The Fortress

by S.A. Jones

Jonathon Bridge has a corner office in a top-tier law firm, tailored suits and an impeccable pedigree. He has a fascinating wife, Adalia, a child on the way, and a string of pretty young interns as lovers on the side. He’s a man who’s going places. His world is our world: the same chaos and sprawl, haves and have-nots, men and women, skyscrapers and billboards. But it also exists alongside a vast, self-sustaining city-state called The Fortress where the indigenous inhabitants–the Vaik, a society run and populated exclusively by women–live in isolation.

  When Adalia discovers his indiscretions and the ugly sexual violence pervading his firm, she agrees to continue their fractured marriage only on the condition that Jonathan voluntarily offers himself to The Fortress as a supplicant and stay there for a year. Jonathon’s arrival at The Fortress begins with a recitation of the conditions of his stay: He is forbidden to ask questions, to raise his hand in anger, and to refuse sex.

  Jonathon is utterly unprepared for what will happen to him over the course of the year–not only to his body, but to his mind and his heart. This absorbing, confronting and moving novel asks questions about consent, power, love and fulfilment. It asks what it takes for a man to change, and whether change is possible without a radical reversal of the conditions that seem normal.

Genres: Fiction, Science Fiction, Dystopia, Feminism, Science Fiction Fantasy, Fantasy, Adult

288 pages, Paperback

Published March 17, 2020

About the author

S. A. Jones is the author of three published novels: Red Dress Walking, Isabelle of the Moon and Stars and The Fortress. The Fortress was described by Better Reading as "one of the decade's best books".

Reviews

[Bianca · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a difficult one to rate and review.

I do not read many dystopian novels, but I was attracted to this one as I understood it to be a reversed "Handmaid's Tale". And it was, in many ways.

The Fortress is a female-run enclosure with its own rules. The men that enter it are called supplicants and they have to leave all ego and demands and do what they're told by the Woman. Some of the men there are Isvestyii - the unredeemable, ie the psychopaths, the paedophiles, whom the society sends to the Fortress where the Woman has control over their lives.

The main character of this novel is Jonathon Bridge, forty-two, a corporate executive, cocky, determined and uncaring, with a beautiful wife and a child on the way. He doesn't think much about his work dalliances with interns and other subordinates, he and others like him, assume it as their given right to indulge in the young and willing. When his wife finds out, she kicks him out. The only way for him to have a chance at getting back together is to spend a year in the Fortress.

This novel had a very interesting premise. The world building was interesting, albeit I can't say I got fully immersed in it, but that could be because of my limited imagination. I was more interested in the whys and the how come. We get the answers in the last quarter of the novel.

I expected to really enjoy this - men being made to work hard, controlled in every way, including being used for sex by the women whenever and however they chose. Wonderful, right? There was something missing and that inhibited my full immersion in the story. The day to day workings of the Fortress and most of the middle part were a bit uninteresting to me. I was going through the motions but I didn't feel much, I was waiting for things to happen. They start happening much more towards the last quarter.

I thought the female characters in the Fortress were quite muddled, I never got a sense of who they were. Somewhat ironically, although the women had the power, the main character of the novel was a man. It was all about Jonathon. Sure, he is a very realistic character, we all know men like him. He's the quintessential white, middle-aged, successful man, aka the man. There is character growth, which is the point of the journey.

The Fortress is an original novel. I found it a bit uneven, sagging in the middle, but the last quarter makes up for it.

3.5 stars

I received this novel via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

[Lilith Black Bee]

E-ARC provided by the publisher through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. My opinions are my own and are not affected in any way.

DNF at 28%

It is really a shame that I had to DNF this book. It put into a reading slump so bad that for about 3 weeks I despised reading. And to accept this, that I despised reading, it is really hurting me. Though I have tried so hard to understand and to see past those dry words! Past those hurtful words! I expected to read about strong women showing men how to understand the gravity of some of their actions and helping them to see that there are better ways to be a man in a dystopian society.
And what do you think I got?! At least for those 28% that I managed to get through.
I got a bunch of women treating men like slaves. Allowing pedophiles near underaged girls. Sexually herasing and assaulting men, men who did these things before to come to their so called Fortress. And these women, they are supposed to "heal" or something like this those men with this kind of behavior, and in some cases, like with pedophiles, to turn them into nothing, whatever that sould mean.
Now, my question is, how can you say, or assume, or suppose, or whatever, that your women only society is helping with the misbehavior of men, when they do the exact same things that the men did outside their Fortress, but with a smile on their faces and with sensual voice and the kind of sayings "Oh, whatever you are called, sorry I ordered you to fuck me but I didn't noticed that your knees were on the bare ground."?! And then sassy giggling! How is this supposed to better the men's thinking and behavior? How is, stripping them of all they have, material and psychological, supposed to make them understand that women are not sexual slaves?!
How, in the Universe's name, save the world if you put a bomb in the middle of those who put one in your society first?!...
I just can't understand this book, or what is trying to say. It's a mean and sick book, presenting itself with a superior smirk...
EXTREMELY DISAPPOINTED by this book!

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[Jenny (Reading Envy) · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book was listed in an article called “Five Sci-Fi and Fantasy Books to Ease Your April Isolation” and it is definitely captivating. It takes some of the tropes from early feminist sci-fi (women only or matriarchal) and pulls it into the near present, in an era of #metoo and consent. The central character has been sent to The Fortress after his wife catches him cheating, again, and must submit to whatever happens there. In his former life he was a high powered executive so it is quite the change. I read it in a day and was uncomfortable and delighted simultaneously.

I had a copy from the publisher through NetGalley; it came out March 17, 2020.

[Jessica Jernigan · Rating 1 out of 5]

Sadomasochistic porn packaged as bold feminist science-fiction. One of the worst books I've read in recent memory—maybe one of the worst books I've read ever.

[ToodleBean · Rating 1 out of 5]

Spoilers below.

What I thought I was going to read:
A story of strong women owning their power and sexuality. Women that have created a beautiful history and govern with fairness. I expected Themyscira and Amazon's. I expected women tearing down the Patriarchy and educating the world.

What I got:
A man stripped of his dignity and free will to be turned into free manual labour for a community of lazy women. They "fix" him not by educating him and allowing discussion but by taking away his free will and fucking him against his will. They manipulate him into failing and Johnathan spends most of his year completely in his own head confused and scared.
How this story has such a high amount of positive reviews is astounding. If the gender roles were revearsed there would be a lot of very angry people. Why is this different?

[Ghoul Von Horror · Rating 1 out of 5]

TW/CW: Language, anxiety, cheating, toxic relationships, violence

*****SPOILERS*****
About the book:
Jonathon Bridge’s arrival at The Fortress – a society run and populated by women – begins with a recitation of the conditions of his stay: he is forbidden to ask questions, to raise his hand in anger, and to refuse sex.

Jonathon has offered himself as a supplicant in The Fortress after his pregnant wife Adalia discovered the ugly sexual violence pervading his top-tier firm. She has agreed to continue their fractured relationship on the condition he enter The Fortress for one year.

Jonathon is utterly unprepared for what will happen to him over the course of the year – not only to his body, but his mind and his heart.
Release Date: March 17th, 2020
Genre: Dystopian fiction
Pages: 288
Rating: ⭐

What I Liked:
1. The idea of the plot sounded interesting

What I Didn't Like:
1. Hated the writing style
2. Characters bland and boring

Overall Thoughts:
{{Disclaimer: I write my review as I read}}

I hate the way this world is already written out. I have zero idea what these things are and they just exist. The people that John meets he knows what they are but I am confused.

Final Thoughts:
Originally I had started this book with the physical copy but I had to dnf by page 50. I was not enjoying the words that were being written. Maybe it would have gotten better but honestly it wasn't interesting.

I didn't like that when the book starts I have to spend all this time trying to figure out a world that was already planned out but not explained to me.

The characters were annoying too
IG | Blog

[Nadine in NY Jones · Rating 1 out of 5]

I don't know what this book was trying to be, but I think it failed.

The "protagonist" (if we can call him that), Jonathan Bridge, is vile and reprehensible.  Are we supposed to feel bad for him? hate him? sympathize? see character growth?  I don't know what was going on there.  He was a two dimensional stick figure.  I think we were supposed to see character growth, but he seemed like the same guy at the end as he was at the beginning.  

Jonathan ... did a thing (cheated on his wife) ... and his wife insisted that he turn himself in to The Fortress for a year of servitude or she would divorce him.  Because, sure, that makes sense.  It's obviously better for her to deal with pregnancy and a newborn all by herself while her husband is locked up and forced to have sex with a multitude of women.  Yeah, okay.  Later in the book, we get a flashback and Jonathan does point all this out to Adalia, and she hand waves it away with some nonsense about how he's always been a giant in his own mind and he has to learn that he's not that important (no this made no sense to me).  There are some other crazy flashbacks, including a weird scene where Adalia handcuffs him in the back room of a club and confronts him with a tribunal of various women he has wronged. (One of these women later kills herself, and I gotta say, Adalia's weird confrontation seemed like a more likely cause than what Jonathan did not do - she was drunk and passed out at an office party and he left her alone and someone else raped her - he was in no way responsible for this, but they all blame him and he obsesses about how guilty he feels for it, and he is broken when he learns she killed herself). I mean, WTF was this crazy scene??? In a book filled with crazysauce, this scene was the craziest. 

The Fortress is a bizarre sadomasochistic fantasy that an adolescent would come up with.  I have a hard time believing that an actual adult created this mess, but here we are.  The Fortress is run by women called The Vaik (are they human? alien? what's up with them? dunno, but they are tall, tanned, and blonde, and trained in hand-to-hand combat, because of course), and the men who live there are slaves, there for a year, or more, depending on the situation.  The men all wear these weird tunics that end just below their balls, because sure that's a totally practical garment. The men must do whatever the women want, and the women often want things like doggy-style sex in the vegetable garden while a dozen other women look on and masturbate.  Because, sure, that's exactly what women running a fortress would want.  I did think it was interesting that the women all seem to have orgasms but the men do not.   We are privy to Jonathan's pathetic inner thoughts, and he certainly thinks about his penis and testicles a lot, but he never seems to think about this weird orgasm imbalance. 

Is The Fortress like a prison? Is this where rapists are sent? Is this place meant to rehabilitate sexist and violent men?  I have no idea why it would.  If the world is so full of vile, sexist men, how has this Fortress managed to exist for so long?  Do they have some magical force field around the place?  According to the book, they've got just a stone wall with sentry points, and a signed treaty with the country around them.  

Jonathan gets mad when a woman has sex with him during her period - he breaks glass and punches walls and generally acts like a toddler.  Jonathan is repulsed by seeing naked older women who also (gasp! how dare they??) have sex with him and his buddy.  In a hot tub.  Because of course.  Jonathan feels "labor pains" when his wife gives birth to their daughter - and seriously, SPARE ME how ludicrous this story is.  He does really dumb things like spontaneously racing up to a schoolgirl and hugging her because he's just so sure she will be thrilled to hear that his daughter is born and OH MY GOD THIS IS SO DUMB WHY WOULD SHE CARE WHY WOULD HE DO THAT I HATE HIM.

There's a lot of sexual assault, including a woman who sticks some substance up Jonathan's butt that forces him to get an erection, so she can have sex with him, and later a scene where another guy anally penetrates Jonathan against his will and Jonathan ends up liking it. Jonathan muses later that it was not "rape," it was "an encounter."

When Jonathan is not servicing one of the women or chatting up a schoolgirl, he's working in the fields pulling weeds, or thinking about how much he misses his wife, he's thinking violent thoughts about one of his fellow slaves, a guy who broke into a girls' school with vaseline and twine (this combo is mentioned so many times, and I ask you: what rapist bothers with vaseline?? did something like this ever actually happen??).  Jonathan really hates this guy.  He really wants to punch him, but punching is against the rules.  Verbal taunts are apparently not against the rules, and the "paedo" enjoys taunting Jonathan.  A lot. It's all very juvenile.  The schoolgirl plotline was pretty weird, too.

Jonathan ends up actually murdering this paedo - I have no idea how THAT was meant to contribute to Jonathan's character growth. The paedo wanted to die but didn't have the guts to follow through so he literally asked Jonathan to do it. And he did. I mean, WTF. Naturally, Jonathan feels really guilty about this. Later, we learn that Jonathan's friend, Daidd, was just as vile as this paedo: he was a literal incel in college, obsessed with a classmate, and ENRAGED that she was dating another guy, so he threw acid in her face. As punishment, he was sent to The Fortress, and his victim decided that a good punishment was for her to throw acid on HIS face, and for him to spend 7 years in The Fortress. He likes it there, though, so he volunteers to stay there forever. At some point he has some kind of epiphany and becomes a better person, the man we meet in this book, but that all happens off-stage. I wasn't sure what Jones' goal was here - was she trying to humanize incels who attack women, and show that they are just sad lonely men who can be rehabilitated? Because, I am NOT here for that plotline.

In the end, Jonathan has made a friend, has had sex with a variety of people (women AND men) and he's in awesome shape after all the field work, but otherwise he still seems like the same person he was when he went in.  What was the point??

[Doug · Rating 3 out of 5]

Although the premise of the book is initially fascinating, the longer it went on, the less interested I became. Three things largely account for this, I think. One: Jonathon, the main character, never seemed convincing, and always came across to me as a construct created by a female author, never acting nor reacting as a 'real' man would. Two: often transitions between scenes, particularly when going from present into a flashback, or vice versa, were awkward and jarring - I often had the unnerving feeling something had been unintentionally deleted in the eBook ... and these were also sometimes unnecessarily prolonged or giving far more information than one needed/wanted (I am thinking primarily of Daidd's backstory coming only 25 pages before the end, at which point we largely don't CARE, and want to get back to the main narrative). Three: Long segments become polemical diatribes or overly didactic ..we GET the gist and the story tells us what we need, without being lectured to in Feminism 101 terms. I will say there were a FEW surprises, welcome or otherwise, primarily the man/man sex scene that I in no way saw coming!

[Gritnay · Rating 5 out of 5]

I’m actually a bit torn about this book. At times it made me feel very uncomfortable regarding topics of consent and freedom of will, but the main character goes through such a transformation from a vain sleepwalking entitlement to an open feeling person while struggling with exactly those (and more) topics.
Those descriptions of inner turmoil and thought when he is trying to deal with all that is happening to him, but also the consequences of his actions (or lack thereof) are what make this story so compelling.
There is some abrupt switching between situations with not much transition - but this may just be due to the editing of the ebook ARC. At first it confused me, but later I perceived it as a dreamlike quality to the telling.

I received this ARC from the publisher through netgalley. Thank you

[Cher 'N Books · Rating 1 out of 5]

1 star = Not for me.

“What man, after all, wanted to serve women?”

This was a strange one. I love reading unusual, quirky or edgy stories, but this one unfortunately did not work for me. It’s about an indigenous race of women called the Vaik, who have their own dystopian community set within the modern day world. They are self-governed in their society where men are inferior, only being tolerated for the ways they can serve women through manual labor and providing sex on demand and as directed.

I get that this is trying to show the harm and absurdity of misogyny by reflecting an exaggerated treatment onto men. However, I don’t like reading about when women are treated poorly, used or raped, and I don’t care to read about men being abused either. Initially this book gives off a staunch anti-pedophilia vibe which everyone should be able to get behind, but it turns gross when it eventually starts to imply that pedophilia is okay and acceptable if it is the child that initiates the sexual behavior. That’s a hard no.

In addition to these two themes that I found to be poorly delivered, I did not care for the explicit sex scenes. Rather than being erotic, something I could appreciate, they came across as shocking and disgusting, more akin to body horror. I first started to consider DNF’ing this book around 10% through, and rarely are those instincts proven wrong. I continued to consider DNF’ing throughout the entire novel, but was fascinated just enough by the bizarre Vaik culture to complete it. I’m sure this one will work for the right reader, but it was a disappointment for me.
-----
First Sentence: Jonathan Bridge pressed the buzzer beside the imposing iron gate and waited.

Favorite Quote: You can’t be in love and keep your power.

[Julia (bookish.jka) · Rating 3 out of 5]

I requested and was lucky enough to receive an eARC copy of The Fortress from Netgalley, after having read a few reviews and being really intrigued by the mixed reactions. As a result, I really didn't know what to expect from the book, especially having never read anything by the author before.

So....the general premise is that there's a female only society, collectively called the Vaik, coexisting within the modern world, in a floating city known as the Fortress. The only men who live there are essentially the Isvestyii - 'the unredeemed', criminals who are serving time at the mercy of the Vaik, and the Supplicants who choose to spend a year in total service to the Vaik, to 'find' themselves, or to atone for their prior behaviour in some way. 'Service' is absolute, and includes manaul labour, sexual favours and no questions asked. Ever.

Our protagonist, Jonathon Bridge, is a sleazy high flying corporate executive, who cheats on his pregnant wife and elects to enter the Fortress as a Supplicant, in an attempt to save his marriage and redeem himself as a husband and future father. His past is revealed in a series of flashbacks throughout the book. What happens during his year of service tests his every limit...

There are so many triggers in this book (rape, child abuse, consent issues, violence, adultery), thankfully many of them off page, but the author handles it all with compassion and I personally didn't find anything too gratuitous, although many issues were uncomfortable and challenging for sure.

I loved the author's writing style, the prose was sharp and the story flowed well. The world building was good, but I would have liked more about the Vaik's internal structure and justice system. Also another chapter by way of conclusion! The Fortress raised so many interesting issues, I could see it being a fabulous Book Club read - for the right group 😊

I really struggled with my rating, giving it 4 stars immediately but now I've had time to let it all cogitate, I'm leaning more towards 3.5 ✨✨. Definitely an interesting read though and recommended.

Thanks to #NetGalley and #ErewhonBooks for the opportunity to review #TheFortress.

[Simone · Rating 5 out of 5]

If you need to get a conversation going at book club then this is the novel to choose. I have given it 5 stars - not because it is my favourite book; not because I loved the characters; not because it creates a fantasy world I wish I was part of...these are often the reasons for loving a novel but they are only partly true in this case, for me at any rate. So why, then? It's because I love a book that makes you think, and the only thing better than that is being able to talk about it afterwards with other readers (preferably with some olives and good cheese, followed by a delicious meal and your social lubricant of choice).
The ideas raised in The Fortress are fodder for hours of debate, as my book club can attest. It is better (and less sadistic) than The Natural Way of Things. It is as thought-provoking as The Handmaid's Tale but with a more contemporary flavour - not "let's look at the evils of patriarchy by watching women suffer" but "how might we think differently about the world" (of course I think Atwood is amazing, but, well, we've been there). However, The Fortress doesn't pretend to solve society's ills with its matriarchal structure, as some critics seem to think it should. Instead it takes you on a journey, effortlessly I might add, and throws up question after question that will challenge readers to reflect on their own attitudes, their experiences, their workplace relationships and perhaps even their personal ones.
But please don't dismiss The Fortress as an "issues" book. It is literature. The prose is crisp, the structure artful. I particularly loved the second half, when the protagonist's past is revealed in flashbacks which serve to...but I don't want to spoil it. You need to read this novel.

[Nicolas Lontel · Rating 2 out of 5]

Beaucoup beaucoup de potentiels, j'étais très excité à l'idée de lire ce roman étant donné mes intérêts de recherches sur les sociétés gynocentriques et androcentriques en science-fiction, mais ce que j'ai lu à la place, c'est un roman qui, bien qu'il connaît le contexte dans lequel il s'inscrit et tente de ne pas tomber dans des pièges d'inversion de genre, finit exactement par faire un simple gender-swatch d'une société dystopique patriarcale ultra-violente envers les hommes pour la transformer en société recluse de femmes qui font la même chose envers les hommes, mais au nom d'une cause soi-disant meilleure (même si le roman ne fait pas du tout l'apologie des motivations derrière The Fortress, les explique simplement).

J'avoue être un peu désespéré· par toute cette production culturelle (qui va en grandissant) de gender-swapping comme s'il fallait qu'un homme se fasse agresser, violenter et violer pour pouvoir compatir avec les femmes qui subissent le même sort et qui ne finissent que par montrer un modèle pseudo-essentialiste de notre société sans proposer de meilleurs modèle. Par paraphraser la journaliste Laurie Penny, il est souvent plus facile d'écrire une dystopie que de proposer une nouvelle voie.

Peut-être mon appréciation du roman est teinté par mon roman préféré à vie Les bergères de l'apocalypse qui reprend des thèmes et motifs similaires et en donne une bien meilleure exécution et portrait de son époque.

[Samantha · Rating 4 out of 5]

***I received an ARC of this for free from NetGalley and the publisher in return for a truthful review.***

The entire time I was reading this book, I kept thinking to myself, THIS is the kind of book that's going to immediately be put on reading lists for university classes all over the place. A high-powered misogynistic executive named Jonathon gets found out by his pregnant wife, who demands he spend a year in the matriarchal society The Fortress as a supplicant, or she will leave him.

I can see how this book would have made a lot of people, particularly men, uncomfortable. Jonathon is reminded constantly in The Fortress that, as a male supplicant, he has no autonomy over his own body and actions, and we are constantly reminded of how uncomfortable and powerless he is with windows into internal panic and fear. It crosses lines of consent and pushes boundaries. And all I could think to myself was that there have been so many books written about women being in this same position - at men's mercy, powerless, used for their bodies and minds and strength against their consent or under the guise of coerced consent - that people laud and scream about how the whole world has to read them and study them to understand. Why are we comfortable witnessing women's pain and discomfort, but not men's? Why are we more comfortable reading about Offred being raped in The Handmaid's Tale than we are reading about Jonathon being used in The Fortress?

I think this was an excellent book that will get people talking, and no matter what, it will get a reaction.

[Stay Fetters · Rating 2 out of 5]

“Truth. I value truth. Truth runs deeper than honesty.”

This was just weird and not in a good way. I can’t even say that I was fully invested in the story. It started off interesting but I lost interest about a quarter of the way in. I almost gave up a few times and I probably should have.

I did kind of enjoy men getting what they deserve but it just wasn’t that intriguing. Jonathon was a slimy a**hole and I felt no empathy for him. He tried to make himself sound like a good guy but he was just as guilty as the others.

This was not an impressive read and I can’t say that I’m glad that I read it. I felt like my time was wasted.
And there were too many upsetting things to handle all at once.

[Caitlin Theroux · Rating 1 out of 5]

Well. That was...something. I’ll get to the review tomorrow. I need to cleanse my brain eyeballs.

***

Thank you to NetGalley for an ARC of The Fortress in exchange for an honest review. The views presented herein are my own and may not reflect the opinions of the publisher, author, or distributor.

Boy. That was weird.

Usually I try to start my reviews a little more formally, but man. I’m still processing what I read.

Okay, here’s the thing. This is the time and the sociological climate in which to discuss consent, toxic masculinity, and the lack of power women have in a lot of fields (still) among many other things that, unfortunately, are not common sense yet--like how it’s definitely not okay to seduce interns/low-level employees with the promise of a promotion should they obey. But as much as this book said it discusses those things, I don’t think it did. Or, rather, it did on a very confused, contradictory plane.

The main character, Jonathan, has seduced many of the junior analysts in his office, despite having a pregnant wife, Adalia. She agrees not to divorce him if he willingly submits himself to a year of servitude in what’s called The Fortress. The Fortress is a (walled city? Isolated community?) walled isolated community run by a race consisting of only women, I’m pretty sure.

Do I sound confused? I am. Something that wasn’t given a heck of a lot of attention was the world building. I know a lot about Goosen’s Trial, and moving rocks, but not about where this race, The Vaik, came from, the language they speak, why they’re only women (I think), who/what the electii are, why the electii can choose their gender or no gender at all, why men from the outside are sent specifically to The Fortress after gross sexual misconduct, and why Vaik sexual practices are so...laissez faire, for lack of a better term.

Jonathan goes to The Fortress to develop as a person. Which doesn’t really happen. He starts to understand, a little, about the inappropriate pressure he put on the junior analysts to bow to his whims, but other than that, he just comes to realize that he misses his wife and wants to see his child. Okay. A trip to Alaska for a year could have solved that problem. Why The Fortress? Adalia flipped--and rightly so--when she discovered his office daliances, but going to a place where one of the rules is no one can refuse sex, that was okay with her? Maybe I’m not seeing the point. Maybe I’m not smart enough to “get it.” But in light of that, let’s analyze a few more cracks in the veneer that make this book more revenge porn (in the literal sense) and less a message we need to sit down and discuss.

The #MeToo movement highlights the abuses of men in power over the women who work with and for them. This book has been touted as something fans of The Handmaid’s Tale will love. I’m inclined to disagree, because this book feels more like a “how do you like it?” than an attempt at educating and sending a hard truth. If this was meant to educate men about the way women are subjugated to unwanted sexual advances, wouldn’t it make more sense to not set this in a place where men are essentially raped every day?

(Watch me drop the “r” word.)

Yes, the argument can be made that consent is given when the men sign their paperwork and crap at the door. Yes, it can be contrived that consent now means anytime a Vaik wants a man, she can have him because of that consent. But the men have no say now. If they’re too tired, if they want to say no, if they’re asked by an UNDERAGE VAIK GIRL to have sex, men can’t say no.

This is rape. Between two married people, making your spouse have sex with you is rape. In a romantic relationship, it’s rape. Making someone have sex with you is rape. Period.

After this revelation, I’m dropping my initial two stars to one. Because it’s not a message. It’s revenge. And revenge doesn’t educate or reform. Revenge harms, and nothing else.

Sorry, S.A. Jones. You won’t change my mind.

[Elaine · Rating 3 out of 5]

Thank you to NetGalley for a Kindle ARC of The Fortress.

I was excited when my request was approved because the premise sounded so intriguing, even though I'm not an avid reader of sci-fi, the blurb caught my eye.

Jonathon Bridge is an adulterer. And, in order to make amends with his wife, he has agreed to a life of servitude at The Fortress, where a matriarchal society called The Vaik rule.

For 365 days, he will be their subject, including his body.

It will be a memorable and remarkable year as Jonathon embarks on a journey of self-discovery, meeting new friends and encountering people he never would have met, otherwise; but just as importantly, he will understand what brought him to The Fortress and come face to face with himself and ask that question some of us do at one point in our lives: are we a good person?

The author writes well, and she paints a futuristic, dystopian world where women rule, but just a small part in which peace, commerce and a shaky alliance has been built between their peoples and the outside world.

The world building is believable, fantastic and fascinating - I wish there was more of The Vaik, more exposition, just...more about them.

The Fortress is one of those books where The Vaik are more interesting than the rest of the population, including Jonathon.

I detested Jonathon, and despite what he learned about himself, his actions and what led to his incarceration at The Fortress, I still couldn't shake off the fact that he was complicit in so many heinous acts/indiscretions.

At times, I found it hard to believe his wife would allow him back into her life, but they have a child.

Life is hard and not easy for most of the population, implied by the author when she refers to people who make it out of difficult neighborhoods and into the big city where Jonathon works, not unlike our current political and socio-economical climate now.

The Fortress isn't for everyone and some scenes may make readers turn their heads; there are plenty of triggers; rape, pedophilia, sexual and physical violence, but it is a thought provoking read, not what you would expect from a science fiction novel.

It encapsulates the various social issues inherent in our world today; patriarchy, sexual and physical violence, enslavement of mind and body, subjugation, freedom and free will, in a new way that not only makes you think after you finish reading it, but long after you have put the book down.

[BreeAnn (She Just Loves Books) · Rating 4 out of 5]

The Fortress was a very dystopian-type story, but the dystopian society exists behind the walls of The Fortress. Outside those walls, the world is very much like our world today. This book will piss people off and make others name it the best book of the year, which is why I loved it.

The Fortress is an enclosed community where the Vaik, a matriarchy society, live. Men from outside The Fortress can apply to live there temporarily for a variety of reasons. For men, the work consists of hard labor and being a sex slave. Jonathan has chosen to live there for one year to win his pregnant wife back after a ridiculous string of sexual encounters with office "poodles".

The entire story is told from Jonathon's perspective which was interesting, but also frustrating. We only learn what Jonathan learns, which leaves a lot of unanswered questions about the Vaik and their Fortress. We do, however, get a chance to see the experience through Jonathan's eyes. He's clearly a callous man, so he is hard to connect with, but that felt right for the story. I liked seeing glimpses of recovery within him, but also seeing his struggles throughout the process.

This story is fairly explicit. The sexual scenes are not long and drawn out, but there is use of explicit language for parts of the human body. Additionally, it does describe things being done between one, two, three, etc people. So, if that's not your thing, this book won't be for you, but if you can handle that, the story is really quite interesting!

Overall, I enjoyed this story. I thought it was an interesting idea with characters that elicited strong feelings from me. I would recommend this for readers that enjoy a dystopian-type story and are not deterred by sexual content.

I was provided an advanced reader's copy of this book. I am leaving my review voluntarily.

[Debra · Rating 2 out of 5]

Digital ARC received from NetGalley.

A great premise muddled in execution. I guess because Jonathon is already basically a cad, a tiger can't completely change its stripes, but a total transformation would've felt forced as well. There were nuances that just couldn't be teased out properly. The tables have been turned on him, but the effects over time are nebulous, probably because certain experiences are hinted at it and glossed over (basically intimate interactions with the Vaik). I questioned how much of the "insignificance" his wife hoped he'd experience actually happened, like whether he would really feel it deep down. He has some clarities about self, yet he still referred to interns at his former job as "poodles" throughout his supposed transformation. The story of what brought him to the point of entering The Fortress weave in and out of his current time and experiences there, and at times the back and forth is a little confusing. Other than visiting a couple of parts of the inner city within the Fortress, we learn little about Vaik society beyond what is discussed during his experiences as a field hand and potential farm stud.

[Moon Plays Magic · Rating 2 out of 5]

2.5ish

When I was in 7th grade, I was writing a book like this with my friend, the teacher found it, and I got ISS. That's why I bought this book. This book was nowhere near similar to mine 😂.

This wasn't bad but it wasn't good either. It's told through the perspective of a whiney little b of a man. I thought he'd get tolerable but he annoyed me. The scene with Daidd and Jonathan was bizarre and random. Daidd's backstory materialized near the end of the book and was unnecessary and oddly placed.

[Karen McQuillen · Rating 3 out of 5]

The writing was good and the story was a page turner. Spoiler alert. I doubted that Jonathon was much changed by his journey, though. It seemed to reinforce the privileges he already enjoyed, in spite of being removed from his environment for a year.
He seemed to act just as he would have on the “outside”. Perhaps if the story described his life the following year, I would have had a better understanding of the impact of his experience.

[Sam Benson · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is the first book that I’ve read in a quite some time that has sucked me in and chewed me up and spat me back out at the end feeling...like I might never be quite the same! It was confusing and often uncomfortable (at times unpleasant even) and completely engrossing to me. I’m definitely not sure what to make of it. But it raises some really interesting questions in a way unlike anything I’ve ever read!

[Bree T · Rating 4 out of 5]

Jonathan Bridge enjoyed a top corporate job and all of the ‘perks’ that came along with it. First year interns were referred to in a denigrating way as ‘poodles’ and it was expected that they would not refuse a bit of fun be it in the office during work hours or at one of the booze laden parties celebrating successes. When Jonathan’s pregnant wife discovers what he’s been a part of, she has one thing she wants him to do in order to save their marriage – or she’s walking. He has to enter The Fortress and give himself up completely into their power, for one year. No visitation. Very little, almost no contact with the outside world. And his wife is pregnant, so Jonathan will miss the birth of his child.

Jonathan enters The Fortress and has to agree to abide by their rules. He is not allowed to ever question. He must do what he’s told, no matter what. He must never refuse sex. He has to completely submit to them in all forms and find out what it’s like to be truly powerless, his needs and wants not at all a concern. It’s the complete opposite of what Jonathan has known and experienced in his life, as a high ranking male in a powerful corporate firm.

So I had to agree to read this after I read the description. It’s dropping at such a pertinent time, with all of the public accusations levelled at men in power such as Harvey Weinstein, of gross sexual misconduct. Jonathan probably doesn’t believe he’s done anything really wrong – the poodles love the attention, they vie to be there and it’s not like he cares about them. He loves his wife but sometimes he slips up. It isn’t until his wife confronts him (in what is a truly twisted and amazing scene) that he realises just what the consequences of this behaviour could be. And so he agrees to go to The Fortress for a year in order to prove himself.

The Fortress is a completely isolated society run by women. There are men there but they are either supplicants like Jonathan or men who have been sentenced there for heinous crimes. Jonathan is assigned to a work crew and spends his days clearing a type of weed from the gardens, which is incredibly difficult to remove. The men mostly work in silence but he finds a companion of sorts in one of the other men, who is a favourite of the women and often chosen by them for sexual duties.

It takes a long time for Jonathan to adapt to the ways of The Fortress. His immediate reaction is always to ask questions on why this is done or why that isn’t done, completely ignoring the first rule of never questioning anything. He’s there aware that he will have to have sex with other women and that he cannot refuse it but the sexual encounters are not at all about Jonathan and he is utterly powerless during them and basically used. It takes Jonathan a very long time to accept his role in The Fortress and he’s frequently reprimanded for his questioning mind and reluctance to completely give himself up. There was one thing I did kind of admire Jonathan for refusing to do, despite the fact that it breaks most of the rules in The Fortress but ultimately because it makes me uncomfortable doesn’t make it wrong in the ways of The Fortress. It’s something that Jonathan has to learn too, that he isn’t responsible for making these decisions, the women are. And he has to go along with them unquestioningly, do what they tell him to do, no matter how he feels about it. He’s helpless, powerless, a worker drone to do what he’s told and be at their mercy. Not unlike a poodle really.

For all his faults I believe that Jonathan does love his wife and is desperate to save his marriage. And although I think he agreed to go into The Fortress thinking it’d be easy, he stuck it out even when it wasn’t and when he faced fear, humiliation and was little more than slave labour. I like to think that he learned a lot from his time in The Fortress and that he leaves with a better respect for women and consideration for their feelings and what an imbalance of power means. But the Jonathan in The Fortress is a Jonathan with few other options. There are no corporate types, no powerful men. When he leaves he has plans not to revert to the Jonathan of the before and hopefully, they play out. I think that Jonathan’s evolution as a character was very believable – a year is a long time and it takes him a long time to adjust to the ways of life in The Fortress, to really understand the role they are playing and how things he believes are black and white, aren’t really. The Fortress itself was a really interesting place and I liked the idea of it – but for Jonathan to change he had to spend a year immersed within it. Could he have changed himself without that? I honestly don’t think so. I’m not sure Jonathan really understood the implications of some of his behaviour until he experienced the various ins and outs of being a supplicant and understood what it was like to have no power or body autonomy and be in a position of having to agree to something. It helped him understand the poodles and realise that the culture around them wasn’t ‘real’ – they were seeing them the way they wanted to, and as less than human.

This is a very inadequate review for a very interesting book. S.A. Jones has created a society that turns most western societal power structures upside down and it’s fascinating to contemplate. This is a book you could dissect for hours.

[Amy Gordon · Rating 4 out of 5]

Interesting characters!! Really weird stuff going on here tho..

[Selen · Rating 5 out of 5]

Super captivating. Slightly fucked up, i dont understand the point in some parts of it. But overall liked it and wish i could live in a world with only women, that would be so peaceful 😌😌

[Zordon · Rating 1 out of 5]

The story starts with a fantastic and interesting premise focused on gender role reversal, and how sexist society conditions a person to act a certain way. But S.A. Jones quickly loses all their credibility on the subject due to displays of ignorance and creepy sexual wish-fulfillment from a male POV.

There are three main areas where the author fails. First, Jonathan is allegedly an unlikable protagonist, but he doesn't have any emotional profile and acts virtuously and consistently from the get-go. At the book's start, he had just gotten caught for being a mega-misogynist and the ONLY reason he was doing the punishment stay was to get back with his hot pregnant wife. The first thing that happens is that he gets anally probed. Jonathan has literally zero reaction to this. He doesn't care at all, feeling just a tad shy afterwards. Are you kidding me? A womanizer--especially one so used to being in a powerful position like Jon-- would most likely react by covering their shame with anger. I would've taken any emotion at all, to be honest. But he was so vanilla and pleasant about it. Jonathan is obviously learning a big lesson at the hands of the Vaik (the name of the society), huh? Jonathan's stoic existence continues for the rest of the book. He never emotionally reacts, except for righteous indignation. Imagine that, the womanizing asshole is only emotionally invested in the saving and protecting women as early as page 50. If you are going to write an unlikable protagonist, do me a favor and make him unlikable, please.

Second, the role reversal fails to illustrate how terribly women have been treated in the past. Jonathan's first forced sexual encounter in the Vaik society is with a sun-tanned amazon hottie. And he's super into it. And the only emotion he has about the situation is that he has cock-envy for the other dude who bangs this random hot lady.

Wow, there is a lot to unpack here. Let's start with the fact that Jonothan gets to get it on with a coppertone babe as part of his "punishment" for sleeping around behind his wife's back. This is completely farcical, sexual-fantasy nonsense. If the author had ACTUALLY attempted to show a gender role reversal, Jonathan would've felt coerced into performing sexual relations with someone who he otherwise would not have wanted to have sex with. The Vaik would've picked a time when Jonathan really was not in the mood, which happens all the time for women who are groped in public or receive unwanted attention from strangers. They would've used their power in society to shame him if he denied them, the same way that women are called slut for either sleeping with or not sleeping with a self-identified "Chad". And if the author really wanted to strike home with the point, the woman would be ugly from Jonathan's point of view, just like how women are held to a high standard for their appearance at all times while their boyfriends and husbands wear a ratty t shirt over a beer belly.

The last nail in the coffin, though, is the author's fail to use language properly to match their theme. On page 62, the "man-slaves" are given different, fancier food. Wow, what a huge moment for these slaves! After nothing but porridge and bread, they are allowed to eat chicken drumsticks and pies. How could the author screw up an obvious moment where scraps are tossed from the upper-class table? By writing this moment as if THE VAIK were the ones being ALLOWED TO EAT AT THE FEAST.

The sentence reads "The Vaik shared in the feast, sitting among the men."

No. That is incorrect. The correct way to write that would've been something like this:
"The Vaik allowed the men to sit at the tables with them. They were even given some of the same food as the Vaik."
I'm no writer, but you can see the difference, right? My version shows my awareness of the power differential between the groups. It shows how the same information is described, but in the context of a culture where men are below women.

Anyway, you can plainly see by now that this book isn't a potent examination of ingrained gender roles and sexism. Its a self-satisfied fantasy with erotica moments that reads like a self-insertion for a submissive "pick me" guy.

[Casey · Rating 1 out of 5]

When I started reading this book I thought it was challenging, but that it would likely pay off in the end. Honestly, by the time I finished this novel I realized that the discomfort I slogged through because of the subject matter didn't offer any reward.

The main character, Jonathon Bridge, is an irredeemable chauvinist who agrees to enter The Fortress to redeem himself to his pregnant wife after his true view of women and his complacency in their abuse is brought to light. The Fortress is a closed-off society of women who accept supplicants like Jonathon for the duration of a year during which time the men can ask no questions, must obey ever order of the Vaik (the women inhabitants of The Fortress), and under that last term they must also submit to any request for sex.

Probably the biggest theme in this work is consent and what it really means. If that strikes you as odd that a book about consent has the set-up that no men in The Fortress can refuse sex, then you're not alone. In his pre-Fortress life, Jonathon doesn't understand that the women in his corporate job sleep with him not because he is irresistible, but because the culture dictates that they must just to get ahead, making their "decision" to sleep with him an inauthentic choice. Likewise, while Jonathon "willingly" submitted to the laws of the Vaik he does so because it is the only way he can win back his wife and future child. That being said there is a LOT of non-consensual sex scenes once Jonathon enters the Fortress, and they all seem to be written as if the author expects them to be erotic for the reader instead of horrifying.

I had high hopes for this novel. I thought, "This will be satisfying, bad men getting a hyperbolic taste of what it is like to live as a woman in a patriarchal society." Instead, I felt that the novel itself was too much like its main character. While trying to be some kind of "great feminist read" it constantly used the pain and trauma of women to future the plot for the male character, Johnathon. In the course of the novel four different rapes are mentioned and all of them are simply plot points that either move Johnathon to action or show his apathy. All of the girls that are raped in the course of the story also die, either from rape related injuries or by their own hand. The book even goes so far as to almost praise the girls for "taking their bodies back" in this act of defiance. While I'm sure that many victims of sexual assault do feel this way, I think it is horribly irresponsible and dangerous to frame such a serious issue in such a positive light.

Three of the girls raped in the course of the novel are children, and the man who did it is the main antagonist to Jonathon. Near the end of the novel the author seems to want you to pity the child rapist who's deeds are described grotesquely earlier on the work. Not only that, but in another weirdly forced parallel of what consent really means, Johnathon later has sex with an underage Vaik girl because she tells him too. I guess because she is Vaik and raised in an entirely different society the audience is supposed to forget that this would still constitute statutory rape in the world outside of The Fortress.

My last major issue is the lackluster backstory of Daidd, Johanthon's only male friend inside of The Fortress. At the beginning of the novel we find that half of his face is badly deformed, likely burned, but we don't find out why until the end of the novel. It comes to us in a flashback. It's sloppy, it's poorly written, it's cliché, and honestly it doesn't fit the character of Daidd at all.

Like I said earlier, I was initially excited about this book, and I did read it considerably quickly for how little I actually enjoyed it in the end. After nearly 300 pages of discomfort with no satisfying pay-off though I just feel like I put myself through a lot of unpleasantness to see the main character "redeemed" in the end without actually learning anything or even really changing.

[Mara Rosenberg · Rating 2 out of 5]

Not sure I liked anything about this

[Sam Still Reading · Rating 4 out of 5]

The Fortress sits on the outer realms of what I usually read, but I saw it mentioned in the Readings Monthly as a book to look out for. I’m not one to dismiss their recommendations lightly and it was happy coincidence that I received an email about this book too. How could I say no? I like my feminist dystopian literature (it’s about as sci-fi as I get) and The Fortress is one of the best in this sub-genre. Plus, I love the seventies inspired cover.

The story comes from the point of view of Jonathon, a high flying executive in a world not too different to what we know. I also felt that there is a dash of Mad Men office politics in his workplace. The young female interns in his offices are called ‘poodles’ and having a bit of ‘fun’ in the photocopy room is practically a rite of passage. But as you can guess, it doesn’t seem this way to the talented young women trying to climb the corporate ladder. After his wife Adalia discovers the level of sexual violence at Jonathon’s office, she leaves him but offers his one last chance for the sake of their unbound child. Her ultimatum is to spend a year at The Fortress, the home of the Vaik, for one year. Jonathon agrees to this but never did he dream that his year would be the most eye-opening of his life.

So who are the Vaik? To Jonathon and his cohabitants in the city, very little is known about these female warriors. Their motto is, ‘Work. History. Sex. Justice’, which has spread a few rumours amongst giggling teenage boys. They live on the edge of the city, taking in the occasional male for their needs as well as supplicants like Jonathon. The Vaik have no superpowers but a strong sense of history and justice. This is a group where the female is all powerful, in all aspects. For Jonathon, submission is not something he is used to. He can’t ask questions, can’t call a Vaik by her name unless expressly asked to or deny sex. His power is reduced to rubble inside The Fortress. It’s a sharp comparison between the ‘real’ world and that of the Vaik that gets the reader to question the power and sex imbalances in their own world.

As expected, Jonathon finds it difficult to give up his alpha male role and submit to the expectations of the Vaik. But it’s not just respect for women that Jonathon learns during his time – there is questioning of justice, atonement as well as the feeling of being utterly powerless. Does he truly learn the error of his ways? I’d like to hope so and there are signs towards the end of the book that Jonathon is remorseful. The lessons that he undergoes are brutal at times, but told in a way that hints rather than boldly spells it out. Sex is a strong part of the narrative, but it’s described in such a way that it’s not there to titillate but depict the power imbalance. The Fortress is a look at power and all its imbalances, then turns it on its head when it comes to the Vaik. These women are warriors; proud, strong and capable. They have honed their skills and customs over centuries to create an alpha female domain. To Jonathon, it’s novel and fascinating. To others, it’s some sort of utopia.

The Fortress is boldly written. It’s imaginative without getting bogged down in world building, which lets it focus on the themes of power and love in different forms. It’s well worth a read if you want something to jolt you out of your comfort zone.

Thank you to Echo Publishing for the copy of this book. My review is honest.

http://samstillreading.wordpress.com

[Mara · Rating 2 out of 5]

Jonathon is deeply in love with his wife. Truly, he thinks she's amazing and the best thing that ever happened to him. But that doesn't stop him from participating in what amounts to a rape culture in his high-powered corporate world. Did he himself ever actually rape one of the "poodles" (as female junior analysts are called) in his office? It doesn't seem so, but he certainly engaged in activity where "consent" was not exactly voluntarily given. And, as is pointed out to him, he doesn't do anything to stop other women from being raped either, even though he's fully aware of what's going on around him. When his wife finds out, she kicks him out and agrees to take him back only if he does a year as a supplicant at The Fortress, a nation-state ruled by the all-female Vaik.

The Vaik play by their own rules, the most important of which seems to be that the men who live with them can never say no, to any of them, about anything. Shockingly, Jonathon doesn't find it hard to "submit" to their will when they slip out of their diaphanous gowns, although he does struggle with the rule against asking any questions. Somehow, the rules, and the hard physical labor are supposed to reform him into being the kind of man who doesn't objectify every woman he sees. How that's supposed to happen when women are propositioning him regularly is unclear, but the system does make him submissive, even to the point of doing things that violate his own moral code, which may not be exactly what his wife had in mind.

Where this book really fails, though, is in helping the reader understand how these changes happen, or even how they're supposed to happen. Jonathon moves rocks to learn to control his emotions, yes, and is able to move rocks in his mind to simulate the control even when there are no actual rocks to hand, and he wears a technically advanced piece of clothing that fits him like a glove and, we are told repeatedly, leaves very little to the imagination. But the remainder of the Vaik's program is left to the reader's imagination. We are told that it works, not shown how it works, which makes the results not entirely believable.

I wish I could recommend this book. The premise is really interesting, which is why I read it in the first place. Unfortunately, the execution leaves a lot to be desired.