Reviews with content warning for Physical abuse - The Project

Wow, another emotional devastation thanks to Courtney Summers. Summers continues her exploration of the bond between sisters and lends her signature tone to cult angle. I wasn't always 100% on board in terms of the pacing of the structure, or maybe how the cult itself was developed in terms of how we as readers experienced it (because all the pieces were definitely there). But there's a lot to unpack here. More thoughts to come as I am processing and also want to avoid all spoilers.

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acarter's review against another edition

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challenging dark tense fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

Courtney Summers is a full-tilt genius. If you manage to stretch this book into more than one reading session, you have far more willpower than I. No one plumbs the depths of the cruelties that girls endure at the hands of patriarchy like Summers does, and that’s a fact.

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katyisreading's review against another edition

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challenging dark emotional sad tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.75

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for an ARC in exchange for my review

The Project is a YA cult novel. The story is narrated by two sisters, Bea and Lo, in dual timelines. The girls are six years apart in age, and when Lo is 13 and Bea is 19, their parents are killed in a car accident that leaves Lo in the hospital with a large scar on her face. Despite Lo's condition, Bea leaves her to join the Unity Project, a collective that runs homeless shelters in NYC and around the country and is led by a man who claims to have a direct connection to God.

Fast forward six years and Bea is 19 and working for an investigative journalist. When the journalist's friend claims that The Unity Project murdered his son, Bea is determined to prove the leader Lev is evil and that the Project is a cult.

I don't know if "enjoyed" is the right word for this book, but it was definitely suspenseful and kept me intrigued throughout. The story is tragic and engaging and I appreciated the tie to the current political situation. I thought the way the sisters' stories were told in dual timelines was executed really well; Summers did a fantastic job of letting information come to the reader slowly and showcasing the moments' in the sisters' lives that mirrored one another. I think if you enjoy cult novels, you'll enjoy this one, although I did have some issues with it - see spoiler section below!

There were a few things about this book that bothered me:

Lev somehow seduces two nineteen-year-old women. I got the sense he was in his 20s, maybe 30s? If this is YA, I think there should have been more of a conversation around how him doing that is not okay, despite the fact that the women were technically adult age at the time.
I was intrigued by the mirror between Lev and Paul, the journalist Lo works for. I thought it could just be a coincidence, but when Lo catches Paul having sex with Lauren right after we learn Lev had sex with Bea, I think it's clear the mirror was intentional. But then why didn't it go anywhere? Was the takeaway supposed to be "not all super magnetic, talented men are assholes who use and abuse women"?
The least realistic thing about this story to me was Lo not being fired. I'm sorry, assistants can't act that way at work! They can't be brats and expect to get promoted! And promotions don't usually just magically happen after a year!

End rant :)

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cajun_reader's review against another edition

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dark mysterious tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5

The Project by Courtney Summers is an interesting book that explores how a cult can destroy families. The main characters' lives are greatly impacted by the influence of a charismatic leader. The book reveals how appealing membership in one of these organizations can be to individuals seeking love and acceptance, but that acceptance comes with a cost.

The main characters in this book are sisters. One sister, Lo, is in a life-threatening accident as a child. Her older sister, Bea, struggles to deal with Lo's accident and its aftermath. She turns to Lev Warren, leader of The Unity Project, to find healing and purpose. By joining the Project, she severs her ties with her sister. Lo does not understand why her sister has left her life and blames the Project for taking Bea from her. Therefore, Lo sets out as a young woman to learn and reveal the truth behind the Project. To do this, she must get close to its leader, which is a risky endeavor.

The premise of this book is interesting and engaging. The delivery is a bit chaotic, though. The story is told in two different timelines from the perspectives of Lo and Bea. It is often not clear at first which sister's storyline is being told at a given moment in the book. Some aspects of the story do not get explained well, either. Overall, I just found myself often confused.

This is one of those books that I find it hard to really like any of the characters. That's not necessarily a problem in the writing. Not all characters are meant to be likable. It just lowers a book's appeal to me in the sense that I will not likely want to pick it up again. I will admit, however, that the cult leader character is very interesting to read and well portrayed. I wish I had enjoyed the two main characters more.

I would recommend this book to fans of fiction that is focused on cults. It portrays that lifestyle and its members in a very engaging and fascinating manner.

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phoebereads's review against another edition

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challenging dark emotional mysterious sad tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character

5.0

This book absolutely floored me. I inhaled it in a single day. It's a brilliant and haunting book that cuts right into the power and pain that cults are centered around. Courtney Summers has the ability to write incredibly compelling characters and the girls who her stories are centered around are given the chance to be messy and hurt, but yet still find their inner power and strength. The girls of The Project are no different, and Lo and Bea's story is deeply compelling and traumatic and real. Where the book really shines is in how it pulls both the reader and Lo into this world of the Unity Project until we too begin to buy into them, or at least until we begin to truly understand why anyone would join such a group, including Bea. The horror and the abuse that underlie cults, like in real life, is saved for later until you've already been drawn in too far. The characters of the Unity Project too are all deeply complicated and again, a masterful portrayal of all the different people involved in allowing cults to continue and succeed. This is ultimately a book about pain and grief and the things we do to try to heal and feel whole, even when the paths that puts us on are deadly.
I really loved this book and I can't recommend it enough. Bravo to Courtney Summers.

**Thank you to the publisher for an eARC in exchange for an honest review!

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alyxandriaang's review against another edition

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dark emotional mysterious sad tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5

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