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Start giftingSin Eater
A Novel
Bookseller recommendation
“I loved this book! Even though it was grim and I felt so horrible for May, it was beautifully written and I keep thinking about it weeks after reading it. I listened to it as an audiobook and it was fantastic. I cannot recommend this book enough.”
— Realy Ann • Rediscovered Books
Bookseller recommendation
“Here is an original captivating piece of historical fiction that will stay with you long after; beautifully narrated on audio.”
— Jane • Rediscovered Books
Bookseller recommendation
“Part Elizabethan retelling, part dystopian fantasy, this is a story of finding the line between self preservation and sacrifice for the greater good, of claiming the power that hides in being powerless. A striking social commentary of both past and present, Sin Eater is sure to enrapture and unravel readers, as well as provoking a good deal of self reflection in the pursuit of supposed righteous morality. What does it mean to be free? Only you can choose that.”
— Britt • Second Star to the Right
Bookseller recommendation
“Sin Eater takes a little-known historical role and expands it in this imaginative novel set in an alternate Elizabethan England. For stealing a loaf of bread, teenage orphan May is forced to become a sin eater—shackled with a metal collar proclaiming her status to all she meets and with a black "S" tattooed on her tongue. Shunned by society, sin eaters must only speak to the dying, who tell them their sins. Each sin corresponds with a food item—raisins for adultery, mustard seeds for lies, etc. By eating the "sins," the sin eater takes them on as their own, releasing the dead person's soul. At first distraught from the isolation and contempt her new lot in life brings, May gradually realizes that it isn't without its benefits. One of those benefits is access to the court of Queen Bethany (a thinly veiled Queen Elizabeth I), where courtesans are being murdered and accusations of witchcraft are flying. Fans of Uprooted, Spinning Silver, and Godshot will find similar themes in this fast-paced, high-stakes adventure.”
— Haley • Phinney Books
Bookseller recommendation
“Oh my. Megan Campisi’s Sin Eater completely took me by surprise. It is a wholly unique combination of fantasy, mystery, and historical fiction. Filled with intriguing characters and vivid imagery, this inventive tale will immerse readers in the deceit and intrigue of the royal court. Campisi’s narrator is what really sets this novel apart — the sin eater, a woman called to hear the sins of the dying and consume the foods that represent them. A dark, thrilling read!”
— Anderson McKean • Page and Palette
“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 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).
Megan Campisi is a playwright, novelist, and teacher. Her plays have been performed in China, France, and the United States. She attended Yale University and L’École International de Théâtre Jacques Lecoq. The author of Sin Eater, she lives in Brooklyn, New York, with her family.