if i loved you less, i might be able to talk about it more.

The Unworthy have been making more sacrifices for days now. The Chosen have interpreted God’s signs, as they always do, and The Enlightened have announced that without faith, there is no refuge. […] They’re the only ones who know God’s name; the rest of us can’t pronounce it, because the Secret Language must be learned, and it hides from us like a white snake devouring itself. To speak it is to be torn apart.

If, like me, you are a fan of horror and enjoy exploring themes of religious trauma through fiction, The Unworthy will pique your interest. But is it worthy of your time?

Note: list of CW at the bottom of this review after multiple line breaks; may be deemed spoilers by some readers, so view at your discretion.

This is a book that is short enough to be read in a day and engaging enough to make the idea appealing. But its darkness and bleakness may temper your speed. I listened to the audiobook and thought the narrator was fantastic. I have also seen reviews that make me wish I’d read it in print, so I think I’d recommend a tandem read to get the most out of the delivery!

Bazterrica’s writing is a beautifully balanced blend of matter-of-fact storytelling and confident lyricism. (And I must also take a moment to commend the work of the translator, Sarah Moses!) While there is a storyline and some world building in The Unworthy, the real plot is the psychological journey of the narrator. The novel is a snapshot of how the control and oppression achieved via religion can interact with a perhaps not-too-futuristic world ravaged by the climate crisis. The imagery Bazterrica uses is an obvious draw from Christianity, but she cleverly flips any accompanying expectations on their heads. The Unworthy explores the darker underpinnings of religious belief itself, the power of identity, the impact of the systematic control of information, dissociation and memory, brainwashing and deprogramming.

The journal entry format may bore some readers who are after a more realtime, action packed horror novel. While it seems the confusion felt by the reader is an intentional choice by the author, I wish there had been just a bit more clarity throughout; at several points I found myself thinking I had missed something important when I hadn’t. This book either needed to be longer to flesh out the lore or shorter to capitalize on the confusion.

Overall, I am glad to have Chosen to read The Unworthy. You just may find yourself more Enlightened by the end…

. . . .

CW to the best of my memory, and likely to be an incomplete list: religious trauma, violence, torture, animal death, SA (off page), attempted SA (on page), mutilation, insects