If you enjoy Historical fact based novels then the Sin Eater is one to definitely add to your reading list.
There is a wealth of stories covering this period but I have never come across a Sin Eater before.
Megan Campisi cleverly weaves the story of May Owens and how she is forced into becoming a Sin Eater (a necessary role at this time but shunned by all society) in with a Royal intrigue. The Royal intrigue will be familiar to readers of novels based in this era even though the names used by Megan are different.
The Sin Eater also includes characters from the lower ends of society often not represented in any detail by authors and so you learn more about life as it was for many, not just the Royal Court.

I was given a copy of the Sin Eater by NetGalley and the publishers in return for an unbiased review.

This was such a delight! From cover and premise to the execution - what a great find! Excellent writing, the use of archaic words, the imagination behind the whole sin eating, the wonderful main character, and it even made me laugh a few times. More of this please!

I thoroughly enjoyed this book. I am a great lover of historical fiction and this was right up my street! I loved the whole notion of the Sin Eater, a part of history I never knew before, and how she ate the sins of other people to absolve them of their misdemeanours.
The story revolves around May Owens, a girl given a horrific sentence of becoming a sin eater, merely for stealing a loaf of bread. We follow her as she learns her trade and comes to terms with the terrible life she has to deal with. She watch how she loses people time and time again but grows in confidence as the story develops.
The story has a variety of twists and turns that keep you entertained, along with the day-in-day-out rituals of death in "Tudor England". The setting is slighted obscured, part reality, part fantasy, the Queen is Bethany (Elizabeth 1) who has taken over from her sister Maris (Mary Tudor) with the country torn about religion and fear of the authorities. It was cleverly interweaved with real events disguised as fictional events. I really enjoyed this aspect of the novel

I would throughly recommend this for anyone who likes historical fiction, particular Tudor novels. I would love to see a sequel to see where May's adventure takes her next.

Well, I LOVED this one! I went in knowing almost nothing about the premise, and that is definitely the best way. I was obsessed! It's dark, twisty and, quite often, really creepy. I loved the alternative Elizabethan period, and thought it was done really well. May was such a fascinating character, and I would love there to be a sequel. I also wanted a bit more of what happened to her prior to her becoming a Sin Eater. Definitely one of my favourite books from the last couple of months.

I think I've finally accepted that historical fiction is a massive mixed bag kind of genre for me. It's either going to be absolutely glorious and I'm going to feel like I'm in an, admittedly very stylised version of a time period or I'm going to be sitting here thinking, oh my god this is so boring, when will it end and why does the author not sound natural with the voice???

This wasn't an enjoyable book for me. I had hoped for something darker, more decadent and I just didn't get it which left me feeling really disappointed even though it was kind of my own fault.

I had envisioned what I wanted from this title and with every second of me not getting it, the disappointment just grew. Happens sometimes, but it doesn't make it less annoying.

I do think though, that from what some of my friends feel about historical fiction like this, that a lot of people will close this book feeling satisfied.

So I thought this was going to be a fantasy book from what I’d read about sin eaters before but it’s more historical fiction. Sin Eaters are women who have been given the task to hear all the sins of a person before they die, and eat all the coresponding food over their coffins. They’re forced into this, are branded on their tongue and a locked necklace as well as having to become mute (you must only speak to a Sin Eater before your death). So our main character is forced into being a Sin Eater as she steals some food at the start of the book.

The book is set in what feels like Tudor England but the royal family’s names have been altered, and there’s a slightly different story line than the real history. However, I think this is on purpose because the summary on Wordery does say it’s Elizabeth I’s Era. I liked the clear links to the era, and before I even read up about the book I did think it sounded like Elizabeth and Mary Queen of Scots. As I’ve read and enjoyed other books in this time period, I was enjoying the little hints I could pick up from it.

The book then follows May as she struggles with learning to become a Sin Eater, but she starts to live with the only other one in her town. Soon a mystery occurs where one of the Royal court dies and a food symbolic of a sin that wasn’t admitted to the Sin Eaters is placed upon the coffin. This particular part of the book steals the ony person in May’s life away once again, as she refuses to eat what was not confessed. May’s whole story also hinges on this moment as if she had also refused it could be possible that the court would investigate rather than kill the sin eater… it’s also a part of her grief that she believes she could have saved her only friend. This was all written so well into May’s character and it kept driving her forward to uncover the mystery behind it.

On top of the main mystery of who put the extra food on the coffin (and why?) we uncover so many different secrets that only a Sin Eater could. Because May cannot speak to others (and others will often run if she tried to speak to them) she’s seen as less than others. She can get to any part of the town and palace as the guards won’t talk to stop her, and even when she’s in sight of people they will gossip and trade their own secrets. This is one of the reasons why I liked May as our main character as she’s really nothing like the characters I usually read about. She’s not fighting for a larger cause here, she’s just the only person who could find this out and she wants to go ahead and live her life.

The only bad thing about this is that May doesn’t really have any link to the story and mysteries she’s finding out about. There’s maybe one thing which kind of links her… however it is quite loosely. On the other hand, May does have mysteries about herself to uncover too. She’s always been her fathers daughter, and she stayed with him until he died. However her mother’s side of the family did try kidnapping her for a time when she was small. I enjoyed the storyline of finding out more about May and her family, and I loved the closure May gained from it. From already becomer stronger, I found this to be a point where she shined as being more mature than at the start of the book.

Multiple people who are also shunned/outcasts come to live with the Sin Eater and whilst she is still an outcast within this group, there’s a sense of found family at times. This is a huge strength at a pivotal moment of the story too. Whilst May didn’t really talk to anyone after becoming a Sin Eater she was still able to form some kind of bond to the people she shared her home with, and I liked how throughout the book her thoughts on this change too.

Overall I really enjoyed this murder mystery historical fiction despite expecting a fantasy book. I’ll be keeping my eye out for more books from Megan Campisi I think.

Positives of Sin Eater
Mysteries were interesting
character developemtn
Negatives of Sin Eater
MC doesn’t seem linked to bigger story

This was one of my most anticipated releases of 2020, and it absolutely did not disappoint. Hard hitting, informative and engaging, this piece of historical fiction is so powerful, and draws attention to a practice that few people know about now.
Looking at what must have been horrifying in a religious age through the lives of the central characters, it is amazing how well the author has balanced creativity and research into one spectacular novel. Even the difficult pages were wonderful to read, and I found myself whizzing through the book. My highest recommendations come with this.

This is quite an unusual book, unlike any of the Tudor-based fiction I have read before. I had not heard of sin eaters, although apparently this was a custom then for women to eat food on the death of a person in order to expatiate their sins.

The language used is very unusual (although I did pick up American influences occasionally). I had never heard of historical characters given such odd names, or God being referred to solely as the Maker, but it was believable. It was fun identifying the various characters from her descriptions.

Overall it is an interesting tale, with the sin eater's quest to discover who is threatening the queen and to right the miscarriage of justice perpetrated on her predecessor. It was also nice to see a book written from the perspective of a very ordinary person.

I enjoyed it. Thank you to NetGalley and Pan Macmillan and Mantle for allowing me access to the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Such an interesting premise this book! I have always been fascinated with the stories of Sin Eaters. I adored the Heath Ledger film on the same subject so was interested in this take from Megan Campisi.

This story takes place in Elizabethan England though not quite as we know it. The stories are the same with the royals but their names are slightly different.

May is a young girl who has fallen on hard times after the passing of her father. She steals a loaf of bread and is caught and arrested. While waiting her sentence with other young women and girls, she is passed over for being sentenced. She waits as more girls leave and new ones arrived until one day her sentence is passed. She is to become a Sin Eater.

Sin Eaters in this story are always women. They are branded on their tongue with a tattoo of the letter ‘S’ and a brass collar is locked into their neck bearing the same letter. They are forever marked and will be forever shunned. Forced to live secluded, mute lives, take no lovers or bear children and forced to take on the sins of everyone they are called to. It’s a terrible sentence.

With May now the new Sin Eater, she is shunned as people believe her to be a bad omen, with nowhere to go, she finds herself at the doorstep of the current Sin Eater from whom she must learn her craft. Each sin is equal to a food which has to be consumed by the Sin Eater to take that sin away from the dying.

They are called to an eating at the Palace, they are shocked to see a Deer heart on the coffin of the deceased. The Sin Eater refuses to eat the heart as it was not a recited sin. The deer heart symbolises murder. She is taken away and May is told to complete the eating or face being arrested too.

Embroiled in a murder plot at the palace, May finds herself alone after her mentor is killed. She’s weighed down with the burden of solving this puzzle to give peace to her mentor who refused to swallow a lie.

It is a dark macabre and oftentimes quite a hard story to read with how these women are treated. Despite losing her voice, May never loses her spirit and finds a way to persevere.

The ending rocked me, it wasn’t something I was quite expecting but it makes the book all the more better.

An Intriguingly dark novel, full of twists and complications where the measure of your life is weighed by your sins which are to be consumed by those condemned. Brilliant.

Thank you Netgalley for the copy to review.

I requested this book thinking, 'hmm, sounds interesting' but I did not expect it to be, quite frankly, amazing.

This is a sort of dark whimsical feel that I love, I can see why it was compared with Alice in Wonderland but it is this parallel of Queen Elizabeth I and Queen Mary and Christianity. There's supposed witchcraft, there's faith, and there's the Sin Eater.

The job of the sin eater is to take on the sins physically through food and in the eyes of the Maker so that those dying and dead can return to the Maker's side while the sin eater, always a she, is at the right hand of Eve. Sometimes though if the sin eater does all that is asked of her, she's able to rise up to the Maker as well. But, when the newest sin eater is left without her mentor and forced to unravel a mystery at the heart of the Queen's reign, being a sin eater is far more dangerous than it has ever been.

I loved our sin eater, she's young, determined and so vulnerable and human. I loved watching her struggle and continuously try to overcome everything put against her.

The story gives a long hard look at a job that is necessary and goes unspoken of, like so many jobs today, and the story of women and those on the outskirts of society.

I adored Campisi's writing style and her story is one that I would love to get lost in several more times, the sin eater was a superb read for me.

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for an eARC of this book in exchange for my honest opinion. 5/5 cups of coffee from me!

Unusual title and unusual story, May very young child really at the tender age of 14yrs steals a loaf of bread because she is poor and hungry and then arrested for her crime along with a lot of other young beings. When her sentence is to be heard they don't get a lawyer to speak for them so the sentence is handed down to them and for May her sentence is to become a Sin Eater a person who absolves and takes on the sins of the dying so that they go towards the heavens. She not only has a collar around her neck with an S sign she also gets her tongue tattooed with an S, and each type of sin is taken in the form of different foods, at least this way she gets to eat, but it not always that simple she has no one to talk to and is shunned unless asked for an eating, and one place she does not like going is the castle where the reigning queen is very temperamental, but when called upon she keeps her head down and does her job, only to find she is going there too often so something is amiss. The author has done a good job on this unusual novel, in itself is a good interesting storyline, good customer build and well written although I did finish it I did struggle as I now realize that it really is not my preferred genre but different nonetheless. Many thanks to Netgalley and Pan MacMillan for a copy of this novel to read and I have given an honest opinion.

A richly woven tapestry of mystery, deception, and belonging in a gripping coming-of-age story.

I rarely branch out of my comfort zone to read fantasy books but I gave this one a go because it had historical elements that I thought would root it into realism. It ended up being a perfect mix and I thoroughly enjoyed the story.

In a fit of desperation, May steals a loaf of bread to alleviate some of her aching hunger. She's immediately caught and sentenced to become a sin eater. Apprenticed to an elder sin eater, May must listen to the dying confess their sins and then absolve them after death, where she will consume each sin represented by a different type of food. When a non-confessed food is laid on the coffin of the Queen's governess, the elder sin eater refuses to eat and is thrown in the dungeons. Though new to the role, May knows something suspicious is happening in the underbelly of the castle and is determined to solve the mystery. But at what price?

There was so much about this book that I loved. I loved all the context surrounding sin eating as it was something I'd never heard of before. It was such a brilliant premise for the book and central to the events that unfolded.

There were some parts that I wasn't sure I understood but then everything came together and explained away any questions I had. I didn't guess any of the plot twists and thought they were very well executed.

The readability was a little stunted at times for me which I think was a mixture of archaic language (intentional to reflect the era), multiple characters, and quite a lot going on.

Although there were a lot of characters, I felt each played a pivotal role in the story. It was confusing at times when May referred to some as a nickname (Black Fingers, Country Mouse, Painted Pig, etc.) but I felt that this made a strong distinction between the highborn and the everyfolk.

The ending really swayed everything for me. It's been so long since I read a book where I loved the ending. Although it wasn't what I was expecting, I thought it was the perfect way for the book to finish.

Thank you to Netgalley for sending me a digital copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Megan Campisi’s unusual first novel is based around the historical concept of sin eating: the idea that a person close to death could call on a ‘Sin Eater’ to spiritually take on their sins. The dying person would do this by confessing to the Sin Eater, who would then consume a ritual meal consisting of a different type of food to represent each transgression. As you can imagine, this is not a pleasant job and certainly not something most people would want to do…but May Owens, the fourteen-year-old narrator of the novel, has no choice in the matter. After being arrested for stealing a loaf of bread, she is sentenced to live as a Sin Eater for the rest of her life.

With that sentence, everything changes for May. Overnight, she has become a social outcast. She is exiled to live alone on the edge of town and is forbidden to speak or be spoken to, except when listening to a confession. The heavy brass collar she is forced to wear around her neck, marked with an ‘S’, identifies her as someone to be avoided at all costs. It’s a lonely and miserable life, but May is a strong and resilient person and tries to carry out her work to the best of her ability.

Early in the novel, May accompanies another Sin Eater to the royal court to hear the deathbed confession of one of the Queen’s ladies. However, when the ritual meal is prepared, an extra item of food – the heart of a deer – is included, although it does not represent any of the sins confessed by the lady. What does the heart mean and who put it there? When another courtier falls ill and the same thing happens again, May decides to investigate.

By now you’re probably wondering about the time period in which this story is set. Well, it’s Elizabethan England – but not quite. Instead of Queen Elizabeth, Queen Bethany is on the throne, and her half-sister – the previous queen – was not Mary, but Maris. Bethany’s father did have six wives, but he was Harold II rather than Henry VIII. God is The Maker and England is Angland.

Megan Campisi states in her author’s note that the story is ‘spun out of fantasy’ and I can understand that using a fictitious setting rather than a real one would have given her more freedom to tell the story without needing to stick too closely to historical fact. It also gives the novel a bit of a fairy tale feel, as does the way most of the other characters are referred to not by names but by nicknames such as ‘Country Mouse’, ‘Willow Tree’ or ‘Fair Hair’. Sadly, though, I didn’t think any of these intriguing-sounding secondary characters really came to life; May herself was the only one who felt believable. And I’m afraid I found the thinly-disguised parallels with the Elizabethan court irritating; I think the story would have worked just as well set either at the real Elizabethan court or in an entirely fictional world.

Despite not enjoying this book as much as I’d hoped to, I do think the concept was fascinating and I can honestly say that I’ve never read anything quite like it!

I loved the historical aspect of this story, set in a fictional version of Queen Elizabeth I's reign we follow May a 14 year old girl who is sentenced for a minor crime to become a sin eater and then discovers a much more intricate and serious crime is being committed inside the Palace.

I thought the sin eater aspect of this was fascinating - all sins that could be committed in a lifetime are assigned a food, before dying you recite your sins, the sin eater eats the corresponding food and takes on your sins to allow you to get into heaven.

The motley crew of characters who gave May some company throughout the book added humour and life to an otherwise bleak future for her and I hope after the way it was left open at the end that we will be seeing a sequel.

As with Elizabethan history and fiction this one is gruesome and gory in parts but nothing not in keeping with history.

The Sin Eater is a fantastic concept – set in an alternate 16th century history which has ties and nods to real life but will still appease fantasy readers. The whole idea of having Sins tied to different foods and them being confessed on deathbed and eaten by a woman who is seen as a pariah is a strong one and the world building is top rate. I had no idea until I sat down to write this review that this was actually a real-life historical Welsh practice and I applaud the author for taking a real piece of history, exploring it in detail and bringing it to the attention of a contemporary reader. I would have perhaps liked a little more explanation on the foods and why certain foods were picked but as May is quite new to the practice this gap in the knowledge is in keeping with her character.

May is a great character with a few odd quirks – as she is mute for most of the book, the author has found a good way to convey her feelings and question her surroundings. She has a tendency to ask questions to inanimate objects and imagine their replies which works well. She also gives nicknames to certain characters instead of using their names which does work well on occasion but I must admit I did get a little lost when the main ‘whodunnit’ style of plot was explored as there is less consistency on who characters are. The plot is good in theory as a serial killer murders members of court and plants food at their confessional eating to frame them for crimes. However in execution I found it a little confusing and I actually wanted to explore more of the job itself and May’s backstory rather than the events unfolding around the over-arching theme. I would love another instalment of May’s adventures but this is very much a standalone book with a contained ending.

Overall The Sin Eater is a fantastic concept that has stayed with me after reading - highly recommended. Thank you to NetGalley & Pan Macmillan – Mantle for the chance to read the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

"The Sin Eater walks among us,⠀ Unseen, Unheard⠀
Sins of our flesh become sins of Hers Following Her to the grave"⠀
⠀
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. ⠀
⠀
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. ⠀
⠀
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. ⠀
⠀
⠀

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.