Agustina can do no wrong. I've been a fan for years - thank you for the early copy of this. I've devoured everything she writes and The Unworthy is no different. We are blessed to have a writer with such intensity. 10/10

Review for Reactor: In the convent of the Sacred Sisterhood, at the end of the world, lives a group of women controlled by piety, devotion and their ability to suffer for their supposed sins. Ruled over by the Superior Sister and the mysterious “Him,” the women are allowed to live in relative safety from the dangers of the outside world, where pestilence, climate change and other unnamed perils would certainly shorten their life spans dramatically. But what of the constant fear of life inside the convent, what of the constant impending violence? What of the indoctrination and religiosity of the Sisterhood that encourages the women to hurt themselves, hurt each other to climb up the ranks of the Chosen? What exactly are they being Chosen for anyway, and is it really better to live these heavily monitored, restricted lives, safe from dangers untold, than it is to be outside the convent walls?

In a world as bleak as the one in Cormac McCarthy's The Road, and a creepy monastery that on the surface seems like a refuge, but with sinister vibes of maybe a larder for an alien that eats people or perhaps a grooming facility for some sort of sexual predator, a young woman is keeping a diary. It is probably not allowed, and the woman writing her story is working out what is going on as she writes, which makes for a creepily vague story with fun twists and not too many strong triggering scenes on-page.,

This was perfection!!! I love Agustina Bazterria’s writing so so much.

This book follows one of the members of The House of Scared Sisterhood as she deals with daily life where other unworthy members try to tear eachother down to prove themselves “worthy”, while dealing with all of this she starts to remember parts of her past from before the world collapsed and keeps a secret journal documenting it.

I found this book to be raw, gritty and griping I couldn’t put it down and had to know what was going to happen next! Agustina does a great job at genre bending in this book it’s a dystopian & a literary horror. I read this book MONTHS ago and I’m STILL thinking about it!

I would recommend this book who anyone who enjoys darker dystopian novels or “weird girl” horror!

This was an arc sent to me by the publisher but as always my review is my own.

This was dark but I liked it. I wish the world building was better. Jumping into it in the middle of the craziness made the rest of the book confusing and hard to follow along. But bits and pieces came together. I almost want to read it a second time because I think I’ll understand it more.

I finished this several days ago and I've been sitting on my feelings about it, almost recovering. It's very short and bleak and it just crushed me. The main character is an unreliable narrator but I still ended up caring so much about her for everything she had to go through. Some truly horrific things happen, to people and to a pet, but there was still humanity and maybe even hope.
This was kind of the opposite of the first book I read by this author where people were breeding people for meat like cows and the main character there worked in the system. That felt almost like a fable where this felt too real.

I think I would have enjoyed this more if it was more fleshed out and the story was a little bit longer. I had a hard time understanding or fully grasping what was happening at times, but it was enjoyable at times. Slightly felt like a fever dream.

Thank you to Scribner and NetGalley for the advance reader copy of The Unworthy!

This is a haunting and beautifully written dystopian novel set in a post-collapse world where women are controlled by a brutal religious order. The story follows an unnamed narrator—an “Unworthy”—living in a convent where pain, punishment, and fear rule. She keeps a secret diary, and when a new girl, Lucía, arrives, everything starts to change.

The book explores dark themes like blind faith, power, shame, and survival. It’s disturbing at times, but deeply emotional and thought-provoking. The writing is lyrical and intense, and the translation by Sarah Moses is excellent.

The advance reader copy did not include content warnings, which I believe are necessary given the intense and graphic nature of the subject matter. Readers should be aware that the book contains scenes of torture, self-harm, and psychological abuse.

The Unworthy is a powerful and unsettling read that lingers long after the final page. It's a testament to Bazterrica's skill as a writer that she can craft such a disturbing yet thought-provoking narrative.

This was unexpected in many ways. Years after life seems to end, there is a group called the Sacred Sisterhood who live safely sequestered away from the world. There is a hierarchy that helps the women remain passive until things start to unravel with the arrival of a new woman. This is all portrayed through the journal of the narrator. There are no chapters because this is completely written by the narrator, which made it very different than most books. I usually would hate this, but the pacing worked so well. At the halfway point things started to make sense and I really enjoyed the ride.

I wouldn't compare this to Tender is the Flesh. Not much about it besides the genre is similar. Both are horror and both explore the horrors with which our world is headed for. The depravity is still there, although in The Unworthy it is more subtle than TITF.

I was very very excited about this book when I saw it was coming out because Tender is the Flesh is one of my all-time favorite books. I did enjoy this one, the journal entry style was fun. She really was able to instill the fear that the FMC went through for survival as well. There was one moment that really just punched me in the gut of emotions and I felt that heartbreak.

I was a little lost getting into it at the beginning trying to understand the covenant, and the world.
It is a short novel, so we don't get to much but what we do get is fantastic. I think i wish there was just more handed out about the state of the world and what's happening.

Book/Story Overall: 2.75/5

As many readers have stated, this too was one of my most anticipated reads of the year. As someone who absolutely loved Tender is the Flesh, I couldn’t wait to see how Bazterrica would approach these themes. But it breaks my heart to say that I was sorely underwhelmed by this read. What I was hoping would be a bold and unique mashup of eco, religious, and cult horror ended up being a repetitive and often slow read with an ending that felt rushed.
Firstly, I’ll admit that the writing in this book is still strong—but I kind of expect that from this author at this point. Frankly, while I like her writing style, I can also acknowledge that there were a lot of moments where the language felt overly flowery. Usually, a lot of readers wouldn’t mind this—some even prefer it—but given that the story itself is lackluster, it becomes another element some readers will find hard to overlook.

My first big letdown in this read was the abrupt way we’re tossed into the story. I’ve read a lot of books where the narrative just begins and we discover things as we go, but here I found it unsuccessful. The book is already short in length, and there’s just not enough worldbuilding, lore, or explanation of function to really hook my interest or inform the reader properly about the setting and surroundings to care about the outcome in the long run.

I still think this book offers a decent example of the long-lasting impact of patriarchal systems. While decent, it wasn’t new. It felt like another contribution to a largely filled space that highlights the ways in which men use and create certain structures to further manipulate and take advantage of women. It also never felt like the author was trying to introduce something new to the conversation, which led a lot of the story to be very predictable.

Thanks to Netgalley and Scribner for the ebook & Physical.

So I heard a lot about this book on social media in particular booktok. A lot of the feedback that I heard I have to agree with. This book has a lot of atmosphere that’s very foreboding and dark and mysterious. However, I have to say as someone who enjoys a mix of plot and character that for me this book wasn’t a five star read but more of a 3 1/2 star read. Once you understood the premise, it was easy to follow, but it took more than it should have to get there I think for such a short book overall. That being said, it’s worth the read and I think I would reread this at a different time in the future because I do think I will get something out of this book each time that I read it that is different from the previous time.

I wasn't really sure if I was going to enjoy the book in the beginning, but as I got further into the story I found myself enjoying it a bit more. Some of the trauma felt a little predictable, but Bazterrica's writing style made up for it. I still feel like I was missing some larger theme, but that could also just be me expecting more depth.

A chilling and engaging page-turner from one of the queens of unsettling and thought-provoking horror.

The Unworthy by Agustina Bazterrica; not at all what I was expecting, and I didn't really jive with what it actually was.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
192 pages

“𝘛𝘩𝘦𝘳𝘦 𝘢𝘳𝘦 𝘵𝘪𝘮𝘦𝘴 𝘐 𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘯𝘬 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘯𝘰𝘯𝘦 𝘰𝘧 𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘴 𝘮𝘢𝘵𝘵𝘦𝘳𝘴. 𝘞𝘩𝘺 𝘱𝘶𝘵 𝘮𝘺𝘴𝘦𝘭𝘧 𝘪𝘯 𝘥𝘢𝘯𝘨𝘦𝘳 𝘸𝘪𝘵𝘩 𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘴 𝘣𝘰𝘰𝘬 𝘰𝘧 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘯𝘪𝘨𝘩𝘵? 𝘉𝘶𝘵 𝘐 𝘩𝘢𝘷𝘦 𝘵𝘰 𝘣𝘦𝘤𝘢𝘶𝘴𝘦 𝘪𝘧 𝘐 𝘸𝘳𝘪𝘵𝘦 𝘪𝘵, 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘯 𝘪𝘵 𝘸𝘢𝘴 𝘳𝘦𝘢𝘭; 𝘪𝘧 𝘐 𝘸𝘳𝘪𝘵𝘦 𝘪𝘵, 𝘮𝘢𝘺𝘣𝘦 𝘸𝘦 𝘸𝘰𝘯’𝘵 𝘫𝘶𝘴𝘵 𝘣𝘦 𝘱𝘢𝘳𝘵 𝘰𝘧 𝘢 𝘥𝘳𝘦𝘢𝘮 𝘤𝘰𝘯𝘵𝘢𝘪𝘯𝘦𝘥 𝘪𝘯 𝘢 𝘱𝘭𝘢𝘯𝘦𝘵, 𝘪𝘯𝘴𝘪𝘥𝘦 𝘢 𝘶𝘯𝘪𝘷𝘦𝘳𝘴𝘦 𝘩𝘪𝘥𝘥𝘦𝘯 𝘪𝘯 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘪𝘮𝘢𝘨𝘪𝘯𝘢𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯 𝘰𝘧 𝘴𝘰𝘮𝘦𝘰𝘯𝘦 𝘸𝘩𝘰 𝘭𝘪𝘷𝘦𝘴 𝘪𝘯 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘮𝘰𝘶𝘵𝘩 𝘰𝘧 𝘎𝘰𝘥. 𝘌𝘢𝘤𝘩 𝘰𝘧 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘴𝘦 𝘸𝘰𝘳𝘥𝘴 𝘤𝘰𝘯𝘵𝘢𝘪𝘯𝘴 𝘮𝘺 𝘱𝘶𝘭𝘴𝘦. 𝘔𝘺 𝘣𝘭𝘰𝘰𝘥. 𝘔𝘺 𝘣𝘳𝘦𝘢𝘵𝘩.”

read this in one sitting and continuously found myself holding my breath. i was so wrapped up in the main character’s experience that i almost couldn’t handle the ending. I won’t share too much about how i felt so i don’t give away any spoilers, but if you read this one and loved it, message me because omg!! 😳😳

this is a truly interesting take on what happened in a cataclysmic world that’s felt the horror of climate change. this begs the reader to ask themselves, what happens when you lose hope in humanity? what would you do when you find out the truth in a secretive society that won’t let you leave?

I really enjoyed the short stories in Nineteen Claws and a Black Bird, but I had a little trouble connecting to this one - I have friends with more religious trauma who loved this story much more. I thought there could have been more grounding and reveals sooner for where the characters were and the context of what was happening, other than generic dystopian world.

Wow, another hit from Agustina Bazterrica. This ambiguous tale of deception and secrecy in the midst of a religious order is right up my alley. The prose is masterful and evocative while also leaving the reader guessing about what is yet to come. It is best to go into this novel with little background knowledge. Give it a chance!

Big thanks to Scribner and to NetGalley for the ARC!

I'll read anything this author writes, they are just incredible. I know a lot of people didn't like this one as much as her other work but I actually really did. I loved the world-building, the ambiguity, the way it was told, really I loved everything about it. I only wish it was longer because I didn't want it to be over. I'd love to spend more time in this world and with these characters. Highly recommend! A must-read for horror lovers. It was absolutely fantastic and lived up to everything I wanted it to be!

Descriptors: religious cults, climate crisis, sapphic yearning, hierarchy and oppression, devastation, mutilation, bizarre and terrifying, ritual sacrifice, obscure and ambiguous, misery and torment, hope for humanity

This is my first book by the author even though I have been meaning to read tender is the flesh for a while now. When I read the blurb for this one I thought it would be even more up my alley than tender is the flesh because I have always liked stories that revolve around Any type of clergy: priest, nuns bishops, Popes, Cardinals, churches etc. etc. But I wound up being somewhat disappointed with this. The writing is the best part, as the author is certainly talented and an above average technical writer but the story and plot felt a little fragmented and disjointed and just didn’t feel like a cohesive storyline.

I do think the book what happens served had it been a little bit longer so that the author could expand in certain areas and make it more accessible and palatable for the average reader. Stylistically just wasn’t my overall cup of tea and I never ended up feeling like I got the big dose of churchy vibes that I was expecting and wanted.

We’re all I would still put this on a mid range book and reading experience, nothing to out of control that was wrong with it but also nothing truly exceptional either. I did find it engaging for the most part but the clunky style did it a service and bumped it from what might’ve been a four star to a three star.