One of the best books I’ve ever read was Summers’ previous book, Sadie.
I haven’t had a young adult thriller based around crime (or cults in this case) even come close to what Sadie did. However, once again, Courtney Summers has done it.

I couldn’t stop thinking about this book as I read it; it felt as if The Project had sunk its claws into me and I couldn’t get out.

The writing was incredible, and I really loved the way it actually felt as if I was in the characters’ heads. While the pacing was slow, I think it really matched the sinister, slow paced way cults actually work. It was just incredible.

Thank you to NetGalley, Courtney Summers and St Martin's Press for the free e-book in exchange for an honest review.

After reading Sadie, I had really high expectations of this novel and I think that lead to me being a bit disappointed. I loved the idea behind the novel and I loved the back and forth between past and present, but I found that the pace of the novel was a bit on the slow side for me. I really didn't enjoy many of the characters and I enjoyed the cult aspect of the story. It was definitely a unique novel and I can see a lot of people enjoying this one, but it wasn't for me.

If you know my reading tastes, then you'll know that I am always in to read anything that has to do with cults. The fact that an individual can be so charismatic and intuitive, and then use those skills to create something so sinister, is fascinating to me. My favorite kinds of stories are always about those on the inside looking out. Those who were lured in, and then realized that they had to escape. So when I saw the premise of The Project, I knew that it was going on my reading list. It hit all those little reader buttons inside my brain, and I was thrilled. Perhaps my excitement was a little too high though, because this book and I had some problems with one another.

Starting with the kudos, I have to say that I was immediately won over by the relationship between Bea and Lo. Although it wasn't ever "perfect", what sisterly bond ever is? Their connection felt realistic to me. I felt for Lo so deeply, as she tried to get back the one person that she had left in this world. I struggled not to tear up as her only living relative constantly ignored her, and pushed her away, in favor of the cult that ensnared her. In the same vein, I had so much love for the rawness that was Lo's character. Not only had she lost so much around her, but she'd lost a portion of herself after the accident. I understood her pain, saw her fault lines, and wanted to comfort her.

It is the pace of this story that I truly struggled with. The first third, where Lo was digging into the history of the The Project, was perfect. I'm generally not a fan of alternating points of view, but in this case I couldn't get enough of flashing back to Bea's story and slowly uncovering what was really going. As the book neared the middle though, things drastically slowed down. This is also the point where I started to feel like Lo's character was sliding uncomfortably into someone to pity instead of support. I truly felt like she had been built up to be someone who, despite everything, was fairly strong. Or at least that she put up a good front. Which made the latter half of this book extremely upsetting for me.

The other issue was that I never truly believed in Lev Warren. As a cult leader, I expected him to be larger than life. Someone who others were enraptured by, and wanted to follow. Instead, he felt a bit hollow to me. Like the idea of what a leader of this kind should be, without the actual flesh on the outside. I had a hard time believing that anyone would want to give their lives up for him, much less that he would be able to sway someone like Lo to his side. It felt manufactured, and I can't deny that this made me sad. I was fairly sure I knew how this book was going to end by the mid point, and I was right. So I also felt like I missed out on any surprises.

I'm rambling, I know. My feelings about this story are all over the place. On the one hand, The Project is excellently written. Anyone who has read Courtney Summers' stories before knows exactly what I mean. Bea and Lo were real people to me, and I was invested in their story. On the other hand, this book just didn't deliver what I was hoping for. Maybe it's because Sadie, Summers' last book, completely broke my heart but this one fell flat for me.

The Project is incredibly hard to put down while reading, largely due to its structure of alternating narratives between Lo and Bea. Just as something Big happens with each sister it switches to the other PoV and you've just got to keep going to find out more. The structure worked especially well where you'd frequently get an "ah ha! moment in the Lo chapter for a reveal that's confirmed in the next Bea chapter. However, this might just be an issue with me, but if I had to step away from the book, I didn't feel that immediate need to come back to it. It keeps momentum well while reading, but just wasn't compelling enough to think about when I was doing something else.

If you're into media about the dangers of cults, I highly recommend it. If you're not interested in the topic, maybe give it a shot, but don't prioritize it over something you're more excited about..

The Project is the latest by Courtney Summers. It is being advertised as a Young Adult/Teen book. In my opinion it should just be in the adult category. Ms Summers tells us the story going back and forth in time, in the viewpoints of two sisters. Ms Summer does let the reader know what year they are at, but jumps from scene to scene without any notice. I found myself backtracking in my reading to see if I missed something. I want to thank NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for an early copy to review.

This is a phenomenal book, but it does come with a lot of content warnings for physical abuse, grooming, borderline sexual coercion, emotional abuse, extreme gaslighting, PTSD, and general trauma. It's a fairly heavy book, particularly for a YA-designee, but it delivers and isn't quite as misery/despair-focused as it could be. Also, that cover is gorgeous!!

I really enjoyed the other two Courtney Summers books, so when I found out that this one was about a cult, I was excited. I liked the idea of two sisters torn apart by a religious cult, but I struggled with the format. The way that it shifted between the two sisters along with the time frame constantly was confusing and unsettling. It made it hard to get lost in and even understand the story.
I loved the characters and the writing, but the story structure made it hard to enjoy.

***I received an uncorrected proof of this ebook from netgalley in exchange for an honest review***


“<i>Having a sister is a promise no one but the two of you can make- and no one but the two of you can break.</i>”†

The Project tells the story of two sisters, one in present day and the other in non-sequential flashbacks. They were struck by tragedy when an accident left their parents dead and Lo, the younger girl, with a long road to recovery. Bea, the eldest but still only 17 or so, didn't have the emotional and psychological maturity to deal with the situation and turned to the only adult willing to listen to her: a burgeoning cult leader. Throughout the story, Lo deals with PTSD and the aftermath of severe abandonment issues that have led her to live a solitary life. Though physically healed, Lo still wrestles her past daily. It has been years and Bea has fully ensconced herself within the Unity Project. Lo, now an intrepid would-be reporter, is still determined to reconnect with the only person she has left, even if that means exposing herself to the dangerous underbelly of the cult herself.


“<i>She buried her old family and built a new one on top of its bones.</i>”†

Writing about a cult in any context is somewhat difficult. Unless the narrative is framed so that the reader is unaware that the setting is a cult, we automatically condemn it. The Project did not hide the presence of a cult, but it somewhat lacked a narrator reliable enough to sell the story. Instead of being left with vague concepts and assumptions, we are left with one-sided emotional responses to events outside the narrative. This book really made me want to jump into the story and talk some sense into these people. It was especially frustrating when the (seemingly) only reasonable character in this whole mess <spoiler>fell prey to the same abusive rapist as her sister (Cult leaders cannot have consensual sex with their followers).</spoiler>

BUT THAT'S HOW CULTS WORK. Their leaders <i>are</i> charismatic and know the ways to make their potential followers feel seen/heard.


“<i>The Project holds up a mirror to the world’s failures and the world’s response is to break the mirror.</i>”✝

Look, my darkside brain wants to give this book 1 star and strike it from my thoughts eternally. Because it made me super uncomfortable and I didn't have a good time. It made me want to throw my kindle at the wall. But you know what?! It <b>should</b> make me uncomfortable. Cults should make <i>everyone</i> uncomfortable. Courtney Summers did an amazing job of selling this story. As a reader outside of the narrative and well-aware of the key indicators of cults, it was super cringey to read about characters falling under the cult’s spell. But it's also the mark of a good book when a reader is all up in their feelings. All in all, this was a compelling and addictive read that made me want to crawl out of my skin. It didn't quite live up to Sadie's legacy, but it still had that same trainwreck cant-look-away effect. I look forward to reading Summer’s future work.

✝must be checked against final text


This review will be posted upon publication to the following: amazon, ibooks, kobo, bookbub, barnes & noble.

I so love a cult tale, and this was one of those. The ending seemed a little rushed but I tore through the book in the same manner, so...

Free copy from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review

Courtney Summer is truly the queen of unsettling stories. I couldn't put this one down in the same way that Sadie was unputdownable. We're looking forward to sharing Courtney's writing process with our readers!

This wasn't my favorite book of the year, but I did enjoy it. Personally, I believe Courtney Summer's other book Sadie was better. That being said, this wasn't a entirely terrible book, and I hope someone loves it.

Courtney Summers seriously knows how to tell a tragic story. Her writing is so unique and lyrical and her stories are so raw.

This book is about Lo. A sister who survived death twice - a man who claims he saved her and brought her from death. And her sister Bea who gets caught up in believing him and following his cult.

Years have passed and Lo just wants her sister back who wants nothing to do with her. Who is involved with a big community/cult and has given up her past to follow Lev. Lo set's out to find the story on this community- The Project - she is a writer and wants to uncover the truth about them while also find her sister only to be caught up in everything Lev tells her pulling down her guard.

I dont want to spoil the rest but man does Courtney get her readers to pull down their guard right along with Lo.

5 stars

CW : death, murder, loss, suicide, abuse, unexpected pregnancy. (if I am missing anything I am sorry)

I enjoyed Sadie, especially on audio. Cults in fiction are still pretty new to me, so I jumped at the chance to read this one. Unfortunately, this book is not the dark read I thought it would be. It starts off pretty slow and seems to focus mainly on sisterhood and Bea & Lo’s childhood. Not what I’m looking for. I’m sorry, but I just didn’t have the patience to see this one through and is just not for me.

If you told me a book punched as hard as Courtney Summer’s Sadie, I would pick it up immediately, but while I enjoyed her latest book, a cult-book The Project about sisters, I didn’t find it as punch-y. I enjoyed it, sure,but the back and forth timeline wasn’t as well delineated in the ARC I was reading, and there was some character stuff I was unsure about. It’s a fine book–I’d say a 3.75 star read but it’ll be interesting to see how it does with a wider readership!
The Project (the Unity Project) is a religious group (aka: cult?) led by Lev, a enigmatic man (age unclear to me? Probably 30s?) but this story is about the different experiences two sisters–Bea and Lo–have with the group. It’s told in two different timelines, one for each sister, and jumps around a bit from the early 2000s to the 2010s to 2018. After a car crash kills their parents, and Lo almost dies with them, Bea struggles with the idea of losing her sister and instead loses herself in the Unity Project and Lev. Years later, after no contact, Lo puts on her investigative journalist hat to try and go to the Unity Project, find her sister, and get to the truth. But what happens goes a bit off course, because Lev is charming, the Project is powerful and full of secrets, and the Project escapee that Lo saw kill himself may have been trying to get a message to her she’ll wish she had gotten.
It’s very clear that this book is about the power of sisters, the power (good and bad) of religion, and draws you in to that story, but I was just a little underwhelmed compared to Sadie. I didn’t care about either Lo or Bea that much, we didn’t get to see maby normal members of the Project (just higher-ups) so I felt disjointed, and overall, I wanted more. I would have liked to see more Lo at the Unity Project and less Bea in the past being sad about missing her so that the reveal about Bea would pack a greater punch, ya know? I think this is a cool idea, it just wasn’t an outstanding read for me.
The Project is on sale everywhere February 2, 2021

Thank you to Macmillan, Wednesday Books, and NetGalley for an advanced copy of this to review! I absolutely love Courtney Summers, so of course she’s always on my radar for new releases. Especially after reading and loving Sadie. If you’re looking for a new thriller to read this February, this will definitely be the one for you.

This book flips back and forth between the past and the present, between Lo and Bea. Through these flashbacks, you slowly get the whole story of the Project and of the two sisters. This format works amazingly for this book, building the intensity of the mystery. Both of the sisters have a unique voice throughout, which helps in drawing readers into the book.

Throughout the book, you definitely feel a building sense of dread as you know something sinister is going on behind the Project’s closed doors. Summers is a master of creating this tension, and it is on full display throughout this book.

Overall, this story will pull you in and not let go until the very end. This is a February thriller that should definitely be on your radar.

4.5/5 stars

There are other, better, books that focus on cults. This one was just okay. I didn't care about any of the characters, and the story jumped around timelines too much for my liking.

a serviceable thriller based around vulnerable people being taken advantage of that lies somewhere in the murky area between traditional ya and adult markets

I'm not sure what I was expecting going into this novel, I can only say this isn't it. I guess I was expecting more something more dramatic and fantastical. Instead, this is a realistic, heavy look at the effects on a family of losing a loved one to a cult. This is a slow burn, it builds gradually leading the reader all over the place until we aren't sure what's real and what isn't. The writing is strong and emotional. I was fully invested in the story from start to finish. It reads more like an adult thriller than YA, with sexual content and graphic violence, though I don't think the story would have been as believable without those elements.

Like a lot of book readers, I am fascinated by things that I do not know much about. This story centers itself around a cult and the people that are a part of it. The story is interesting and the characters are genuine. I did feel that parts of the plotline dragged a bit but I was able to push through.

Lo, as a character was vulnerable and searching for something more in her life. She wanted recognition for her writing and not the scars on her face. She wanted a relationship with her sister after she lost her family. She just wanted. Lo knows about The Unity Project because they have her sister and she wants to expose them like no other writer ever has before.

I am not giving away any more of the story but I do want to say that the ending was ridiculous. It was fast, without details, and just ruined the reading process for me. I found the ending to be so disappointing that I aa almost mad that I read the book.

Ever since Lo's sister, Bea, joined The Unity Project and essentially cut Lo out of her life, Lo has been determined to uncover something - anything - to prove that the Project and their leader, Lev Warren, are not what they seem. After years of searching, Lo finally seems to have landed an opportunity to not only investigate The Unity Project, but to come face to face with Bea again.

The Project is intense, but not in the way you'd expect. As I was reading, I didn't even really notice the tension building... until it snapped. It is a quiet, steady force throughout the novel. It creeps up on you. Unsettles you. This is the novel's strength - the teasing of information, the jumble of timelines adds to this growing sense of unease. I really believed what Lo was experiencing and how she formulated her opinions and emotional responses. I thought that this aspect - along with the pacing and alternate perspectives - was extremely well done.

Courtney Summers is just so. good. at writing sister relationships, and somehow makes them believable even when the sisters aren't actually interacting in the present. I felt the same way about Sadie. This is Summers' bread and butter. The relationship between Bea and Lo was both beautiful and tragic; it's what drives this story.

This novel is a fascinating look at vulnerability. It isn't saying anything particularly new about cults, religion, or how the 'weak' are preyed upon in a society that values individualism, but what it does bring to the table will still get your attention if you're interested in any of these topics.

This review will be posted on instagram, @_dizzyreads, closer to publication.