The Impossible Fortress

Billy Marvin and his buddies decide to steal a copy of Playboy with a photo spread of Vanna White, and to do so, Billy must convince a store owner's daughter, Mary, to give him the security code for the shop. Unexpectedly, Billy and Mary discover a common love for computer coding and they fall for each other.

The details of the 80's, of early computers, of first video games...this is an absolutely wonderful trip back in time. One little plot point annoyed me a bit, but in view of all the other delightfulnesses of this book, I think I can let it go. I loved Billy and I loved Mary and I even loved Mary's gruff father and Billy's wildly irritating friends.

This is a spoiler-free review
Read on In The Sheets

The Impossible Fortress is a book I'd seen around online and decided to pick up on a whim while at Chapters. All I knew going in was that this was a love story to the 80's and, while at 27 I just missed the 80's, I was still really into the idea.

The book is a super cute coming of age story about a couple of young high school nerds (I could relate) that gets complicated real fast. Jason manages to capture the vibe and nostalgia of the decade, without shoving references down your throat for the sake of it and interrupting the narrative, in the way I felt Ready Player One did. While there are plenty of references throughout, they all feel exactly relevant to the story.

I loved every single character in this book and every turn the story took. After the first couple of chapters I figured I knew what I was in for, I was totally wrong and pleasantly surprised. The Impossible Fortress takes multiple turns that I didn't see coming and each one added an unexpected depth to the narrative. 

Overall, I highly recommend The Impossible Fortress. Jason has done a phenomenal job for his first novel, it's an incredibly fun ride and a super quick read at just under 300 pages. 

Do recommend. Would read again.

Great story about learning to be an adult with some well done relationships and more depth than expected wrapped in 80’s culture.