Young Adult

The Project

The Project

  • Downloads：7771
  • Type：Epub+TxT+PDF+Mobi
  • Create Date：2021-04-13 14:51:00
  • Update Date：2025-09-06
  • Status：finish
  • Author：Courtney Summers
  • ISBN：1250798809
  • Environment：PC/Android/iPhone/iPad/Kindle
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Summary

Lo Denham is used to being on her own。 After her parents died， Lo's sister， Bea， joined The Unity Project， leaving Lo in the care of their great aunt。 Thanks to its extensive charitable work and community outreach， The Unity Project has won the hearts and minds of most in the Upstate New York region， but Lo knows there's more to the group than meets the eye。 She's spent the last six years of her life trying—and failing—to prove it。

When a man shows up at the magazine Lo works for claiming The Unity Project killed his son， Lo sees the perfect opportunity to expose the group and reunite with Bea once and for all。 When her investigation puts her in the direct path of its leader， Lev Warren and as Lo delves deeper into The Project， the lives of its members it upends everything she thought she knew about her sister， herself， cults， and the world around her—to the point she can no longer tell what's real or true。 Lo never thought she could afford to believe in Lev Warren 。 。 。 but now she doesn't know if she can afford not to。

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Reviews

Lovingkiwi ，

Sadly underwhelming。

Kim Thomas ，

⭐️⭐️ （audiobook）I LOVED Sadie by the same author， but this book is not a new favorite as I predicted it would be。 It just wasn’t for me。

Shahna ，

Oh boy。 Cults are a fun thing to read about。 But also terrifying。 I understand why people get sucked in， it's unfortunate。 Oh boy。 Cults are a fun thing to read about。 But also terrifying。 I understand why people get sucked in， it's unfortunate。 。。。more

Liz ，

Definitely a Courtney Summers fangirl now！ Really delves into how appealing cults can be， especially to people who are vulnerable。 I feel like more and more books are doing the jumping back and forth in time， but it really added to the story because you see the parallel stories of the sisters experiencing the cult。

Hannah ，

This book was slightly more potential than payoff。 I loved every idea， I loved every element， but it all never quite came together。 It was a good book， but only just a good book。

Ashley Rae ，

I loved every aspect of this book。 The plot was well written and draws you with its messed-up story of cult life and tragedy。 Some of the book literally had me sick to my stomach。。。 but in a good way。 There were parts that were a surprise and parts I predicted from the first few chapters。 Character development was well done， I want to hug Foster forever。 I listened to this in audiobook format and would 10/10 recommend it to everyone。Call your dad you're in a cult。 -- MFM I loved every aspect of this book。 The plot was well written and draws you with its messed-up story of cult life and tragedy。 Some of the book literally had me sick to my stomach。。。 but in a good way。 There were parts that were a surprise and parts I predicted from the first few chapters。 Character development was well done， I want to hug Foster forever。 I listened to this in audiobook format and would 10/10 recommend it to everyone。Call your dad you're in a cult。 -- MFM 。。。more

Carlie Spence ，

It wasn't my cup of tea by Courtney Summers but it was aight It wasn't my cup of tea by Courtney Summers but it was aight 。。。more

Ellice Y。 ，

Wow。

Angela ，

This book was an interesting interwoven story of two sisters。 It is full of tragedy and sadness and truly did not know what would happen next as the story unraveled。 A sad mystery。

Amy Maki ，

I don’t know how I feel about this book。 I hated every single character but I couldn’t stop reading。 It sucked me in and an oddly fascinating， watching a train wreck kind of way。 The ending was too abrupt。 It seemed like a cop out almost？ It was a solid 4 star until the last 10 pages。 Conflicting。Also- this is 100% not a YA book

Nat ，

☆☆ YouTube | Tumblr | Instagram ☆☆Please Don't Cancel Me -- March Wrap Up || 11 books！This was a highly anticipated book for me and while it wasn't quite as amazing as Sadie， it was still a really interesting story that showcased the manipulation of cults and how they can entice lost people。 Although this is categorized as a thriller， I think that can be a little misleading。 Usually， I'd expect for a thriller to get my heart racing and have me on the edge of my seat， which I can't say every r ☆☆ YouTube | Tumblr | Instagram ☆☆Please Don't Cancel Me -- March Wrap Up || 11 books！This was a highly anticipated book for me and while it wasn't quite as amazing as Sadie， it was still a really interesting story that showcased the manipulation of cults and how they can entice lost people。 Although this is categorized as a thriller， I think that can be a little misleading。 Usually， I'd expect for a thriller to get my heart racing and have me on the edge of my seat， which I can't say every really happened。 This did， however， cover some uncomfortable topics that definitely had me squirming。 I was pretty invested in Lo and Bea's stories， to see what kind of promises and rhetoric won them over， to see just how far they were willing to go for this 'found family。' Because of this， I was also really intrigued by Lev， seeing what buttons he pushed and how he manipulated his followers。 Definitely a psychological story that would have certainly piqued my interest to start researching cults if I read it as a teenager。 。。。more

Liza ，

Popsugar 2021: a book about forgetting。 This one is about forgetting who you are to be part of something that takes it away from you。 Desperation and loneliness can cause people to forget who they are and leave everything that is important to them just to feel seen and loved。

Kendal Merkley Heeter ，

3。5 starsI did like this but am a little disappointed 😕

Kayla Jones ，

I LOVE Courtney Summers' writing。 It's easy to read and captivating and just makes you crave more & more。 I read Sadie a couple years ago and it is the book that I ALWAYS recommend。Cults are terrifying。 Evangelical cults are worse。 This is a heart-wrenching story about two sisters trying to find each other again and the lengths you'll go to save the ones you love。 I LOVE Courtney Summers' writing。 It's easy to read and captivating and just makes you crave more & more。 I read Sadie a couple years ago and it is the book that I ALWAYS recommend。Cults are terrifying。 Evangelical cults are worse。 This is a heart-wrenching story about two sisters trying to find each other again and the lengths you'll go to save the ones you love。 。。。more

Kate ，

Six years ago， sisters Lo and Bea lost their parents in a car accident that left Lo in a coma。 Bea found solace in a religious group called The Unity Project， becoming an ardent follower when the leader， Lev， brought Lo back to life。 Now， Lo struggles to make a life for herself， as Bea has fully disappeared into the Project。 When Lo witnesses the suicide of a Project member， she is determined to uncover the truth about the Project。My current obsession with cults made this an interesting read， be Six years ago， sisters Lo and Bea lost their parents in a car accident that left Lo in a coma。 Bea found solace in a religious group called The Unity Project， becoming an ardent follower when the leader， Lev， brought Lo back to life。 Now， Lo struggles to make a life for herself， as Bea has fully disappeared into the Project。 When Lo witnesses the suicide of a Project member， she is determined to uncover the truth about the Project。My current obsession with cults made this an interesting read， because I could see where certain terms came from （for example， "audits" come from Scientology， "collateral" comes from NXIVM）。 The timelines and multiple perspectives （Lo is written in first person， while Bea is in third） complicated things a bit， but also managed to not be confusing。 The cult is presented as possibly not all bad， which echoes several things I've learned about cults: no one intentionally joins a cult - there's always a reason， usually because they are looking for a way to make change in the world （in a positive way） and because the leader is charismatic。 The way Lo's journey echoes Bea's built to a powerful conclusion。 I'm not fully convinced that this is a YA book， as both Bea and Lo are adults， and both of them （view spoiler）[enter into a sexual relationship with Lev （hide spoiler）]。 Lo's journey is about finding her place in the universe which is a YA-type theme。 I'd recommend this for upper young adult （grades 10 & up）。 。。。more

Spinster ，

Tense and compelling book about two sisters who get involved in a cult。 It's told in 2 timelines， one following the older sister and one the younger。 Pacing gets out of whack and it starts to feel long at about the 60% mark。 This is the point where I looked up the page count to make sure I hadn't accidentally started reading something with 600 pages （hate when that happens）。 I was a bit shocked to see it in the 330 range。 I didn't quite buy younger sister Lo's entry into Lev's orbit， and the end Tense and compelling book about two sisters who get involved in a cult。 It's told in 2 timelines， one following the older sister and one the younger。 Pacing gets out of whack and it starts to feel long at about the 60% mark。 This is the point where I looked up the page count to make sure I hadn't accidentally started reading something with 600 pages （hate when that happens）。 I was a bit shocked to see it in the 330 range。 I didn't quite buy younger sister Lo's entry into Lev's orbit， and the ending didn't work for me at all。 The author's earlier book Sadie was like this。 Tension builds， the story builds， but the final confrontation happens off page。 It's similar here: （view spoiler）[Lo goes into a freezing pond with cult leader Lev to be baptized or drowned--this is how he killed Bea。 Somehow Lo comes out of it and is rescued while Lev drowns。 But how？ Does she pull him under？ Is there meant to be a supernatural element with Bea's ghost？ This is ultimately unsatisfying and feels like a huge cop-out。 （hide spoiler）] The plot， ultimately， is predictable but the overall quality of the writing， especially in the first third， is gorgeous。 。。。more

Literary Han ，

I really enjoyed this short novel。A solid 4 stars Spoilers ahead！！！！！It truly showed how easy it is to be reeled into lies of a ‘prophet’ and how the abuse you’re suffering is divine。 It started off not feeling like a cult and I wasn’t sure what to believe tbh。 I honestly did not realise how easy it is to join a cult not knowing it’s a cult and whole heartedly believing you are doing ‘God’s work’。 I found it super interesting that the main character， all， was an atheist and yet still fell for Le I really enjoyed this short novel。A solid 4 stars Spoilers ahead！！！！！It truly showed how easy it is to be reeled into lies of a ‘prophet’ and how the abuse you’re suffering is divine。 It started off not feeling like a cult and I wasn’t sure what to believe tbh。 I honestly did not realise how easy it is to join a cult not knowing it’s a cult and whole heartedly believing you are doing ‘God’s work’。 I found it super interesting that the main character， all， was an atheist and yet still fell for Lev’s enigmatic leadership。 I， myself， am an atheist and I didn’t think I could ever fall for a cult but this book has left me questioning quite a lot。 This was a very good bookHannah 。。。more

WJ ，

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。 With The Project， Courtney Summers takes on the subjects of sisterhood and cults; what it means to be loved and what it means to be left behind。 The story is told through alternating perspectives， between the past where Bea first meets her younger sister Lo to the present， where Lo has grown up and is trying to find out what happened to Bea。 There's no question that Summers can write bec 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。 With The Project， Courtney Summers takes on the subjects of sisterhood and cults; what it means to be loved and what it means to be left behind。 The story is told through alternating perspectives， between the past where Bea first meets her younger sister Lo to the present， where Lo has grown up and is trying to find out what happened to Bea。 There's no question that Summers can write because I definitely felt very deeply for what both sisters had gone through: about Bea's hopelessness when she realises that Lo is all that she has left; about Lo's despair at being cut-off from her sister's life and the temptation that the Unity Project， led by its charismatic leader Lev， represents for both of them。 However， where I think the plot works less effectively is during the second-half of the book。But let's begin with what I actually enjoyed - Bea's perspective was absolutely heart-wrenching and it is easy to understand how she fell under Lev's spell。 As a teenager who suddenly loses her parents overnight and is left with a kid sister that seems unlikely to survive ICU， it's easy to understand why she bought into Lev's charisma and his promise that she can be redeemed and saved through his faith。 （view spoiler）[It was deeply sad how she felt like she had to sacrifice her own sexuality in order to keep Foster， her first recruit， in the Project because if she failed then it seemed like her own value to him would've dropped。 And to think that it led to a child that she wasn't allowed to contact。。。that was also incredibly sad。 I also found it a twist that Bea was already dead by the time that Lo was poking around the Unity Project when pretending that she had her magazine's blessings。 （hide spoiler）] I also enjoyed Lo's relentless pursuit of the truth， at how determined she was to find out why her sister left her behind and at whatever skeletons that Lev/the Unity Project was hiding in their closet。There were also quite a few genuinely creepy moments， where we see how effectively both Lo's and Bea's perception of reality had been shaped by the Unity Project and Lev。 There were certainly times where I questioned how much of what had occurred was down to pure coincidence and how much of it was due to Lev。 （view spoiler）[ For example， both Bea and Lo seemed convinced that Lo's ICU recovery was due to Lev's intervention。 （hide spoiler）]Where the book lost me a little was the second-half， where Lo is given the opportunity to interview Lev。 To begin with， it didn't make a lot of sense to me that Lev would pick Lo to report on whatever the Unity Project was doing。 Surely there were more established writers that he could've chosen？ Unless the point was her connection with Bea？ （view spoiler）[ I also thought that the transition from Lo being a skeptic to a true-believer was awkward。 Lo started to investigate into the Unity Project again because she witnessed the suicide of Jeremy， a follower。 Yet somewhere along the way， this plot thread seems to have gotten dropped and it never crosses her mind again after she starts to buy into Lev's brand。 This just seemed incredibly odd to me。 （hide spoiler）] 。。。more

Stephanie ，

2。75*

Kailen ，

You ever realize you’d be an easy target for cult recruitment？

Rose ，

Two sisters， a charismatic man， a cultThe Project tells a story of two sisters， bound together by love and tragedy。 Bea doesn’t want to be a big sister， but when her sister， Lo， arrives， Bea becomes Lo’s champion， helping her fight to survive。 When tragedy strikes 13 years later， Bea once again steps in to push her sister to survive。 In doing so， she calls on God for help。 When Bea sees Lev， She mistakenly believes he is a savior。 This begins Bea’s entry into the cult known as The Project。Lo wor Two sisters， a charismatic man， a cultThe Project tells a story of two sisters， bound together by love and tragedy。 Bea doesn’t want to be a big sister， but when her sister， Lo， arrives， Bea becomes Lo’s champion， helping her fight to survive。 When tragedy strikes 13 years later， Bea once again steps in to push her sister to survive。 In doing so， she calls on God for help。 When Bea sees Lev， She mistakenly believes he is a savior。 This begins Bea’s entry into the cult known as The Project。Lo works in publishing， but is only a secretary/assistant when she wishes to be a writer。 She wants to do a story on Lev and The Project， and tries to infiltrate the cult for information。 She searches for her sister， Bea， but is told Bea has left The Project。 While investigating the cult， Lo is pulled under the spell of Lev。The story culminates in Lo having to make choices to save her family and sacrifice so much to learn the truth。 This is a quick read， but powerful in the bonds of family and the allure of cults to those who are vulnerable。 。。。more

Katrina ，

I don’t know about this one。 Some of the writing is really great， but mostly I felt disoriented。 I think that was actually the intended effect， it just didn’t work for me。 Also。。。this was pretty disturbing。 I can’t actually see myself giving this to a teen unless they explicitly asked me for something to give them nightmares。

seku ，

You’re in a cult。 Call your dad。 I wanted some twists。 Or better twists？ Most of what happened， I nodded my head and went “yeah， did you not see this coming？ Classic cult behavior。”

Kimberly Swartz ，

It wasn't terrible， it just wasn't what I expected It wasn't terrible， it just wasn't what I expected 。。。more

Brit ，

3。5。 Listened to the audiobook during work。 This is my second book my courtney summers and i found that i liked this more than Sadie。

brooke。suxx ，

i really enjoyed this。 so good。 once again not disappointed。 the writing is amazing and although it personally took a while to get into it， it was so worth it。 JUST READ IT YOU WONT REGRET IT

Cheyenne ，

This book is what I’ve been looking for！ I will definitely be reading more from Summers。

Rachel Smith ，

Loved the cult-y parts of this book。 Hated all the characters。

Janet Lynch ，

I enjoyed this book more than I thought I would。 The story of sisters， Bea and Lo， and the cult that both separated them and brought them together。 The flow from one chapter to the next was sometimes aprupt and I found myself having to check the time period and character at the start of each chapter。 There was a little too much preaching/religion at times but it didn’t ruin the book。 I couldn’t figure out why it was classified as a YA book as it didn’t read like one at all and there were no teen I enjoyed this book more than I thought I would。 The story of sisters， Bea and Lo， and the cult that both separated them and brought them together。 The flow from one chapter to the next was sometimes aprupt and I found myself having to check the time period and character at the start of each chapter。 There was a little too much preaching/religion at times but it didn’t ruin the book。 I couldn’t figure out why it was classified as a YA book as it didn’t read like one at all and there were no teenage characters。 At times dark and brutal， I was engrossed in the story from start to finish。 。。。more

Emily ，

The Project is a very interesting story about a religious cult。 The story alternated between two sisters， Lo and Bea’s， points of view。 When I was reading from Lo’s perspective I hated this cult， but when reading from Bea’s perspective I could see why joining was attractive to some people。 Which is I’m sure what the author was intending to do。 I went back and forth not knowing what to believe， then there are some big revelations in the end where I finally was like ok， this is not good。 Overall， The Project is a very interesting story about a religious cult。 The story alternated between two sisters， Lo and Bea’s， points of view。 When I was reading from Lo’s perspective I hated this cult， but when reading from Bea’s perspective I could see why joining was attractive to some people。 Which is I’m sure what the author was intending to do。 I went back and forth not knowing what to believe， then there are some big revelations in the end where I finally was like ok， this is not good。 Overall， an enjoyable read！ 。。。more

Reference

google book https://www.google.com/search?tbm=bks&q=The Project

hathitrust digital library https://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/ls?q1=The Project&field1=ocr&a=srchls&ft=ft&lmt=ft

The British Library https://bll01.primo.exlibrisgroup.com/discovery/search?query=any,contains,The Project&tab=LibraryCatalog&search_scope=Not_BL_Suppress&vid=44BL_INST:BLL01&lang=en&offset=0