Following her previous international hit, Tender is the Flesh, Agustina Bazterrica returns to allegorical dystopian fiction in The Unworthy. However, she diverges significantly from the liminal speculation of the former work, instead here plopping readers into a bleak future that slowly unravels into something familiar and perhaps, less distant than one can hope. Unfortunately, this approach comes at the expense of the novel's worldbuilding and character development and left me struggling with this one despite my interest in its unique blend of nunsploitation and eco-horror. Moreso than Bazterrica's last novel, I'd think this may appeal to fans of This Is How You Lose the Time War - sapphic sci-fi driven by first-person prose which leans heavily into verse.

Quel roman dérangeant et dévastateur qui dégoûte puis donne envie de pleurer. Le livre se déroule dans une alliance religieuse qui est gouvernée par un dictateur comme une « sœur » qui punit physiquement, torture et humilie quiconque ne respecte pas ses règles. Ils font tout cela au nom d'un homme divin qui vit là et que personne à part les Éclairés n'a vu.

With so much horror, torture, extreme religion and even a love story, this one captured me from the get go. What a torturous, sad but beautiful work.

So, I have long been obsessed with the fiction of Agustina Bazterrica. The Argentine writer has published some of the best horror works of the past 30 years, including "Nineteen Claws and a Black Bird" (short story collection), "Tender is the Flesh" (novel) and "The Unworthy" as well. It's -- she is amazing. So when I herd that Bazterrica had a new novel coming out and that it involves nun horror, I was like OMG yes, sign me up please.

Basically, the story is that a woman writes her story when she's in a convent as part of this Sacred Sisterhood. She's looked upon lowly but dreams that one day she can be one of the top people there, the Enlightened. But it's also at a time when the world is immersed in catastrophes like a "Mad Max" thing. Then, there's a stranger who joins up and the two of them get closer. They also have to figure out yes, but what does being Enlightened mean?

Bazterrica's writing has the unique gift of being short and to the point, visceral, but with breaks of lyricalness. If your jam is horror novels set in creepy, cloistered convent or church places and Catholic imagery, you're going to love this book. It's also very much in the style of someone who is writing and chronicling their experiences of what happened so that someday, someone will know the truth of what went on here, and what it was like to write this during apocalyptic survival times. The atmosphere is so lush and transports the reader there. It's one of the things I loved most about this book.

The other major running undercurrent to the book is the notion that Mariel is definitely an unreliable narrator. We want to trust her as the reader, but there's things and lines crossed out, and other aspects where you kind of get the sensation that you're not getting the entire truth or you're getting a version of the truth.

Overall, highly recommended. I think this book is going to scratch a lot of itches for horror fans who love this particular vibe, and more feminist horror. Brava!

This was my second read from Agustina Bazterrica and I could NOT put it down.

We are introduced to a nameless narrator who is a member of a mysterious guarded covent, "cult", after the outside world has fallen into a post apocalyptic state due to climate chaos.

The unnamed narrator is apart of the Sacred Sisterhood, in which she has been labeled as an Unworthy, dreaming of her life as being amongst the Enlightened. One day, a stranger makes her way inside the walls of the covent and begins a relationship with the narrator. The stranger forces the narrator to remember the gruelling details of life before she found herself trapped within the Sisterhood, forcing the two to examine the extremist views of the Sacred Sisterhood.

I will admit I was a bit confused for the first 10 pages or so, but immediately after I could not take myself out of this story. The Unworthy analyzes extreme ideologies, climate crisis and relationships. Most horror I find begins very strong but usually runs a bit too long and loses its initial shock, however, The Unworthy could have been longer in my opinion. It was the perfect balance of horror and gore with a critique on systems that many of us question today.

For feedback, the word 'envelope' or 'enveloped' was overused!!!

Having the opportunity, the pleasure, and the privilege of reading an advanced digital copy of Agustina Bazterrica’s upcoming novel “The Unworthy” is a very exciting thing. I was completely floored and absolutely mesmerized by Bazterrica’s sensational novel “Tender is the Flesh” that it stayed with me for months after reading it.

Full disclosure upfront, I was raised as a practicing Catholic, and some of my worst childhood fears and nightmares have religious connotations to them. That did not stop me from thoroughly enjoying novels with religious backdrops, stories of exorcisms and hauntings, even if some of them caused me nightmares as a grown adult. Although that may make me slightly more receptive to religious plots and settings, it does not deter me from being able to objectively review the quality of religion-based storytelling.

Bazterrica sets the scene quickly in The Unworthy. The story is told as the narrator writes a personal journal. We are privy to uncanny descriptions and justifications of the ways and beliefs of an isolated sisterhood following world-changing events. There’s a poetry to this setup that resonates and stays with you. I can only imagine how captivating it must be in its original language, but kudos to the translator for such excellent work in making the English version so rich and vivid.

There’s a constant aura floating around between the narrator’s words and what is left unsaid and unexplained that further adds to the otherworldly religious setting. The use of strikeout also significantly contributes to the storytelling and adds an extra layer of depth to the creepiness. It gives the reader a sense of being privy to the narrator’s thoughts and feelings, especially the unauthorized ones in this overly strict and rigid Holy place.

The sense of urgency, of secrecy, and of the all-knowing all-mighty is omnipresent throughout this book. The setting is so perfectly and powerfully depicted that it blurs the lines between being the backdrop and being an actual character in the story. Its contribution to the story is quite simply remarkable and really adds to the understanding of what may have transpired, and the extent of how iconic symbols and meanings have changed.

Bazterrica is also a master at describing the mood so well that you also share the narrator’s sense of impending doom if caught! With The Unworthy, she writes what is both an incredibly haunting religious revisiting as well as an all-too real and relatable ecological disaster tale. I’ve read many great post-apocalyptic stories, but The Unworthy is one of the most timely and impactful ones. The desolation of the past modern world echoes vividly in the narrator’s words.

Given that there are rules to follow when reviewing advanced copies, I cannot provide quotes, which is a shame as there are so many powerfully worded phrases that really resonate. Kudos to both Bazterrica as well as the translator for making the English version so poetically worded. I’m not one to provide quotes in my reviews except when they truly are astounding, and The Unworthy contains so many of them! It’s more than just a reflection on organized religion and a cautionary tale for climate change, it’s a story about power, symbolism, fear and survival.

Agustina Bazterrica has done it again, proving beyond a doubt that the genius and literary prowess of “Tender is the Flesh” was no fluke. The Unworthy will echo in my thoughts for weeks to come, and it’s eerie enough to creep into my nightmares too. I give it a resounding 5 out of 5 stars, and simply cannot wait for Bazterrica’s next novel.

I’m really disappointed. I loved tender is the flesh but didn’t enjoy her short story collection. I assumed that it was because I tend to not be a huge fan of short story collections and novellas but after reading this, I think it’s because the author focuses more on shock value than actual world building, character development or plot. This novella leaves you in the dark for world building. We get minimal world building about why the world is this way and why these people are so convinced that this flagellation and torture is actually helping things. Our unnamed main character is telling the story through diary entries. She claims that she stole paper and ink to write it and no one has noticed yet… yup she knew how to write and they somehow had all these supplies and she was dying to become enlightened. She’s presented as a cruel character but we didn’t get enough background to understand why she’s like this and minimal growth throughout it. That would be fine if we got more world building or plot but both were not there. Our plot was just people getting tortured. This isn’t one I can recommend because of how far it missed the mark for me unfortunately.

2.5 rounded up. The Unworthy follows our unnamed protagonist as she navigates her role in the Sacred Sisterhood, a convent bent on less than conventional forms of worship, with a very different deity and uncouth hierarchical systems. They have a focus on pain, torture and keeping the "unworthy" under a very strict leadership, with little exposure to the outside world. This is explored in snippets of recollection by the protagonist as we begin to piece together the fall of civilization, a dystopic world of famine and death outside of the Sacred Sisterhood. The problem with that is, our protagonist cannot remember her life before joining the sisterhood; we are met with an unreliable narrator trying to parse through her own past to see if she can trust the information being told to her. When an outsider enters the convent one day, and develops a close relationship with our protagonist, suddenly her priorities shift and she begins to question her place in this world.

On paper, an excellent concept. In execution, this novel was mildly frustrating to read. The narrative style used keeps readers in the dark along with the MC. For over half of this very short novel, it is difficult to establish what is happening and why. The dreamlike quality of the writing further alienates the reader. What was employed for artistic flourish only inhibits the enjoyment of the novel, making it more of a slog to get through. I found I could not connect with the story, the protagonist the horror of the convent of the dystopic world laid out by the author.

Thank you to Net Galley and Simon & Schuster Canada for providing me with an advanced reader copy of this title in exchange for my honest opinion and thoughts!!

the U N W O R T H Y .
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Dystopian .
Mysterious convent .
Cult .
Feminist horror/literary horror

You are reading the accounts of a woman living at a convent in a distopian world. Within this cult like convent, if you're well-behaved, pure, and chosen, you get the title of the Enlightened. The position comes with special benefits and plenty of the unknown.

Our narrator is willing to sacrifice a lot to change her position of The Unworthy and become an Enlightened.

You see what all the women are capable of sacrificing for this position. It's disturbing, sinister, and absolutely bizarre.

There are moments we get glimpses into our narrators past and a bit more understanding of who she was before the convent.

There is something intoxicating and addicting to be reading her diary, essentially. With makeshift paper, ink, and stolen moments.

The story starts off dark and twisted. Proving the lengths, one might be willing to go for survival and hierarchy in a post-apocalyptic world. This was very suspenseful and couldn't put it down at the 50% mark.

If you enjoy horror/mystery like Midsommer, I think you would love this book.

🦗🐀🐿🩸

Released on March 4th, 2025 .

Thank you, @netgalley & @simonandschuster for this arc!

I'm unfortunately struggling to process this as an e-book, but I will definitely give this another try once I can obtain a physical copy

Disturbingly sad, religious dystopian horror
The main character remains unnamed throughout the story with an ending so abrupt and painful it has you questioning whether the author had more to write or if this could've been added as a short story in the last novel, 19 Claws and a Black Bird
after the MC escapes a cruel wasteland of environmental chaos, she joins the Sacred Sisterhood and deemed an Unworthy and writes her story in broken diary form with scrap paper and ink made from horrific sources
The sacred sisterhood has a weird religious hierarchy, the unworthy have opportunities to be chosen for the Enlightened but all positions seem a version of torment, punishment and sacrifice
When a stranger appears and is chosen as an unworthy the mc starts to change and reveal more about herself, her past and the bounds she creates
please research the content warning! even though this is adult horror, this is one of those times where readers would appreciate content warning pages

Unsettling. but not Uncanny.

I was hoping for something that settled with me more than what I got from this. It was horrifying and gross and uncomfortable, but it was also a bit predictable and I felt like it sometimes took the easy way out. The descriptions of the girls cruelties and the order of their lives is interesting only insofar that it feels shocking and taboo, and our main character, while a compelling voice, doesn't propel any real narrative. This feels more like a slice of life book, than a mystery or a horror, if that life was truly one of the most awful outcomes a girl could ever invent for an apocalyptic setting: organized religion with no oversight or adherence to morality.

The biggest mystery of the book is what happened to the world to get to this state where this cloister seems to be the only shelter from something terrible, but the story treats the biggest mystery as if it is what happens behind the doors to their upper echelon. This is where the book, to me, becomes predictable. A cult story where women are forced to endure horrible punishments and acts of horrifying servitude, led by an terrible, secretive, controlling man? I wonder what could possibly be going on behind the curtain? More abuse? Who would have guessed.

Perhaps I wouldn't be so bitter about the predictability of this if it were adding something new or fresh to the conversation. It doesn't. It's the same, uncomfortable story, told in a way that mostly presents these tidbits of abuse like a shock reveal. It is neither shocking or revealing, so alas, I cannot find it in myself to enjoy any aspect of this book.

Coming off of a 5-star read of Tender is the Flesh, which I still think about nearly a year later, The Unworthy had high expectations to live up to. Unfortunately, while they book is filled with lots of things that would work for me in theory, in practice they just did not add up the way they should.

The Unworthy is the story of an unnamed narrator living in an environmental apocalypse sort of situation in a convent-like fanatical cult of women. What ensues is a kind of religious torture in this place, where very little information on why or even what is occurring is provided. The reader must try to parse and put together the small snippets of details given, and frankly, it's not satisfying. If you are hoping for a great smack in the face ending that Tender is the Flesh had, you will not find it here. This book ends more with a whimper.

All in all, while the writing is lyrical and beautiful even it its grotesquerie, the narrative style and lack of information left me more frustrated than intrigued. Thank you to the publisher and netgalley for an ARC in return for an honest review.

Thank you to NetGalley, Scribner Books, and Agustina Bazterrica for this early read ARC. Publication Date: March 4, 2025

Just wow. This book floored me. Agustina Bazterrica has delivered a dystopian tour de force with The Unworthy, a novel that is as haunting as it is profound. Set in a world destroyed by human greed and ecological collapse, the story centers on a convent of women surviving in a barren wasteland—surviving, that is, as long as they adhere to a brutal set of rules.

Despite its modest length, this novel is anything but small. Every page brims with tension, power, and raw emotion. The protagonist is one of the most vivid, visceral characters I’ve encountered in a long time. Her voice is unflinchingly honest, a conduit for the anguish, loneliness, and numb obedience demanded by her existence. As a member of the Sacred Sisterhood, she worships a nameless, faceless God, her days dictated by fear and ritual. But when a stranger from beyond the convent's fortified walls disrupts her grim routine, she begins to unravel the truth of her past and reclaim the story stolen from her.

Bazterrica masterfully explores themes that resonate deeply in today’s fractured world: climate catastrophe, religious and ideological extremism, and the primal violence lurking within human nature. In its sharp commentary and unrelenting tension, The Unworthy calls to mind the dystopian brilliance of The Handmaid's Tale. Yet, Bazterrica’s work stands on its own, a searing feminist horror that doesn’t shy away from examining the darkest corners of human existence.

This book demands to be read slowly. It’s not a novel you breeze through; it’s one you absorb, word by word, until it sinks into your bones. Its power lies in how it challenges and affects the reader, forcing you to sit with its truths long after the final page. Surrender to the ride, and you will not be disappointed.

Trigger Warnings: This book contains graphic depictions of violence against women and children, as well as the death of animals.

good, not great. had all the elements i enjoy in a book but somehow didn’t hit the mark. the story felt very rushed. i would have liked to spend more time in the story with the characters. i was left wanting more. more character development, more world building, more backstory.

There is a lack of world-building and character development, I was unable to focus enough on the story. I just kept skimming through the pages. I really loved “Tender is the Flesh” so I was hoping I’d enjoy this too, but it wasn’t for me. I was mostly confused while reading and bored.

Bazterrica hits hard with this post-apocalyptic religious horror with a world that is purely violence and possession. Everyone who lives in this world must be violent or they die. The must be obsessively possessive over the few things they have. Even in the safety of the Sacred Sisterhood, young women are mercilessly cruel to each other in hopes that they will no longer be deemed “unworthy” and will be properly taken care of. Although even that means being mutilated into insanity.

This book was visceral, vicious, cruel, revolting, and infectious. I longed to find out how things were going to turn out. While I’ve obviously ready much more intense horror, I enjoyed this one much better than her previous novel as it was more my taste all around.

There's a lot more I want to say about this incredibly affecting novel, but with it being so far out, I'll keep more of my thoughts to myself until release day. That said, I will confirm the Sapphic nature of the book.

WOW.

This book is not for the faint of heart.

The author has a way of writing short but impactful stories that will make you think about it for a long time. I loved the way we learned the main character's story and the way the past and present unfolded. It was hard to read at times, and I had to put it down to take a breather before being able continue. But this was a good thing for a book that is about uneasy subjects like these.

I loved this book a lot and would definitely recommend it!

Thank you very much to Simon & Schuster Canada | Scribner and Net Galley for the ARC.

Unfortunately I did not like this story. It started off with little context which made me feel confused. I thought I would like the subject matter, but it did not interest me.

Hmm I wanted to love this so badly, I thought Tender is the Flesh was one of the most compelling and horrific (in a good way) stories I’d ever read so maybe I set the bar too high? But this felt bland, uninspired and to be honest like a story I’d read a few times before.

Bazterrica can bring the creep factor ten fold but I need a plot or vibe to help make it all tangible.

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for allowing me to read an early digital copy all opinions are my own.