The Unworthy

“Without faith, there is no refuge.” This phrase is repeatedly uttered by members of the Sacred Sisterhood. What do you think it means? How does their faith differ from traditional Catholicism, and why do you think they decry “the erroneous God, the false son, the negative mother”?

Why does the narrator want to be one of the Enlightened? Why do you think she and the other members of the Sacred Sisterhood so readily accept the authority of the Superior Sister and the mysterious “Him”? What roles do punishment and self-flagellation play in their devotion?

Discuss the world of The Unworthy. What happened to create this dystopian hellscape? Which threats mentioned in the novel feel most prophetic to you? If the internet went down permanently tomorrow, how do you think it would impact our lives?

The narrator is fascinated by insects. In one scene, she describes a trapped cockroach as “a small work of living art” (page 44); in another she refers to a dragonfly’s wings as a “fragile cathedral” (page 47); and when she encounters a dragonfly, she calls it “a sacred moment” (page 114). What do these reactions tell us about the narrator? Why do you think Bazterrica used religious language in these descriptions?

Discuss the role of family in the novel—from the narrator’s mother to the “tarantula kids” and other characters who might be considered her chosen family, like Circe. How does family make living through apocalyptic times easier—or harder?

Survival is another major theme of the novel. Consider what Ulysses’s mother tells him about her actions during the water wars: “There were no enemies . . . only people trying to survive, people dying of thirst and hunger” (page 100). What behavior becomes permissible in a disaster-ridden world like this one? Is self-preservation justifiable when it comes at a cost to others’ lives?

“The truth is a sphere,” Lucía tells the narrator. “We never see it whole, in its entirety” (page 117). How does this quote resonate with the narrator’s experiences in the novel? Does she ever see the truth “whole”?

What did you think of the character of Lourdes? Why does the narrator hate her so much? Why does Lucía show her mercy? What might have happened if Lucía and Helena had been in the convent at the same time?

What role does doubt play in the novel? Discuss the crossed-out parts of the narrator’s diary, like the paragraph on page 109. What do they reveal about her psyche?

What did you think of the novel’s framing device—that the book we’re reading is the narrator’s diary? What motivates her to keep writing, even though she knows it is dangerous? Consider the other diary the narrator encounters in an abandoned house on pages 136–37. How are they similar?

Discuss the reveal at the end of the novel about the mysterious “Him” and the Enlightened. Were you surprised, or had you picked up clues from earlier in the novel? What did you think of the narrator’s decision in the final scene, and what do you think happened to her—and her manuscript—after she stopped writing?

Which scene of the book disturbed or frightened you the most? What do these elements of horror or “femgore” add to the story?