I have practically not been able to put this book down.

As a '90's kid, 'Summer in the City of Roses' felt nostalgic to me right from the start. Blend in some important social issues and increasing fantasy elements, and it contains basically everything I love in a book story-wise. That is paired with a beautiful writing style that made me want to suck up every sentence and never let it go.

I liked the first half of this and then it kind of went downhill. Seeing Iph and Orr separated and each of them being on their own for the first time and discovering things about themselves gripped me. Both siblings found great people to help them and expanded their horizons past the wealthy, privileged lives they knew. This story has a fun cast of characters and I loved the themes of body and sex positivity.

Where this lost me was when things got fantastical. There were bits here and there from the start, but they were small and fit well. Things really amped up near the end, with strange dreams and magic and I wasn't sure what was real or a vision. There was a part where a character was pregnant with her own grandmother and I just didn't understand. If the magic had been done differently and better explained, I would have liked this more. I also felt like the ending didn't resolve anything and was pretty open ended.

If I knew the fairy tales this was based off of, maybe I would have understood it more. As it is, I had no idea what to expect and was thrown off when things took a wild turn. I did enjoy the beginning and seeing Portland in all it's weirdness.

I voluntarily read and reviewed this book. Thank you to Soho Press and NetGalley for the copy.

I had high hopes for this book, but it unfortunately fell short. First, this book desperately needs to have trigger warnings. There are so many sensitive topics that could be triggering for readers (like I was). When a book discusses heavy topics like kidnapping, drug abuse, and homelessness (among many other things), readers should be warned so that they can know if they want to put themselves through that. The author and publishers not including this was a failure. Despite being part of the communities supposedly represented in this book, I felt like the rep fell short and did not accurately represent me. Granted, this is just a personal opinion, and other own-voices readers might feel differently, but I certainly did not. I also struggled to like Iph. Given that she was one of the main characters this was a problem. She seemed superficial and, truthfully, annoying. I will say that I enjoyed the magical realism aspect of the story. Overall, however, I could not finish the book, have no desire to finish it, would not recommend it, and have no desire to purchase it. I wish I could like this book more than I did.

This book was so good! I was totally immersed in the punk and runaway type of scene. I loved the dual perspectives that the characters brought to the table. I was just going with the flow and then the author threw me into a new universe. I was not expecting it to happen so close to the end, but it did make so much sense why they did.
This was such a new concept to explore in a novel and I am here for it! I loved the idea of running away and then having to find your own voice and life with the people and circumstances that come your way out in the real world. I was so shocked as I was going through this book at the cultural elements that the author put into this piece. It involved fairy tales and folklore that I didn't know, so it was super refreshing to hear about those. I did get lost a bit through the story, but the characters brought me right back up to speed.

4/5 stars! Totally and completely recommend for those who love runaway adventures and a mystical side to their books!
**I was given a copy through NetGalley in exchange for a honest review!

5/5 stars

Thanks for providing this precious arc in regards to the publisher and author!

Wow. Stunning. The complexities of this novel just makes me crave for more.

Book Review for Summer in the City of Roses by Michelle Ruiz Keil
Full review for this title will be posted at: @fyebooks on Instagram!

When Iphigenia, Iph for short, considers what life will be like while her mom is away for a dance program, she imagines taking care of her brother Orr and helping her dad navigate Orr’s needs. Orr cannot handle loud noises, changes in routines, and suffers from uncontrollable meltdowns. Their mother believes what Orr needs is a routine and activities to keep his mind busy. What their dad believes Orr needs is to toughen up. He enlists the help of a boys correctional “camp,” and Orr is taken from his home with a bag over his head to simulate a kidnapping. Iph discovers her father’s betrayal at a party her father has taken her to so she will be out of the house when Orr is abducted. In a fit of rage, Iph leaves the party to wander the streets of Portland, alone and in a cocktail dress.

Realizing she needs help, a teenager named George and dog Scout offer to escort Iph so she will not be unprotected. After returning to the hotel and realizing her father is not there and she cannot get a hold of him, George offers Iph a place to stay and their help rescuing Orr from the boy’s camp.

Orr, meanwhile, has woken up in a tent next to a pile of his hair with zip ties on his wrist. After being freed with the help of a mouse, he is guided out of the forest and to safety by a coyote, noting that his mom also has a special way with animals that he seems to have inherited. Once out of the forest, Orr finds a young woman who offers him food and help.

Iph begins to search for her brother with the help of George and their friends and exes. As Iph searches for Orr and helps George as well, she begins to realize that she has feelings for George and has begun to enjoy being Iph and not necessarily an older sister responsible for her brother.

Orr is being taken care of by a riot grrrl band called the Furies. The girls, Jane, Allison, and Mika, agree to help Orr and give him a place to stay, as well as helping him navigate his meltdowns without his old coping mechanisms. Jane introduces Orr to a young girl named Plum, and Orr, who has questioned and been questioned about his sexuality, realizes that he doesn’t know what gender he is attracted to, but he is for sure attracted to Plum.

Orr and Iph both separately tell their father they no longer trust him or want to come home. Instead, both siblings are discovering who they are separate from their families. Iph is learning about the world around her and the different people who occupy it along with their struggles. Orr is learning he can be accepted outside his family and begins pushing past his comfort zone.

However, a night of intense new experiences proves to be too much for Orr, and he has to choose between staying with his family or going where they cannot follow. Can Iph with the help of newfound friends convince Orr to stay, or will they both realize their lives are going in different directions?


Sensitive Material:
Staged child kidnapping
Sex and safe sex paraphernalia
Descriptions of dildos
Off-page warnings of sexual and physical violence towards women and sex workers
References to heavy drug use (i.e. heroin)
Allusions to abusive relationships
Characters suffering from drug addiction
Mushroom consumption and hallucination
Characters with occupations in sex work
References to community drug programs (i.e. needle exchanges)


This book is definitely a unique storyline. I loved the 90s setting, and even though the author didn’t overdo the fads from the decade, I was still nostalgic for handmade zines and Bikini Kill. There were feminist issues that are still relevant today that I think would be important to young adult readers and adults alike. Issues such as racism, sexism, and sex workers rights are brought up, as well as progressive yet controversial programs such as clean needle programs. There are scenes of recovering heroin addicts, but when I read these scenes, I didn’t think they were glorifications of drug use. I saw it as an honest yet age appropriate depiction that people who do drugs aren’t bad or evil, they are hurting in some way and need help. With the exception of the siblings’ hallucinogenic scene towards the end of the book, drug use is not portrayed as something fun or beneficial. It is also a book that LGBTQIA+ representation. I believe George is gender neutral, possibly trans, and Iph is bisexual, possibly pansexual. There are other characters who are also in same sex relationships, and this kind of representation is important, especially for teenagers.

I will say the last 25% of the book had such a sharp plot twist it took me out of the story. There was nothing overtly magical or mythical with the book, so when Orr sprouted horns and started to turn into a deer, I found it jarring. I know it is a mix of a greek myth and a Grimm fairy tale, but I was lost, honestly. It was abrupt and made the story awkward.

I picked up this book for the wrong reasons, but aren't I glad that I did! This is a contemporary YA novel exploring family betrayal and love, anxiety, autism spectrum, LGBTQ feelings, trangender identity, family violence, prostitution, homelessness, baby blues, creativity, bohemian lifestyles and so many important and difficult subjects.

So why did I pick up this book for the wrong reasons? Well, it was all for the cover. And I will honestly say that it is a little lacking, not colourful and energetic enough for the novel inside truthfully. “Summer in the City of Roses” deserves something punchy and vibrant. Sadly, I am sure that many have probably passed the cover thinking it wasn’t for them because there is something very old fashioned and peaceful and self-assured about it. It’s a real shame, it doesn’t reflect the energy and loss and wonder and growth inside. But it immediately drew me in because it portrayed one of my all time favourite writers: George Sand, the 19th century controversial French novelist: a woman who dressed as a man to be the artist she wanted to be. See for yourselves https://www.who2.com/bio/george-sand/
I thought it was only a chance event, but it made me feel so happy - no one reads George Sand, I barely managed to convince my best friend to dip a toe. But I am so glad it wasn’t a coincidence - there is a very lovable transgender character in the book called George and even if it’s nothing more than an Easter egg for a crazy wide reader like me, it was fantastic.

So what is the book about?

We follow Iph, a lonely girl who loves theatre and runs away from home after her father sends her too sensitive brother to boot camp. Because that’s how we make a man. The escape and search for the brother is littered in magical realism and follows loosely one of the Grimm fairytales I hadn’t known prior to reading the book: “Brother and sister”.

What did I like?

There is something very nostalgic about this work for me. I’m not sure how much it will talk to teens today (it shouldn’t go into too young hands anyway, I would recommend at least 16), but it talked to me who was a kid in the 90s and grew up in an artistic family, oh does it talk to me on so many of those levels... And the frustration of not having a way to communicate, mobile phones changed so many things.
The fairy tale element is very interesting, I’m a sucker for it and I kept looking out for the elements of the story which I read prior to the book just for the fun of getting the references, though in no way is that necessary to get the story.
The prose also very beautiful and I loved the sections of the book that were dedicated to the brother. Orr is a fantastic character to explore and his interaction with the world is fascinating. I loved his time with the Furies, and truthfully I would have loved to read a whole book about him. We don’t read enough characters on the spectrum and having his coping mechanisms, reflections, questioning, his perplexities at things was refreshing and insightful.

What I was less of a fan off

Truthfully I liked Iph, the sister less. She was a little too much of the “poor little rich girl” for me, though it makes sense as her journey is about discovering how sheltered she was and gaining new appreciation for life. Luckily she contains her judging and is open minded.
I also found the dream sequences unnecessary. The magical realism was enough for me. I liked that, it felt subtle, just a kiss of fairytale. The dream sequences felt more heavy handed, as if the writer suddenly lost her confidence in being able to breathe enough wonder into her story. The novel worked well without. But apart from those little point the book was really wonderful and I am surprised I haven’t heard more about it and that more people didn’t pick it up.

I highly recommend it to people who enjoy initiatic journeys - those books about growing up and learning about yourself. If you liked Butterflies in November (the road trip of an Icelandic woman with a deaf 5 year old across their country) or Folklorn (the story of a scientist woman trying to decipher the mysteries of her family through the korean fairytales her mother left her) then you are sure to love Summer in the City of Roses, don’t get fooled by the YA tag. This is not for an immature audience.

So, I have a little dilema with this book. I felt the same when I'm reading Mathis Malzieu' books: enchanted. This story lives in a bubble of magical and beautiful world, and this is why I couldn't understand it. I know I liked so much, the fantasy flows like a tiny breath in each word, but I don't used to this kind of books. It was a nice read, describing the difficult relationship between Orr and his father, describing the love that feels Iph for his brother. The way Iph was lost in the city and has a desperate need to find Orr, was a lovely adventure to discover. I can't tell much about this story. Beautiful, magical, fantastic, yes, without any doubt. Weird and difficult to understand the whole story, yes. If you want to go out from your comfort zone of books you're used to, read this one.

Summer in the City of Roses is a unique take on the Grimm fairy tale Brother and Sister. With a strong LGBTQ twist and Portland in the 90’s as a backdrop, this book left me yearning for my childhood summers. Iph and Orr are separated for the summer and trying to make their way back to each other. Including a cast of strong female friends and lovers, Keil will have you wishing you were backstage at a grunge concert.

It's the early 1990s in Portland, and siblings Iphigenia and Orestes Santos Velos are spending their summers apart for the first time after their mother has left for a three-month-long dance residency. When their father had Orr sent away to a "rehabilitation" center in the woods, Iph ran away from her dad and ended up alone in the city only to run into George, a mysterious teenager who lives on their own with their dog, Scout, and rides a bike everywhere. Iph accepts George's offer of a place to stay, and soon falls in love with this new world.
When Orr escapes the camp and ends up at a faraway rest stop, he meets Jane, Mika and Allison, or "the Furies," who can tell that he's run away and lets him live with them in their tiny pink house nicknamed "Penelope." Meanwhile, Iph has received the information that Orr has left the camp and is dedicated to looking for him, with the help of George and their knowledge of the city. One of the new places she comes across is Shiny Dancer, the store and organization providing resources and supplies to sex workers. From there, she learns of an upcoming benefit concert for the store that will feature the Furies, and decides to attend in case Orr shows up with them.

4.5 stars.
This wasn't the fast and easy type of book I usually like to read, but I didn't have a problem with that. A lot happens at once, and I don't think a single page went by without something extremely important on it. You'll definitely have to pay close attention to this book-- it's not something you can skim.
I'd previously wanted to read this author's debut novel when it came out (All of Us With Wings) but I decided not to at the last minute before it came out because I read reviews that mentioned how not okay the "romance" in it was.
Well, that didn't happen in this book, and I'm so glad I gave the author another chance, because I loved the writing style. While most of it was a contemporary type story about siblings and their hopes to repair their relationship with their dad, nearly every scene was written like it was magical realism or fantasy of some kind. In the best way possible, I mean. Magical realism I'm fine with, but books that get too magical aren't my thing. And this book was still great for me-- proof that there's something for everyone there. I'm sure fans of fantasy will enjoy it as well. And when the magical realism actually happens, toward the end, it fits right in with the story. Isn't forced at all.
Iph loves poetry, theater, and vintage clothing, and has recently decided that she's not going to change for anyone else, which I loved about her. Orr is quieter, likely neurodiverse, looks up to Iph regularly, and is starting to discover his talent for music by watching the Furies and their Riot Grrl culture. He even plays onstage with them once.
I also liked that both of the siblings are queer, as are several other important characters in the book (George, Cait and Lorna. Lorna was actually my favorite side character.) Both of the love interests (George and Plum) were good for them, even though at times it seemed like the author was trying too hard to make Plum sound absolutely perfect. The Furies were great characters too, and I was relieved that Orr wasn't romantically attracted to any of them (they were all 24 and he was 15.) In fact, they developed a sibling-like relationship. You know I love found family.
And even though found family is an important theme here, the story ends with both Iph and Orr on good terms with their parents. Getting to see their mom's backstory was also one of my favorite parts. And Iph has decided to let herself enjoy acting, without letting anyone's criticism hold her back. A protagonist who likes to perform! I rarely see this, and I was so excited to. Wherever Iph would be in 2021, I hope she succeeded in theater.
The ending might make you cry. But in a happy way. So, contemporary and fantasy readers alike, please read this whenever you get the chance.

This was not the book for me. Which is such a shame because greek mythology retellings are some of my all time favourite stories.

But I was unable to connect to any of the characters, the plot failed to capture my interest, and the overall tone/vibe was a lot heavier than the synopsis implies.

This just isn't quite what I was wanting when I picked this up.

As a result of my various committee appointments and commitments I am unable to disclose my personal thoughts on this title at this time. Please see my star rating for a general overview of how I felt about this title. Additionally, you may check my GoodReads for additional information on what thoughts I’m able to share publicly. Thank you for giving me the opportunity to read this and any other titles you are in charge of.

This was a really interesting book to read that deals with a lot of heavy topics. It's worth noting that prostitution, dildos, drug abuse, homelessness, etc are discussed throughout the book and that one of the protagonist's stories opens with him being kidnapped and taken to a boot camp. These topics might not be suitable for everyone in the YA category, so this is just something to keep in mind. Overall, I enjoyed the story but did find the ending a little too abstract for my personal tastes.