in order to absolve them of their sins.

She writes in her Author’s Note: “The story I’ve written starts with this sliver but is spun out of fantasy. Some of the characters resemble historical figures, but this is not history; it’s fiction.”

In the novel rather than a piece of bread specific foods are assigned to specific sins. There is even a book: ‘A Compendium of Diverse Sins Both Large and Small and Their According Foods’. The novel opens with a selection of sins and their foods from the book as well as the alternative Royal Family Tree.

The Sin Eater of the title is May Owens, a fourteen year old orphan, arrested for stealing a loaf of bread. Her sentence is to become a Sin Eater. She is forbidden to speak apart from the formal words of the recitation and is a pariah - shunned and forced to live in exile on the edge of town. Luckily she is taken under the wing of an older sin eater. They don’t speak to one another though May gives her the name Ruth.

Ruth has access to the court of Queen Bethany and when one of the Queen’s women falls ill, May accompanies her to hear the deathbed confession. However, at the funeral feast a deer’s heart is placed among the foods to be eaten. Ruth balks and refuses to consume it as this represents a heinous sin that had not been confessed by the deceased. Things do not go well for Ruth after this.

May wants to avoid a similar fate and so eats the heart. Then another member of the court falls ill and the same thing happens at the funeral feast. With rumours circulating throughout the palace as to the meaning of these events, May decides to investigate the mystery of the deer hearts.

May is the narrator and is a lively, kind hearted, young woman. She also enjoys assigning nicknames to various members of the Queen’s household. These include: Painted Pig, Mush Face, Black Fingers, and Country Mouse.

‘The Sin Eater’ is a unique novel unlike anything that I have read previously. Despite some of its darker themes of poison, treason, murder and the like there is an air of playfulness to the narrative mainly provided by May’s unique voice. There seemed a touch of the Jacobean tragicomedy in May’s retelling of her life.

‘The Sin Eater’ proved a compelling historical mystery with some interesting tweaks to the Elizabethan world. I enjoyed it very much.

On a side note this novel has a stunning cover with resonances of the tapestry that features in the tale.

Highly recommended.

This story intrigued me. An historical novel, set in an alternative Elizabethan age, in which our protagonist May finds herself a Sin Eater. These are woman who, based on historical fact, would eat foods to represent sin for the dying. Therefore, they would free the dead of sin.

After her fellow Sin Eater is taken to the dungeon when they attend the Royal Court, May sets out to find out why the Sin Eater was taken and a mystery unfolds.

Although the premise is fascinating with a delightful cast of characters and wonderful detail, I could not engage with this story. I found the pacing slow. At no point did a character or any part of the plot truly atch my attention. If you enjoy alternative history the imagining and detail are excellent.

I gave this book 3 stars, rather than 4, after some reflection.. The writing is excellent. The alternative history well written, but it just did not engage me. This is a debut novel and I will be looking out for the next book from this author.

Thank you Pan Macmillan and Netgalley for the eARC in exchange for an honest review.

In this novel we follow May in an alternative Elizabethan England. May at the age of 14 is sentenced to the life of a Sin Eater, for the crime of stealing bread. Sin Eaters are the Unseen and Unheard, a locked collar and branded tongue the signs of her work. May is used to a hard life, with much deprivation and goes into her new life fearful of the fact she will be 'eating the sins' of the dying.

This novel is so different from anything I have read. At the face of it, it's a historical novel - albeit an alternative England - Angland - but a mystery is also the centre of this novel, and one which May sets out to solve. The writing does evoke a dark, gothic feel which makes for a captivating and engaging read. I was compelled to read on, even when it got tense for parts during the last part of the novel. The novel does have a quick pace, however, and whilst this does help to build a sense of tension, I do think some of the novel would have benefited from being expanded and explored further. There was one relationship which did evoke some feelings, but other relationships in the novel seemed to happen quite quickly for me. I would like to have learned more about the role of the Sin Eater, a bit more exploration or elaborating on feelings. That being said, I did also love reading this!

I thoroughly enjoyed this, and I will look forward to reading more from this author.

Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.

This was a very well written historical fiction with an interesting concept. It's my favorite genre and it was a delight to read.
Dark, and beautifully written.

Thanks a lot to NG and the publisher for this copy.

Unusual 'parallel historical' story of a young girl sentenced to live as a Sin Eater for the rest of her life. No-one can speak to her, look at her directly, or touch her ever again in the 'Eucharistian' world. She can only listen to the dying's confession of their sins, list the foods which will absolve them of these sins and then eat the foods after death in front of witnesses. She then takes on the sins herself to judgement day. Acute loneliness and injustice lie at the heart of Meg Owen's character. She lives at the time of Queen Bethany (a parallel Queen Elizabeth I), wearing a locked-on metal collar that clearly labels her to others.

Along with all this trauma, is a murder mystery which Meg is determined to solve, feeling she owes this to the elder Sin eater who intially guides her. This takes her dangerously close to the throne and her own death. Entertaining and unusual - I liked the world that was created; the world definitely had a 'period' feel and darkness about it, the language used was appropriate to the era and setting.

Sin Eater is a dark, historical novel set in an alternative 16th century England. We follow May who is punished for stealing a loaf of bread by becoming a sin eater, one who eats symbolic foods representing another’s sins. By doing this, the dying are relieved of their sins and the sin eater takes this burden on.

This is a very character focused story, looking at the life of May and the interactions she has with all the different people she comes into contact with. There are discussions of class, disability and the prejudices linked to these things. I loved May as a character, she was resilient and determined and had such a strong arc throughout the novel.

While I loved the synopsis, I did feel like I wanted more. The atmosphere of the book is rich and gritty but the world didn’t get deep enough for me to be fully immersed. Campisi’s writing was gorgeous and there were descriptive passages that were so vivid, I just felt there needed to be more. More pages possibly, or just more world building.

Overall, I thought this was an enjoyable read and I would recommend if you are a fan of dark, historical, character driven stories. Fans of Janet Ellis’s The Butcher’s Hook and Anna Freeman’s The Fair Fight will enjoy this one.

I started to read this book but unfortunately the formatting is out. Paragraphs and sentences kept repeating themselves.

I enjoyed the segment I read but it was impossible to read, I have given the book 5 stars as I really enjoyed what I was able to read.

I was SO excited to get my hands on this book- it opened up a whole new world for me! The writing is intriguing and the mystery keeps the reader guessing. And the more it continues the more you grow to love and root for the main character! Thank you for an original and gripping tale.

This is a fantastic read. At first I was dislocated, insure of the setting and the various characters but quickly settled into an era post-Henry VIII with the "Sin Eater", May, trying to survive and solve a mystery.
The concept of the "Sin-Eater" is a fascinating one: to reach The Maker in a pure state, sins are confessed and foods allocated for each sin. These food are eaten and thus the sins are removed from the dead. May is condemned to being a "sin eater" at fourteen and begins her craft with an older woman from whom she learns the rituals and foods to request. A call from the Palace of Queen Bethany to hear the sins of the Queen's governess leads to a deer heart as part of the food placed on the casket, a sin not confessed and thus refused by the Sin Eater.
The mystery of who is plotting to bring down the Queen, or prevent her fall, is woven into the story of May, "just May", sentenced to be a Sin Eater partly because she is a bastard child.
I became absorbed in the era established evocatively by Campisi and thoroughly enjoyed the plot of poisons, intrigue and illicit births in the royal family, constantly under threat by other Pretenders.

In a version of Elizabethan London, May is a washer woman awaiting sentence for stealing a loaf of bread. Instead of an expected punishment, she is made into a Sin Eater. The job for the rest of her life to hear the final sins of all close to death and then to eat a food representing these sins thereby accepting responsibility and allowing the sinner to pass to heaven.
However, soon, she happens on a conspiracy as foods representing unrecited sins appear on coffins of people close to Queen Elizabeth I.
This was a fascinating novel. You feel close to the London of the Elizabethans and the cheapness of life is obvious. I wasn’t aware of the concept of sin eaters but the idea of using this as the main protagonist gave the story a real originality.
Certainly enjoyable. I felt she end was a little rushed with a number of unanswered questions but loved the immersion into the world of the Tudor poor

The Sin Eater, by Megan Campisi, takes an amazing premise and runs with it. What if, when people were on the verge of death, they were required to confess all their sins, and after their death, a designated person - a sin eater - took on those sins by eating foods that symbolised each type of transgression they had committed?

Fourteen-year-old orphan May Owens is forced to become a sin eater as a punishment for petty theft. It’s no picnic: from now on, she’s a social outcast, hated and feared, identified by a collar fastened with an ‘S’ and the same letter tattooed on her tongue, and not allowed to speak.

She’s not been in the job long when she’s called upon to eat the sins of one of the Queen’s ladies. The table contains an additional item of food - a deer heart - that symbolises a heinous crime the lady in question had not confessed to. May takes it upon herself to unravel the mystery behind the heart, putting herself in danger as she threatens to uncover a long-hidden truth.

I found this story very immersive. Campisi has clearly considered the role, practices and social standing of sin eaters from every angle, so there are no holes or weaknesses that make you think ‘well, why doesn’t May just do [xyz]?’. The sights, sounds and smells of the city May lives in are really vivid, especially the areas where particular types of people and occupations can be found, as well as the revels that mark the end of a foreign emissary’s visit and the culmination of May’s investigations.

It becomes apparent fairly early on that May’s world is based on the time of Elizabeth I. The names of key figures at court, religions, religious elements and more are altered slightly. This means that while they’re recognisable, you don’t get too bound up with the real characters and events, and never forget that this is an alternative history. That said, I still found it quite hard to think of Queen Elizabeth as a ‘Bethany’ because, for me, the name is so bound to its sudden massive popularity in the late 80s and 90s. I did also wonder why Edward VI’s alter ego was omitted.

May is a sympathetic and admirable character, and her struggle with her new identity is very realistic. You really feel for her because she loves to talk, misses her old friends who now shun her, and has lost the future she was expecting and looking forward to.

May goes through an internal battle as she has to decide whether to embrace her outsider status and act anti-socially because everyone is scared of her and she’s damned anyway, or try to act nobly and do the right thing. It’s not going to be easy, but if she’s good enough, she might counteract all the sins she’s taken on for other people and get to spend eternity with the Maker.

Another thing that impressed me about this book is how Campisi makes even the nicest foods May has to eat - bread, cakes, fruit and all manner of cream - sound really unappetising. It comes down to lack of choice: May has to eat everything that’s put out for her. She’s not only taking on the eternal punishment for other people’s sins, but the physical punishment of eating things she doesn’t want, as well as eating more than is comfortable.

The Sin Eater features an amazing premise, an immersive world and a brave heroine drawn into a courtly intrigue.

A magical and at times disturbing tale of 16th Century England. The character of May developed throughout the story and gave an insight into the often cruel and lonely world of the lowest classes of society. As a sineater, she was shunned and feared, but found a way to turn this into a strength to stay alive.
This was a clever fairytale / historical tale which wove mystery and murder into the plot.

‘The Sin Eater’ is certainly a page-turner, both for the murder mystery wrapped up in court intrigue and for my interest in May, our compelling protagonist.

The book takes place in some sort of alternate historical setting during the later years of the Tudor period, which was an intriguing choice. This fantasy, vaguely medieval English land of ‘Angland’ is ruled over by a ‘Queen Bethany’ (loosely based upon Elizabeth I, I believe) and follows a reimagined version of Anglicanism (I think). Meanwhile the rest of the world seems to be the same as ours, for example the Jews, Hebrew and Greek languages, and the Norman prince.

The Angland setting and the role of Sin Eaters felt quite realistic, being especially convincing when Campisi subtly kneads familiar myths and legends to fit in with the cultural figure of the Sin Eater. For example, Eve is essentially the Devil, the witch in Hansel and Gretel’s story is an old Sin Eater, and Jack and Jill feature an Eating after Jack’s (fatal) fall – an Eating being the ritual consumption of foods symbolic of myriad sins, laid atop one’s coffin. The world-building was generally done quite well, though on occasion there was some exposition-heavy dialogue. The quasi-English setting was absorbing, so sometimes it was a bit jarring to be reminded of the ‘regular’ historical setting outside of Angland. I’m still not entirely sure why Campisi decided to do a semi-fantastical historical narrative instead of a Tudor period alternate history or creating a totally fictional country.

May was a well-written character with an arc centred around regaining agency in a world that has repeatedly stripped her of it. I think May is autistic too which I don’t think is a particularly common character representation in historical fiction/fantasy, let alone in the protagonist. Speaking of diversity, one of the supporting characters, Paul, reads like he might be gay and I believe a couple of characters appearing near the end are gay too. Just a gut feeling. As May would say, ‘The belly knows.’

This story is gritty and doesn’t shy away from showing some of the darker underbelly of society and court dealings, so don’t expect any fanciful medieval romance here. I actually liked that there wasn’t a love interest – May’s got a pretty full plate (literally) running around trying to fulfil her Sin Eater duties and catch one (or more) murderers. I will say though that there is romantic potential, if Campisi decides to write a sequel!

Following the buildup of the murder mystery, the ending felt a little anti-climactic and over too fast, but on the bright side I definitely didn’t guess who the killer was. I like open endings, but if this is a standalone then I feel a little unsatisfied. There’s a lot of plot thread still left unspooled and several characters who I’d like to see again, so hopefully one day Campisi may revisit the Sin Eater’s world and tell another story…

From the part of this book that I could read, it was absolutely my thing. However, I had technical issues and the sentences were muddled up on my Kindle. I struggled for a while but it became too distracting. I will definitely try to read this in print.

This book was advertised to me as being like the Handmaid's Tale or Wolf's Creek, but it's so different. It's an incredibly creepy novel which I usually don't like but this was absolutely amazing. I loved May, her life seemed so real, she was realy fleshed out and I loved the story

Fourteen year old orphan May Owens steals a loaf of bread. For this she is sentenced to be a sin eater, someone who eats the sins of the dead. Each sin has a different food. Sin eaters are outcasts, seen as a necessary evil, they are only allowed to speak in the rooms of the dead or dying. Otherwise they must remain silent. May is sent to live with an older sin eater. Together they do their job until one day they are summoned to the Royal apartments where the old sin eater refuses to eat a deer heart on the coffin. For this she is pressed to death. May eats the heart and vows to find out what it stands for and to avenge the death of the woman she has come to see as her protector.

I loved this book. It's set in Elizabethan times but everything is slightly changed. Queen Elizabeth is Bethany, her half sister, Mary becomes Maris, God is the Maker, Catholics are Eucharistians and so on. This gives a wonderful other worldly feeling to the narration. It's history, just not quite how we know it. May is a brilliant protagonist. Alone in the world, illiterate and with no family she is resourceful and courageous. Her trials are many and she meets some interesting characters on the way. The ending is very satisfactory and leaves the door open for a sequel. Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC.

The Sin Eater is based on a intriguing concept. I was fascinated to know that sin eaters really existed in some parts of the world, and reading about the whole idea of eating different foods to absolve the dying of their sins was interesting, although very dark and twisted. The prejudice faced by them broke my heart and made it a some what difficult read.

The character of May was quite relatable and endearing, even as the story takes place in an alternate history. Forced into a life of utter loneliness and mind-numbing prejudice, she gradually learns her way through her new social setting. Her loneliness was heart-wrenching, making her latch on to any human contact that comes her way. It was a small reassurance that she was not completely alone, and found some company and friendship in the older Sin Eater as well as other social outcasts.

I would have enjoyed the book more if it was written less like a non-fiction narrative. It was evident that the author wished to throw light on the patriarchal society and the horrors of the life of a female sin eater, but the narrative got repetitive very soon. The underlying mystery was a good relief, but the pacing of it was uneven - building very slowly and then ending too soon.

The book is compared to The Handmaid's Tale, which is definitely not fair, in my opinion. I could see the narration style Campisi was going for is similar to The Handmaid's Tale, but Offred's internal dialogue was a much more important part of the book.

Overall, an interesting concept with an engaging mystery.