Genre: Horror, Dystopian
Author: Agustina Bazterrica
Translator: Sarah Moses
Year published: 2025
TWs: Body horror, violence, death, SA, suicide, abuse, self-harm
Rating: 3/5
Like many readers, I heard of Agustina Bazterrica back in 2020 when the English translation of her novel, ‘Tender is the Flesh’ dropped. When I decided to take on Argentinian authors, she was one of the first that came to mind, but I wanted to look at some her lesser known (and newer work). After reading the synopsis of ‘The Unworthy’, I knew it was the perfect choice, so let’s get into it!
‘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.’
Synopsis (spolier-free, as always)
The story follows an unnamed woman living inside the House of the Sacred Sisterhood, a secretive religious convent in a world that has been destroyed by climate catastrophe. Cities are submerged, electricity and the internet no longer exist, and survival outside means hunger, disease and violence.
Inside the convent, life is tightly controlled but protected. The narrator belongs to the lowest group, known as the unworthy. She secretly writes down her thoughts and memories using anything she can find, including dirt and even her own blood. Above her are the Enlightened, women who are admired and feared for their extreme devotion and suffering. The entire system is ruled by the Superior Sister, whose approval everyone desperately wants.
The narrator dreams of being chosen and rising through the ranks. But when a new girl joins the unworthy, the narrator is forced to confront her past on the streets before the convent and to begin questioning what truly happens to the women who are elevated and what kind of refuge this place really is.
‘She wants to educate us in the art of agony’
My Thoughts
There is no denying that this book is beautifully written. Bazterrica’s prose is lyrical, vivid and deeply immersive. The convent feels real. You can almost feel the cold stone, the damp air and the constant anxiety of waiting to be punished. In terms of atmosphere alone, this book is incredibly strong.
What worked best for me was how the narrator talks about the convent. She sounds frightened, devoted and quietly desperate all at once. You really do start to understand why she clings to this place, even though it hurts her. When the outside world is famine, disease and violence, safety becomes the most important.
That said, I really struggled with how little the book gives the reader to hold on to.
We are kept in the dark about almost everything. The wider world, the origins of the Sisterhood, the structure of the different ranks and even the rules of this religion are only hinted at in small fragments. I know this is a deliberate stylistic choice, but for me it became more boring than mysterious. I kept waiting for the story to open up and it never really did.
The middle of the book is especially repetitive. Much of it moves in a loop of prayer, punishment and reflection, without much actual change. Even though the novel is short, it feels slow. The arrival of the new girl should have been the emotional and narrative turning point, but she seemed kind of one-dimensional. Their relationship felt more surface-level than personal, which made it harder for me to care about what was at stake. The ending, too, did not land for me. After so much tension and suffering, it feels strangely abrupt and emotionally distant.
Overall, ‘The Unworthy’ is an unsettling and ambitious Argentinian novel with striking imagery and powerful intentions. I enjoyed the writing far more than I enjoyed the reading experience itself. If you love slow, symbolic and very opaque literary horror, this book is probably for you!
Happy Reading!
Agustina Bazterrica was born in Buenos Aires and studied Fine Arts at the University of Buenos Aires. Her novel ‘Cadáver exquisito’ won the 2017 Clarín Group Novel Prize and the 2020 Ladies of Horror Fiction Award for Best Novel, becoming the only winning title that was not originally written in English.
Beyond fiction, Bazterrica has also co-curated the art event series Siga al Conejo Blanco, and she runs reading and writing workshops with fellow Argentine writer Agustina Caride.
Find more on her Goodreads page!
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