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The Sin-Eater's Confession (2013)

by Ilsa J. Bick(Favorite Author)

3.56 of 5 Votes: 2

ISBN

0761356878 (ISBN13: 9780761356875)

languge

English

genre

Young Adult Fiction

publisher

Carolrhoda Books

review 1: Finally! A four star read. Well, actually it's more like 3.5 stars for the lack of a proper ending. (When I read a mystery/thriller book, I expect to know "who dun it" by the end of the book. I appreciated with Bick was trying to do with the ambiguous ending, but appreciating and liking are two different things.) Minus the ending, this book had a lot of good things going for it. First, there was a strong protagonist voice. A rarity inside YA fiction. While I didn't actually like Ben as a character (nor do I think you were supposed to) I was impressed at how much Isla J. Bick brought us into his head. His struggles, his guilt, and the slow rise of his paranoia and mental instability was fascinating to read about. The other characters in the book however, while fleshed out... more and decently written didn't hold any particular interest to me. The Sin-Eater's Confession though is a book driven by its plot, not by its side cast. Usually books like that aren't my cup of tea but I couldn't help but being drawn into this one despite that. The plot was both suspenseful and engaging, the atmosphere reminiscent of "I Hunt Killers" one of my favorite thriller/suspense YA novels. The gore level, and amount of disturbing description of dead bodies was also present in The Sin-Eater's Confession as well. (the fly eggs in the hollow sockets of the victims eyes was a real stomach churner - looks like Bick might give Lyga a run for his money.) This book had me on the edge of my seat almost all the way through and is the only read this year that thoroughly and utterly grossed me out. Thank Bick, you have added a new depth of nastiness to dead bodies. Overall, an engaging and fascinating read with a good premise and excellent first person narration. 3.5 stars.
review 2: This is intense and compelling. Bick created a scenario that’s so stressful and incredible, but also very plausible. I didn’t care for how things play out, but I do think it’s realistic that it could have happened that way. I appreciated that we knew Ben was alive and in the military from the beginning; otherwise I don’t think I could have handled the anxiety of thinking something bad would happen to him. less

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