From back of book: In the walled city of Kos, purity is exalted, but cleansing wrongdoings comes at a cost. Corrupt mages can magically extract sin from a sinner in the form of sin-beasts -lethal creatures spawned from feelings of guilt. Young sin-eaters, known as aki, are indentured by the mages to slay the beasts. Seventeen-year-old Taj in the most talented of the aki, but his livelihood comes with dangerous consequences. When he kills a sin-beast, a tattoo of the beast stains his skin while the guilt of committing the sin appears in his mind. Most aki are driven mad by the process, but Taj is cocky and desperate to provide for his family. When Taj is called to eat the sin of a royal, he faces off against the most fearsome beast he's ever encountered. And the battle doesn't end at the beast's demise. The sin opens Taj's eyes to a dark conspiracy. There is someone in the palace plotting to destroy Kos. Now Taj must fight to save his homeland- and his own life.
