Billy Martin is a fourteen year old, just starting high school where he didn't make any of the cliques. He doesn't care about sports, he is too shy to be popular with the girls and he isn't one of the brains. He's just an average kid making it through with two best friends, Alf and Chase. If anything sets Billy apart, it's his new found hobby, a Commodore-64 he and his mother won in a contest. He loves reading about programming, he loves putting in the programs and getting them to run and he even has been programming his own ideas.

Everything changes when Playboy features Vanna White in its monthly edition. She is every teenage boy's dream woman and Billy and his buddies know that they have to get their hands on a copy. They make impossible plans but the magazine remains out of reach. The only place to get it is Zelinsky's Newstand and Mr. Zelinsky isn't about to sell an adult magazine to teenagers. As they plot schemes, Alf decides it would be a great opportunity to make money. Soon he is taking orders for copies of Vann's pictures to guys in school and the pressure is on.

When Billy goes to the store to scope things out, he meets Mary Zelinsky, the owner's daughter, his age. She is in the back where they kept the computers and as he talks with her, he realizes she shares his interest in programming and probably is even better than him. Billy starts going to the store every day making friends with Mary so the boys can get the security code. But something happens along the way; he starts having feelings for Mary. This is his first crush and he doesn't know if she shares it but she is the most optimistic person he's ever met and she seems to believe in his ability to create the best game ever.

This is a new author for me and a charming book. The author is an Edgar nominated writer who is also an editor at Quirk books. The book brings back memories of growing up, that first love and all the anxieties of high school. Since I was in the IT field, it also brings back memories of those early days of computing. It's a sentimental look back and an exploration of friendship, growing up and how easily things can go awry. This book is recommended for those interested in looking back and remembering their younger days.

I really did try to love this book. Made it about half way through, then got distracted and lost access to the file.

THE IMPOSSIBLE FORTRESS is a delightful novel about 3 friends whose goal in life is to get their hands on the copy of the Playboy magazine with Vanna White in it. The story takes place during the 80s, and having come of age in the 80s myself, the book made me nostalgic. It was a good, fun read!

I dont know why I thought this was a adult novel, this is much more a YA than a general fiction. However I guess had I been a teen in the 80's I would have enjoyed this one more. I think this one is a bit of a niche book. Either your a YA, or you have nostalgia, other wise this book isn't really for you. Well written though.

A great coming of age story from the 80's. The author captures the essence of what it is to be a teenage boy discovering love, friendship and creative ways to get into trouble for a noble cause. Although I am a child of the 50's and 60's, I fully connected with young Billy in his escapades. A very fun and enjoyable read.

This book was a little hit or miss with me. There was a lot of gross boy stuff, but the nostalgia was fun and I liked the relationship between the two main characters. Thank you to the publisher for the chance to read.

I thought the premise of this book was cute, and it managed to capture how strange and immature teenage boys could be. However, it wasn't that engaging, and didn't live up to the promise of description.

An interesting story that reminded me of Ready Player One. It was a fun trip back to my teenage years in the '80s and anyone who enojoys those nostalgic walks through the past will like it!

Thanks Jason Rekulak and Simon & Schuster for a free copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

A dazzling debut novel—at once a charming romance and a moving coming-of-age story—about what happens when a fourteen-year old boy pretends to seduce a girl to steal a copy of Playboy but then discovers she is his computer-loving soulmate.

Billy Marvin’s first love was a computer. Then he met Mary Zelinsky.

Do you remember your first love?

The Impossible Fortress begins with a magazine…The year is 1987 and Playboy has just published scandalous photographs of Vanna White, from the popular TV game show Wheel of Fortune. For three teenage boys—Billy, Alf, and Clark—who are desperately uneducated in the ways of women, the magazine is somewhat of a Holy Grail: priceless beyond measure and impossible to attain. So, they hatch a plan to steal it.

The heist will be fraught with peril: a locked building, intrepid police officers, rusty fire escapes, leaps across rooftops, electronic alarm systems, and a hyperactive Shih Tzu named Arnold Schwarzenegger. Failed attempt after failed attempt leads them to a genius master plan—they’ll swipe the security code to Zelinsky’s convenience store by seducing the owner’s daughter, Mary Zelinsky. It becomes Billy’s mission to befriend her and get the information by any means necessary. But Mary isn’t your average teenage girl. She’s a computer loving, expert coder, already strides ahead of Billy in ability, with a wry sense of humor and a hidden, big heart. But what starts as a game to win Mary’s affection leaves Billy with a gut-wrenching choice: deceive the girl who may well be his first love or break a promise to his best friends.

I didn't enjoy this book as much as I thought I would from reading the synopsis, but perhaps that has to do with my age and expecting more from a YA/coming of age book than others?

Really enjoyable read. Good characters and a Good story. Well worth a read. Think others will. Enjoy

I thoroughly enjoyed this nostalgic trip back to the 80’s when personal computers were the size of suitcases, and video games were only starting to emerge from the Zork era. The 14 year old boys are charmingly (and believably) brainless as they concoct their plots and strategies. I would really, really, really love to know what happens to Will and Mary next! I listened to the audio version of the book, and perversely enjoyed the reading of the Basic code at the start of the chapters. (But you may have had to be an early computer programmer to find this part entertaining!)

This was an interesting book that reminded me a lot of Ready Player One, not having grown up in the 80s I had a different perspective on the references in the book. It was interesting to read and I overall enjoyed it.

The Impossible Fortress hits the exact right notes of eighties nostalgia without turning into a catalog of bygone pop culture. It definitely opened a flood of memories for me. I wasn’t a teenager in 1987, but I did spend my childhood teaching myself BASIC on my Apple IIGS and keying in machine language programs printed in the backs of my dad’s computer magazines.

Billy, Alf and Clark just want to see Vanna White in the May 1987 issue of Playboy, and they’ll try just about any harebrained scheme to get it. When they go into a local typewriter repair store and try to convince the owner that they look like serious businessmen who are definitely old enough to buy it, Billy meets Mary, an overweight social outcast who not only shares his love of computer programming but also his interest in making games, not to mention the fact that she has talent to spare.

Mary tells Billy about a contest judged by their personal game design hero, and it isn’t long before they’re heads-down, working feverishly to finish the titular game – an unfinished, unpolished concept created by Billy in his free time – all while Alf and Clark think he’s working a scam to get the Playboy.

The characters are so sharply drawn that they leap off the page. Rekaluk makes them both relatable and unique with only a few key details as well as a strong sense of the time and place. I fell in love with these characters, rooting for them to figure things out and make something out of themselves.

That’s why I was especially invested when the book took a turn for the dramatic and the stakes became much higher. Suddenly The Impossible Fortress wasn’t just a teenage sex comedy filled to the brim with programming nostalgia; it was also a story about how one wrong choice can ruin your life and how easy it is to watch your dreams slip through your hands. When things started going south for Billy, my stomach dropped, and I didn’t want to stop reading.

In fact, I listened to most of this book in one long sitting while I cleaned and packed for my holiday travel. I rarely get the chance to listen for such a long, uninterrupted period, so it’s especially nice to find a book compelling enough to warrant the attention. I highly recommend The Impossible Fortress, and can’t wait to read Jason Rekaluk’s follow-up, whatever it might be.

Score: 9/10

When you’re 14, the world seems enormous and choking all at once, the big “one day” plans far more interesting than your current maths class or boring neighbourhood. For Billy, school is a time to be thinking over his next bit of computer programming script, not work, and time at home means programming a strip poker game and hanging out with his best friends Clark and Alf. The guys decide to steal a Playboy magazine from a local shop, and the tale from there is epic – double crosses, castles, single mothers, evil principals, furious guard dogs, princesses in various requirements of saving, and a determined band of thieving heroes.

I cannot remember the last time a book tackled me back to my teens, threw off the years, dug up memories and rode off on its bike laughing. The Impossible Fortress absolutely delighted me, sucked me in from the first page and didn’t let go until I was breathless and checking my face for zits I was so firmly feeling in the 1980s. It’s an incredible ride; clever, honest, unflinching and emotive, perfectly capturing the frets and frisson of being a teen still at home and hungry for the world.

This was the second book I read in 2017, and I can tell that there’ll have to be an astonishingly brilliant story to knock The Impossible Fortress from my “Best of 2017” lists this year.
Rated: PG-13 – discussion of sex, physical intimacy, violence and themes of personal responsibility, real-life repercussions, peer pressure, friendships and developing relationships.

Literary/wordcraft discussion: The dialogue was whip fast, witty and a delight to read. The characters were well-developed, with human frailties and no stereotypical short cuts (the principal could be seen as overblown, but I’ve known principals like that so I call it believable and move on). The use of hand-drawn maps at points during the story was excellent, as was the programming code at the beginning of each chapter – I didn’t understand it but it added sinews and sweat to the shape and movement of the story. Dialogue and development was organic, deftly woven into the story so that exposition wasn’t necessary, as you felt you knew the guys, their in-jokes and nuances – which then meant that when they were surprised, you were too. The surprises were absolutely unexpected – I’d have to reread the book to identify any foreshadowing, but there was nothing heavy handed about the twists (I certainly didn’t see them coming, and they packed a punch when they landed).

Recommended to:
• Anyone who hopes their mother never knew everything they were getting up to as a 14-year-old
• Those who would like to remember their teens again, zits, crushes, frustrations and all
• Teenagers (all those I'm related to will get this book as a gift from me asap!)

Not recommended for:
• Anyone allergic to laughter
• Those still mortified by previous embarrassments
• Readers who think teens don’t think about sex (hint: you're 179008% wrong)

I'm an 80s kid, so when I heard the plotline for this book, I was intrigued. Didn't quite live up to it. Took me forever to finish, and I picked it up randomly over several, several months. The characters anchor any story, regardless of the decade, and in this case, the characters fell flat for me. Not my cuppa.

I loved all the 80s pop-culture in this book. Great coming of age story about a geeky kids trying to get their hands on an issue of Playboy with Vanna White in it.

"A dazzling debut novel—at once a charming romance and a moving coming-of-age story—about what happens when a fourteen-year-old boy pretends to seduce a girl to steal a copy of Playboy but then discovers she is his computer-loving soulmate.

Billy Marvin’s first love was a computer. Then he met Mary Zelinsky.

Do you remember your first love?

The Impossible Fortress begins with a magazine…The year is 1987 and Playboy has just published scandalous photographs of Vanna White, from the popular TV game show Wheel of Fortune. For three teenage boys—Billy, Alf, and Clark—who are desperately uneducated in the ways of women, the magazine is somewhat of a Holy Grail: priceless beyond measure and impossible to attain. So, they hatch a plan to steal it.

The heist will be fraught with peril: a locked building, intrepid police officers, rusty fire escapes, leaps across rooftops, electronic alarm systems, and a hyperactive Shih Tzu named Arnold Schwarzenegger. Failed attempt after failed attempt leads them to a genius master plan—they’ll swipe the security code to Zelinsky’s convenience store by seducing the owner’s daughter, Mary Zelinsky. It becomes Billy’s mission to befriend her and get the information by any means necessary. But Mary isn’t your average teenage girl. She’s a computer loving, expert coder, already strides ahead of Billy in ability, with a wry sense of humor and a hidden, big heart. But what starts as a game to win Mary’s affection leaves Billy with a gut-wrenching choice: deceive the girl who may well be his first love or break a promise to his best friends.

At its heart, The Impossible Fortress is a tender exploration of young love, true friends, and the confusing realities of male adolescence—with a dash of old school computer programming."

This sounds like such a cute coming of age story. Plus, the eighties are SO in right now!

The year is 1987, and in the world of 14 year old Billy, Clark, and Alf, nothing is more important than getting their hands on the recently published, scandalous pictures of Vanna White appearing in Playboy. The boys, somewhat outcasts, come up with ways to get their hands on the magazine...settling on the idea that Billy should romance the newsstand owner's daughter so that he might gain the security code and they then would break into the shop and steal themselves a copy.

Convoluted? Yes. But there was more than one circumstance in which the characters seem to go through tremendous effort to carry out their bad decisions. They even built a scale model of the buildings so they could visualize how to break in. For 14 year old boys, this is asking a lot.

I was born in the 80's, so while I appreciate all the references and throwback pop culture, I wasn't actually in the midst of it back then. Maybe teenage boys back then really WERE that desperate to see naked pictures. It just seemed very farfetched to me.

Where I started to have a problem was with the relentless teasing the boys did, to each other, and the girl aforementioned, named Mary. When Billy does start to actually get close to Mary and develop real feelings for her, he can't even share this with his friends because the girl happens to be overweight. Nevermind that she's smart as a whip and instantly offers to help Billy with his computer programming obsession. But then again, for boys who are going this far to see nude photos, I shouldn't be surprised.

I did go through most of the novel actually liking Billy, even though he's somewhat simple, but then he seemed to flip a switch in his personality and turn out to be a lot like his friends. He does try hard to redeem himself, but in my opinion the story line wraps up his indiscretions a little too neatly, and I didn't feel hat he really had to pay for anything he did wrong.

There was a twist I thought was interesting, but the more I think about it now, it makes me rather angry. I don't want to spoil things by writing about it in my review, but this twist seems more of a convenient plot device than something that was important and progressed the story.

Although I finished the book quickly, I am not really excited about having read it. Sometimes I can find books written by men eye opening and intriguing, but this one was shallow.

I came for the 80's, I stay for the review. Tnhis ook is not my cup of tea, generally, I do not enjoy remance books and normally makes me feel a little weir when I read it. This book wasn't the exception,

A very interesting tale that held my attention all the way through. Great plot, twists and turns & the writing kept me hopping! Thanks for the opportunity with this ARC!