The Project by Courtney Summers
- Publisher: Wednesday Books, February 2nd 2021
- Genre: Young Adult, Mystery, Thriller
- Format: eARC
- Page Count: 352 pages
- My Rating: ★★★★ (4/5)
Click on the cover for my review on Goodreads.
Content warnings: cult, gaslighting, manipulation, child abuse, abuse (cigarette burn, scalding, etc.), panic attacks, death of family members, suicide (jumper), vandalization, pregnancy, car accident, substance-induced psychosis, threatening, possible PTSD, infidelity
The Project is a story about a cult, The Unity Project led by Lev Warren, and the unbreakable ties between sisters Lo (b. 1998) and Bea (b. ca. 1992) Denham.
Lo has always dreamed of being a writer but is currently, in 2017, stuck working as an assistant for Paul Tindale at SVO, a magazine company. When the opportunity arises for her to dig into The Unity Project, a religious organization Lo believes to have taken Bea from her, she risks her own safety for a series of exclusive interviews with Lev. With Lo being facially scarred from a life-threatening car accident that killed both her parents in 2011, she is recognizable everywhere at The Project’s compounds as Bea’s little sister. But Lo is tired of everyone else knowing Bea when she hasn’t heard from her sister in a long time, and she is desperate to find out what is really going on at The Unity Project.
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 finished the book in one afternoon, the plot so intense that I couldn’t put it down. The most unsettling thing is that Lev Warren truly believes in what he preaches and that he seems like a very nice and incredibly charming person (as many cult leaders are). I kept wanting to know what hides behind his façade.
There are two alternating timelines: Lo’s present first-person POV and Bea’s past third-person POV, both in present tense as young adult fiction often is. Most of the story is set in 2017-2018, the present time for Lo, but we get glimpses of what Bea was going through over the past few years.
The Unity Project takes advantage of the human need of being seen, loved, and cared for. I can definitely see why Lev has so many followers, but given Lo’s blatant hatred toward him in the beginning, I couldn’t quite see how she slowly falls into his thrall. I guess being on the outside looking in, I could never fully see the shift. But it is undeniable that Lo, who lost her parents to death and her sister to The Project, has no one in her life, and as a 19/20-year-old, she has definitely gone through way more pain and trauma than anyone should ever have. I understand that her yearning for the idea of being part of a family plays a big role in the plot, too.
The Project was a bit more complex than I had anticipated; it isn’t just about exposing Lev Warren but also the butterfly effect of Jeremy’s suicide, Lo’s almost-fatal car accident years ago, and the bond between between siblings. I love that we get to see some characters from different viewpoints, especially Foster and Rob, and I really like the pureness of the three-year-old Emmy.
I did expect the book to end on a darker note but was pleasantly surprised that it has a relatively happy ending. The Unity Project feels like a warm place but throughout the narrative, there is always a sense of foreboding that makes this book such a page-turner. In the end, there is hope despite the horridness of theme.
The Project is a thrilling YA on cult and familial losses. This is my first book by Summers; I love the world she created for this story and will certainly be reading more of her works as well.
I received an e-ARC from Wednesday Books via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
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