The Project

After a car accident kills both of her parents and leaves her sister with life-threatening injuries, Bea Denham hopes and prays that her sister, Lo, will be spared the same fate as her parents. She stands by Lo’s bedside each day, willing her to breathe on her own. A chance encounter in the hospital chapel with Lev Warren, the spiritual leader of The Unity Project, is just what Bea needs to believe that everything will be okay both for herself and Lo.

Upon waking in the ICU, Lo discovers that her parents are deceased and her older sister has joined The Unity Project, the religious group that has become famous due to its contributions to charities and work with those in need. Rumors about Lev Warren’s being a healer who performs miracles keep The Unity Project in the news. When Lo is released into the care of their great aunt, she feels Bea slipping further and further away, to the point where she starts to feel like a stranger. Lo’s curiosity about The Unity Project is piqued, and she begins to believe something is not as it seems with the group as she is certain that her sister would never abandon her.

When Lo’s boss’ friend, Arthur, shows up at the magazine office where she works, claiming that The Unity Project killed his son, Lo spots Bea in surveillance photographs that Arthur has in his possession. Lo’s suspicions that something nefarious is going on with The Project are triggered, setting her on a mission to prove it is a cult once and for all and save her sister from the same outcome as Arthur’s son.

Lo’s research brings her in direct contact with the charismatic Lev who gives her an opportunity to learn more about The Project. As her research takes her deeper into its realm, Lo finds that she has more questions than answers and that everything she believed to be true is now in question.

The Project is bestselling author Courtney Summers’ latest offering for St. Martin’s Press. Summers has authored several young adult novels, including All the Rage and Sadie. Her works have garnered numerous awards, including the Edgar Award, John Spray Mystery Award, Cybils Award and Odyssey Award. In 2015, she created the viral hashtag #ToTheGirls to celebrate the release of All the Rage, and she encourage her readers to let girls and women around the world know that they are “seen, heard, and loved”. In 2016, she was named one of Flare Magazine’s 60 under 30. She resides and writes in Canada.

The Project covers some serious themes, including mental health, trauma, family dynamics, resilience, death, love, identity, and the effects of cults. These themes are well-woven into a gripping psychological thriller. The fast moving and twist-filled plot is likely to capture and maintain readers’ attention. The text is filled with rich prose, raw details, and a powerful message, bound to linger with readers well after the last page is turned.

Like many of her other novels, Summers has taken a current issue that adversely and disproportionately affects girls and women and created a page-turning work of realistic fiction around it. Readers will likely come to think of the experiences of survivors of the NXIVM cult and the arrests and convictions of leader Keith Raniere and his co-conspirators, as well as other charismatic cult leaders like Jim Jones and David Koresh. As detailed through both Lo’s and Bea’s experiences, Summers does a masterful job of realistically portraying the brainwashing, dark rituals, veiled do-gooding, delusions of grandeur, and exploitation of the most vulnerable that are present in most true-to-life cults.

The text consists of alternating chapters narrated by Lo and Bea. Bea’s chapters begin in 2011, shortly after the car accident that put Lo in the ICU. Lo’s chapters begin in September 2017 as events at her workplace bring The Unity Project to the forefront of her mind. This alternating narration creates a well-rounded view of the plot as readers will be able to put together the missing pieces of each girl’s life since the car accident that the other could only speculate about. As the timelines begin to converge and Lo digs up more evidence regarding her sister’s life, it becomes apparent how the manipulative and smooth-talking Lev has taken hold on both girls’ lives.

As with many of Summers’ other titles, The Project is a feminist novel. She has created another strong, resilient female character in Lo. Lo is incredibly complex, realistically flawed, and extremely likeable as a character, despite not being perfect. In spite of the adversity Lo has faced, the author shows readers throughout the text that she will stop at nothing to find out the truth about her sister. Readers who are working toward discovering their own identity are likely to connect with Lo and her experiences.

The Project is another well-written, high-quality work of fiction by Courtney Summers. As is her signature, the book delves into current, systemic issues borne out of a patriarchal society that oppress girls and women, which is likely to resonate with the target audience. The fast-paced, emotional, and suspenseful thriller brings the reader into the world of survivors of cults and their families. Readers are likely to connect with and root for the strong female protagonist, making The Project a well-loved addition to any library or bookshelf.