The Project tells the story of Lo who is nineteen years old and all alone. Years earlier, she is horribly injured in a car crash that kills both her parents. Afterwards, she is abandoned by her older sister, Bea, who runs off to join the Unity Project. Now Lo is working at a renewed magazine and determined to uncover the secrets of the Unity Project and finally reach her sister.

This one is a fast, easy read. The beginning is compelling and I was intrigued by the cult aspect. Unfortunately things fell apart for me. Lo was a bit of a brat and her actions didn’t seem logical. She had such an extreme change of heart that I questioned if we were even discussing the same character.

All in all, this book was just fine. I didn’t struggle to finish it, but I also didn’t enjoy the story. Three stars.

Thanks to NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for providing an eARC in exchange for an honest review. The Project will be available everywhere on February 2, 2021.

This was one of those books I had to get to the end of quickly! Fast paced and full of surprises, this look into the workings of a religious cult was a great read.

Sadie was one of my favorite books I read last year, and I could not wait to get more from Courtney Summers!

I am so blown away with The Project, and how Summers took her narrative and storytelling to the next level in this book. Not only do the characters and plot draw you in with their depth and fascination, but the themes of family and loneliness are simultaneously making their mark on the reader as well.

I cannot wait for more readers to dive into the mind of The Unity Project, and be immersed in a standout thriller cult novel.

As a fan of past works like "Sadie," I found "The Project Disappointing". The pacing was both rushed and the plot was convoluted.

The twists and turns in this book keep you wondering what's happening. It was interesting to read a book where you were in the head of someone as they found themselves in ... A cult? Or is it a cult?

I loved Sadie by Courtney Summers so I was really excited to read The Project and I was not disappointed. It had me hooked and wanting to know how it ended right from the start!

I really did like this book. I thought diving into a cult and seeing how the effect the many people involved was a super compelling topic for a read. I really liked both characters point of view that we experience and saw in this read. I also really liked at the heart of this book was the realtionship between the sisters at the heart of it. I struggled a tad with the mystery at the heart of it. I also felt like other then the "years" dictating the chapters we were in, the two characters POV read so similar it was hard to make differences between them. I really did like Lo path in this novel but overall, it was not favorite read of the year. I liked that it dealt with the harder topics like cult life.

The Project is fast paced and an easy to read suspense. Told in alternating narratives of the past and Lo’s present, the story moves quickly and is sometimes hard to follow and left me on the fence on the way I feel about this book. Lo Denham is a would be reporter, working as a personal assistant for the editor of a magazine. As a child, her parents died in a car crash and she was seriously injured. All she wanted was her sister but she left to join a cult and Lo has not talked to her since. After witnessing the suicide of a cult member, Lo begins digging into the cult once again. A little Stockholm syndrome later, Lo finds danger, lies, and secrets in a twisted tale that will leave you confused and shaking your head in disbelief. My voluntary, unbiased review is based upon a review copy from NetGalley.

I really wanted to like this book considering how much I loved and enjoyed reading Sadie. This book was ambitious in that it tried to tackle both religion and family dynamics. I kept wanting to know more about Lo and Bea's relationship. I especially was interested in learning more about Bea. Instead, I felt like I was being strung along to follow The Project. That being said, maybe this is a part of Summers' genius. I was equally hooked into the story as perhaps Lo is in trying to figure out what is real behind The Project.

The Project will be appealing to fans of Courtney Summers' earlier novel, Sadie. The Project pits a journalist against a cult. The journalist lost both of her parents and shortly aftterwards, her sister joined a group called The Project and she's trying to reconnect with her sister and expose the group without being taken in. Propulsive plot.

This story of a young woman investigating a religious cult was just okay to me. I did get interested and want to finish it, but I saw a lot of holes in it. I think it is marketed as a YA book, but if so, it's definitely at the high age range of YA. It seemed more like an adult book to me. Spoiler--the final plot twist was unexplained and unbelievable. This was an easy, quick read, and I'm sure it will have fans who like thrillers and who want to get into the mindset of cult leaders and cult followers.

My first thought upon finishing this book was a softly exhaled curse. After Sadie and Cracked Up To Be, I knew that Courtney Summers has a particular skill with peeling up sections of your skin and burrowing deep inside (if it sounds unsettling and vaguely uncomfortable, it is) - with characters who love fiercely and hurt deeply and rage infinitely. But more than anything, they need. They reach out of the page with claws extended.

There are a handful of lines that feel like the chiming of a bell in the back of your brain. Like everything must stop until the cold, echoing vibration peters out. One line in particular (though this may not be final) was something to the effect of "I feel like a lie my sister told" and amidst the maelstrom of this fraught relationship between Lo and Bea, that line alone stopped me cold. And the book is riddled with them.

At various points in the book, you will want to grab both Bea and Lo and shake them, call them stupid, tell them "noooo" super dramatically. As they both circle around tragedy and circumstance and cliché (responding appropriately to the cliché-ness, to the point where you have to nod and go "yep, that really is the only response"). And throughout it all... You don't know what to believe. You genuinely don't know. "Cult vibes" isn't enough when the doors are wide open.

I told myself after reading Sadie that I needed to look back and fill in Summers' backlist. Again, I make that claim because these books can wreck you.

THE PROJECT by Courtney Summers is a YA novel about Lo Denham who tries to reunite with her sister Bea. Bea joined The Unity Project so Lo begins to investigate “the project” and seeks out their leader Lev to find out if he’s really a cult leader. The premise right away was really intriguing with the whole cult aspect but the whole book was so predictable. The writing was good as I was hooked to keep reading but more so to see if something unexpected would happen. I found at the end of the book I didn’t care for the whole plot at all. I’m still curious to read Sadie though.

Wow. I could not put this book down! It's a stunning book about loneliness and the deep desire to belong. If you loved Sadie, you will definitely love this.

I received a copy of this ebook in exchange for an honest review
I have actually tried this author before and wasn't fond of her writing style but decided I would try it one more time. After this though I will probably write this author off as just not my taste.

Hi friends! I received an ARC of this book from St. Martin’s Press and NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. This book won’t be published until February of 2021, but feel free to read my spoiler-free review and add it to your list if you’re interested! Although I received this book for free, all thoughts and feedback are my own.

Synopsis & Quick Thoughts
The Project is the second book I’ve read by author Courtney Summers, the first one being Sadie, which I enjoyed a moderate amount. Her newest novel follows Lo, a young woman whose family was torn apart by a devastating car crash when she was a child. After the accident that killed their parents, Lo’s older sister Bea joins The Unity Project, a religious organization with a focus on service and outreach. Lo attempts to expose The Unity Project for what she believes it truly is – a cult – and reunite with her sister. But after meeting with their charismatic leader, Lev Warren, the line between truth and fiction becomes blurred.

After a number of days have passed and given me the ability to reflect on what I’ve read, I can still say that I’m still not sure what to think about this book. It’s a little too thrilling to be a contemporary, but a little too slow to be a thriller. I feel like I’m left with a novel that builds too slowly to an insane climax, and while I liked the story a good amount, the wildly inconsistent pacing made this difficult to get through.

Positives
The themes that this novel explores are really fascinating and intriguing to me. I really enjoy learning about cults and what gets people to join and stay in one, especially the connection between cults and religion. The perspective we get by this story being presented in the first person helped to highlight the techniques that these organizations use on people and the conflicting emotions that they can bring forth within a person, even those who are skeptical.

To an extent, I also appreciated the slow burn that this plot had (or at least the idea of it). I think it really exemplifies the hold that cults can have on a person and the subtle build leading to the climax and answers to the questions we’ve been chasing for the entirety of the plot. The last 10% of the book had me thrilled and on the edge of my seat the entire time.

Generally speaking, I enjoyed Lo and her characterization. I really enjoyed Lev and his character development and the mystery and distrust surrounding him. The writing was well done and the environments were descriptive and very easy to become immersed in. I also enjoyed the ending and thought it wrapped up neatly without being unrealistic.

Negatives
The biggest issue I had with The Project was its pacing. As stated, I don’t mind novels with a slow, burn; I think it’s one of the best ways to build suspense in a thriller. With that being said, however, I feel as though the plot didn’t get rolling until about halfway through the novel. I think this might have been okay if the novel were marketed as more of a contemporary, but I went in expecting a thriller and felt as if I didn’t really get one until over halfway through the book. I also didn’t love the alternating perspective and time skips in this novel. I felt although the events told from Bea’s point of view were important to the story, it was somewhat confusing and following the jumps and changes took more effort than I was expecting (but maybe that’s just me!).

One of the smaller things that didn’t decrease my rating but is a pet peeve of mine when it comes to writing. I really can’t stand when authors put modern day references into their works. I’ve had long talks with various people about why I feel like this, but I think it has to do with my sense of escapism and the idea that it instantly dates the novel I’m reading. The Project includes references to Slack and the Trump administration, among others, and it felt very “hello fellow kids” in a way I didn’t enjoy. These details didn’t add anything to the story and I think would have kept my immersion better if they’d been left off altogether.

Rating & Final Thoughts
This is the most unsure about a rating I’ve been in a while! For now, I think I’m going to rate The Project 3 out of 5 stars. It’s kind of the epitome of ambivalence. I like cult books and dark stories, but this almost seemed too little too late. The writing style was solid, but the characters and the plot just couldn’t get me to care one way or another. If you’re a Courtney Summers fan, check it out. Otherwise, read Sadie instead.

i loved the pacing and felt immersed in the book as soon as i started it. i found it intriguing, and kinda scary??? but i am also a baby so! i'm very interested in reading more of courtney summers' books, like sadie, in the future! and i cant wait to buy this on its release date.

thank you to Netgalley and St. Martin’s Press/ Wednesday Books for sending me an eARC in exchange for an honest review!

The Project definitely gave me the thrilling read I've been wanting. This is the first book I've read by Courtney Summers and I'm glad to have requested this ARC. The synopsis tells us that Bea may have joined a cult and that is what we believe to happen as readers. What's interesting about The Project is we get the perspective from both sisters but at different timelines.

While reading The Project it was hard for me to trust both narratives as they seem to have some sort of complications with themselves as well. This made it a more interesting read as we readers navigate through their vulnerabilities and how it clouds their realities. I enjoyed the mystery and thrill by not giving us the answers to both these characters all at once.

Reading about Lev was also interesting especially how Bea and his member viewed him as such a powerful person. The Unity Project itself had so much mystery to it that made me want to keep reading out of curiosity. In the first half of the book, we are convinced that the Project is a cult (from Lo's perspective) yet from Bea's we are shown that they help people through their struggles and find themselves. I as a reader was conflicted as to if the Project was a cult or this was due to Lo projecting on finding a reason as to why her sister cut contact with her.

Although I enjoyed the read, I did find the build-up a bit slow. It's definitely a book I would recommend to people new to thrillers! Will be picking up more books from Courtney Summers!

So, I actually had not meant to request The Project, instead thinking it was a different book by a different author. But as I had heard of Courtney Summers's Sadie I was intrigued enough to go ahead and give it a go. Not only was it not terribly long (it clocks in just under 200 pages) but it was about a cult. And in a year like 2020, who doesn't want a suspense/ thriller about a cult?

If there is such a person, it sure isn't me.

The plot is simple enough: following their parents' deaths, Lo Denham's older sister Bea vanished into the titular The Unity Project, a church whose focus is on community and charity. Led by the charismatic Lev Warren, The Unity Project prides themselves on giving those lost purpose and acceptance. But Lo doubts the group's legitimacy, and when the chance comes to investigate The Unity Project, she might finally get the answers about her sister she’s been long denied.

The Project is about a cult; at no point is it coy about that fact. That's its big draw, and to a degree its biggest stumbling block. Because cults function in a very specific way, parts of the plot unfold with fated predictability. Lo, without family, struggling in a job she doesn't feel takes her seriously, and living with the trauma of the car accident that destroyed her family, is ripe for conversion, and it unfolds with sickening inertia.

All along the way, The Project's various cracks begin to show, and the truth about Bea's disappearance surfaces. While I was engaged enough to get to the end, to get my answers, and to see what ultimately befell Lo, parts did fall short.

The Project is a shorter work, and it does take its time to get going. This is fine to set up Lo's circumstances, especially so you can see how she would be ideal prey. That said, once we hit the meat of the plot, everything kind of unravels at once. The climax is a bit rushed, to the point that things just…end and resolve themselves. Bea's story is concluded, but it’s both unsurprising and also very briefly dealt with to the point that I felt nothing about it. A theme of the work- what it’s actually framed by-is the relationship of sisters, but the ending never really delivered on bringing that to a close, for good or for ill.

The Project is quick and engaging, but it really isn't going to go anywhere you aren't expecting, due to the inherent nature of cults. Lo is a character to root for and to feel concern over, but the end feels clipped and rushed so that she doesn't get any real closure. The villains are the villains and you know who they are. That said, if you want something quick with a dark edge akin to a slightly lighter Gillian Flynn, The Project is perfect.

Excellent, beautifully written story about two sisters who have lost contact due to one of them joining a cult. Lo and Bea both suffered a tragic loss when they were young and never fully recovered. Even though Lo has the scars on the outside from the loss, Bea is also suffering just as much. Bea gets wrapped up in a cult and losses contact with Lo, who is now an aspiring reporter looking to do a story about the cult she believes took her sister from her. With many insights about how vulnerable people lose themselves in cults, this book is fascinating and impossible to put down. Would give way more than 5 stars if possible.

Fascinating. I loved Summer's book, Sadie, so I was thrilled to see she wrote another. The project keep me reading. Told in current day and flashbacks, it tells the story of two sisters--one is in a cult, and the other is an inspiring reporter. The catch? One sister has gone missing. The cult was the most interesting part of the story because it "looks" like it's doing all the right things (charity). But of course...there are things going on. Engaging. Definitely recommended.