Reviews tagging 'Excrement'

The Unworthy by Agustina Bazterrica

15 reviews

torden_'s review against another edition

3.5

adventurous dark emotional reflective sad tense fast-paced

Plot or Character Driven: Plot

Strong character development: Yes

Loveable characters: Yes

Diverse cast of characters: No

Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Bullying, Death, Rape, Sexual assault, Suicidal thoughts, Torture, Grief, Murder, Gaslighting

Moderate: Child death, Confinement, Death of parent, Pregnancy

Minor: Mental illness, Excrement, War, Injury/Injury detail

daydreamsofareader's review against another edition

5.0

dark emotional hopeful mysterious reflective sad tense fast-paced

Plot or Character Driven: A mix

Strong character development: Complicated

Loveable characters: Complicated

Diverse cast of characters: No

Flaws of characters a main focus: Complicated

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Agustina Bazterrica is the moment - what a book! 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal death, Body horror, Child abuse, Child death, Death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Gore, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Rape, Self harm, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Torture, Violence, Forced institutionalization, Blood, Excrement, Vomit, Grief, Religious bigotry, Death of parent, Murder, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Confinement, Pregnancy, War

klosterphobia's review against another edition

3.0

dark fast-paced

Plot or Character Driven: A mix

Strong character development: Complicated

Loveable characters: No

Diverse cast of characters: No

Flaws of characters a main focus: No

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Having read Tender Is the Flesh, I came into The Unworthy prepared for graphic content.. but this was something else entirely. For me, it veered beyond disturbing into territory that felt genuinely traumatic. It wasn’t just depictions of abuse; it was torture, described in graphic detail. That left such a strong negative impression that I needed to get it out of the way first, just to begin thinking about the book more critically.

Like many authors who experience a breakout debut, Agustina Bazterrica seems to have felt emboldened to take bigger literary risks here. Some work, some don’t. The diary format is one that mostly lands, but occasionally strains believability particularly when you consider the character writing it (A girl raised in isolation, with no formal education beyond what her mother gave her before dying young, is somehow writing by candlelight, in her own blood, using words like avarice and irascible? 

That said, the word choice throughout is fascinating, especially knowing the book was translated. I found myself wondering if the original Spanish was equally esoteric, or if some of the vocabulary choices were shaped by the translator.

The plot itself left me wanting more in terms of substance. The ending felt half baked, and the central question: why is this happening? never gets a satisfying answer. The love interest also falls flat: they’re idealized to the point of being one dimensional, with no real backstory or flaws.

One major issue I had was the portrayal of the cult. It’s all negatives, all horror, all control—without the balancing warmth or sense of belonging that usually makes cults believable and dangerously seductive. Without that, the structure doesn’t feel like it could have ever worked. I wanted more insight into the religion itself, more depth into what made people stay, and I didn’t get it.

Ultimately, this reads like trauma porn disguised as something profound. There are moments of insight- particularly the depiction of a slow environmental and societal collapse, which felt eerily realistic. But, I often felt that the vagueness was intentional in a frustrating way. There were points where the narrative seemed to be trying to confuse the reader on purpose, and I found myself rereading passages just to make sure I’d understood them correctly.

To its credit, the book is engaging. I finished it in a single day, and it absolutely held my curiosity. I just wish the payoff had been stronger, and that the gore had served more purpose beyond shock value.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Body horror, Bullying, Child abuse, Child death, Confinement, Death, Domestic abuse, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Gore, Misogyny, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Rape, Self harm, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Slavery, Suicide, Torture, Violence, Blood, Excrement, Medical trauma, Abortion, Death of parent, Murder, Pregnancy, Fire/Fire injury, War, Injury/Injury detail, Pandemic/Epidemic

mirnda's review against another edition

5.0

dark emotional mysterious reflective sad tense medium-paced

Plot or Character Driven: Character

Strong character development: Yes

Loveable characters: Yes

Diverse cast of characters: Complicated

Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes

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Stunning from the first sentence to the last. This is a deliciously dark and harrowing tale of finding love and hope even in the most bleak situations. Where Tender Is the Flesh made me lose hope in humanity, this book, strangely, made me feel more hopeful that we still have a chance. Its commentary is not quite as sharply focused as Tender Is the Flesh, but I don't think that's actually a weakness, just a difference. I loved every moment of this, and came close to crying - and I don't cry at books! Beautifully written and translated, this story slowly unravels itself in lush horror.

Thank you to NetGalley and to Scribner for the eARC in exchange for my honest review.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Bullying, Death, Physical abuse, Torture, Violence, Blood, Grief, Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Confinement, Gore, Mental illness, Misogyny, Death of parent, Murder, Fire/Fire injury

Minor: Child death, Rape, Self harm, Sexual assault, Suicide, Excrement, Religious bigotry, Pregnancy, War

existentialhell's review against another edition

3.0

challenging dark emotional reflective sad tense slow-paced

Plot or Character Driven: Character

Strong character development: Yes

Loveable characters: Yes

Diverse cast of characters: No

Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes

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A poetic, meditative horror that gnaws on climate change, human greed, misogyny, cults, and religious abuse. 

This is a quick, <200 page read that I devoured in a single day. Even as I felt the mounting, hollow hunger for something more substantial, I remained captive in its strange sisterhood of pain and ecstatic color. Blues, blackened nights, rust red. We do have a plot, but it's secondary to our narrator's character study. This is sometimes to the story's detriment, though her transformation over the course of all she endures is substantial. And she endures a lot: Bazterrica embraces the cult's many on-page terrors with zealous determination. Body horror fans, you're in the right place, and if you like it steeped in surrealism then so much the better.

But despite the prose pros, The Unworthy's attempts to comment on gender violence are sorely lacking. While I think it makes some poignant and occasionally touching points about misogyny and how abusers use catastrophe (those real and imagined) as cover to subjugate and control their victims, the impact ultimately rings...not hollow, exactly. But simplified, incomplete. One version of extreme suffering with minimal cultural nuance is presented as if all women endure the same cruelties at the same hands in the same way. A bit Gender Studies 101.

The star rating system fails me here because I can't easily convey that I both adored The Unworthy's prose and conceit and was simultaneously unsatisfied by the larger themes with a simple 3/5. If the description or my review intrigue you, give it a read. I think you'll come away with worthwhile conversation starters, even if the book itself bit off more than it can chew. So to speak.

I received this ARC in exchange for my honest review. Thank you, Scribner and NetGalley!

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Body horror, Bullying, Child abuse, Child death, Confinement, Cursing, Death, Domestic abuse, Drug use, Eating disorder, Emotional abuse, Gore, Mental illness, Pedophilia, Rape, Self harm, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Torture, Violence, Blood, Medical content, Grief, Religious bigotry, Death of parent, Murder, Fire/Fire injury, Gaslighting, Sexual harassment, Injury/Injury detail, Pandemic/Epidemic

Moderate: Panic attacks/disorders, Cannibalism, Abandonment

Minor: Excrement, Vomit, Pregnancy, Alcohol