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The Sin Eater

By: Megan Campisi
Narrated by: Shiromi Arserio
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Publisher's Summary

Set in a thinly disguised sixteenth-century England, Megan Campisi's The Sin Eater is a wonderfully rich story of treason and treachery; of women, of power, and the strange freedom that comes from being an outcast – because, sometimes, being a nobody sometimes counts for everything . . .

'A dark and thrilling page-turner that turns a dystopian eye on the past in an unnervingly contemporary way' - Emma Donoghue, author of Room.


A Sin Eater’s duty is a necessary evil: she hears the confessions of the dying, eats their sins as a funeral rite. Stained by these sins, she is shunned and silenced, doomed to live in exile at the edge of town.

Recently orphaned May Owens is just fourteen, only concerned with where her next meal is coming from. When she’s arrested for stealing a loaf of bread, however, and subsequently sentenced to become a Sin Eater, finding food is suddenly the last of her worries.

It’s a devastating sentence, but May’s new invisibility opens new doors. And when first one then two of the Queen’s courtiers suddenly grow ill, May hears their deathbed confessions – and begins to investigate a terrible rumour that is only whispered of amid palace corridors . . .

Can you uncover the truth when you’re forbidden from speaking it?

©2020 Simon & Schuster (P)2020 Simon & Schuster

Critic Reviews

Rich with imaginative and historical details, The Sin Eater is ultimately a timeless story of one woman regaining her power. I loved it from beginning to end (Christina Dalcher, author of Vox)

What listeners say about The Sin Eater

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An enjoyable listen

Perfect for fans of historical fiction with well developed female protagonists.
The mystery in the plot may leave a little to be desired, but it’s still an enjoyable journey.

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Love

A newly orphaned teenager was caught stealing bread and was handed the sentence of becoming a Sin Eater.

I loved how historical and informative this story was. I learned so much about the actual job title of being a sin eater, the rites and items they have to consume to absolve the dying of their sins, being the physical embodiment of taboo and the power being a social pariah holds.

On top of the macabre air The Sin Eater storyline revelled in, the book has a monarchic subplot that was a tad bit confusing and elaborate. Granted, all monarchies are not without deception and death. All in all, The Sin Eater was a revelatory novel, exciting and pleasurable that sated my morbid cravings.

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