Try free for 30 days

1 credit a month to buy any audiobook in our entire collection.
Access to thousands of additional audiobooks and Originals from the Plus Catalogue.
Member-only deals & discounts.
Auto-renews at $16.45/mo after 30 days. Cancel anytime.

Penitence

By: Kristin Koval
Narrated by: Thérèse Plummer
Pre-order free with Premium Plus

$16.45 per month after 30 days. Cancel anytime.

Pre-order for $28.95

Pre-order for $28.95

Pay using voucher balance (if applicable) then card ending in
By confirming your purchase, you agree to Audible's Conditions Of Use and Privacy Notice and authorise Audible to charge your designated credit card or another available credit card on file.

Publisher's Summary

For fans of Ann Patchett and Celeste Ng, Penitence is a poignant exploration of love and forgiveness. It’s a suspenseful, addictive thriller filled with literary insight that compels listeners to consider whether the worst thing we’ve ever done is all that defines us.

When a shocking murder occurs in the home of Angie and David Sheehan, their lives are shattered. Desperate to defend their family, they turn to small-town lawyer Martine Dumont for help, but Martine isn’t just legal counsel—she’s also the mother of Angie’s first love, Julian, a now-successful New York City criminal defense attorney. As Julian and Angie confront their shared past and long-buried guilt from a tragic accident years ago, they must navigate their own culpability and the unresolved feelings between them.

Spanning decades, from the ski slopes of rural Colorado to the streets of pre-9/11 New York City and back again, Kristin Koval’s debut novel Penitence is an examination of the complexities of familial loyalty, the journey of redemption, and the profound experience of true forgiveness.

©2025 Kristin Koval (P)2025 Macmillan Audio

Critic Reviews

“This story begins with a shocking act of violence but unfolds into a tender story of family, long-held secrets, and what ifs. Penitence is both a gripping page-turner and a loving exploration of what it really means to forgive.”—Mary Beth Keane, bestselling author of Ask Again, Yes and The Half Moon

“Big-hearted, bold, and deftly plotted, Penitence tells a shocking tale of fratricide against the backdrop of two families linked by love, chance, and tragedy. I couldn’t put it down. Kristin Koval emerges as a remarkable new voice in fiction.”—Adrienne Brodeur, bestselling author of Little Monsters and Wild Game

"Deeply humane, spiky, yearning, heartfelt, rendered in brisk and often stunning prose, Kristin Koval's Penitence poses so many rich and complicated questions about where and how guilt lives."—Lynn Steger Strong, author of Flight

What listeners say about Penitence

Average Customer Ratings

Reviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.

In the spirit of reconciliation, Audible acknowledges the Traditional Custodians of country throughout Australia and their connections to land, sea and community. We pay our respect to their elders past and present and extend that respect to all Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples today.